We started this series with the most obvious answer of all simply to get it out of the way. We all agree that there is no doubt that to play at the highest levels of college football Miami head coach Mark Richt and his staff must recruit many more, and much better, players to Coral Gables.
So, for UM to beat teams like Alabama, Oklahoma or Clemson, win the ACC title and play for a National Championship they need more talent on the field.
That's actually so simple that we can all agree that it is a no-brainer.
But not so fast my friend! You see the devil is always in the details.
Simply amassing or stacking up talent in and of itself does not a National Championship win. The college football landscape is littered with uber talented teams, in terms of "star power", that have failed in their quest to win it all.
Coaching, chemistry, competition, injuries, attrition and even scheduling can impact and even derail a team's quest for the trophy and the ring.
So we took the time to take a closer look at the specific areas of performance on offense, defense and special teams that would help Miami compete with the top teams in the Country like the Clemson Tigers. Today we look at few key NCAA offensive stats to see where the Hurricanes stack up against the Tigers:
Total Offense: Clemson #31 / Miami #58
Clemson ranked 27 spots better than Miami in total offense in 2017. Miami's offensive struggles were well documented and the inconsistent performance at the QB position was the primary reason for this difference.
Malik Rosier was both good (Notre Dame) and bad (Pitt), lucky (Hail Mary's) and unfortunate (drops) and seemed to have more hot and cold spells than a 50 year old woman. To be honest he was spectacular at times and downright awful at other times as he completed less than 60% of his passes which is generally considered the dividing line between good and bad QB play.
The second factor that impacted the Hurricanes offensive performance this season was injuries to key players at several key positions. Star RB Mark Walton went down early in the season, followed by a lingering hamstring/knee injury to top WR Ahmmon Richards and then dominant TE Chris Herndon was lost the season late in the year and before the big game against Clemson.
Solution For 2018: Miami must have better and more consistent play at QB and avoid injuries to key players due to a lack of depth that still permeates the roster. Easy to say, hard to do. We do know one thing: Competition at QB in Coral Gables will be fierce going into next season. We like competition, yeah, we like it a lot!
Rushing offense: Clemson #33 / Miami #73
Yeah we get it, spread offenses and the passing game are all the rage in college football. But the best teams still run the ball effectively when and as needed to impose their will on the other team and to control the game and the clock.
Once potential Heisman candidate Mark Walton went down the UM running game went down with him. Replacement RB Travis Homer actually did a nice job replacing Walton for most of the season but the Miami OL performed poorly and did the rushing attack no favors. The offensive line often lost the battle at the point of attack and backfield penetration was fairly common.
In spite of the injury to Walton experienced RB Trayone Gray rarely saw the field and Freshman Dee Jay Dallas was used sparingly even though he ran the "Wildcat" offense efficiently when called on to do so. Apparently highly touted RB Robert Burns was placed in the FBI's Witness Protection Program and accordingly has not been seen for years.
Solution For 2018: Hurricane fans are still waiting to see if Mark Walton will return for next season. We hope he does and think that he will. Regardless help is on the way as 5 star RB Lorenzo Lingard is on the way to Miami along with talented 4 star RB Camron Davis. We contacted the FBI regarding the aforementioned Mr. Burns, but they declined comment for this article.
Passing Offense: Clemson #52 / Miami #50
This is the one area that Miami ranked ahead of Clemson in the NCAA offensive stats for 2017. For not having a quality QB I am sure that is pretty surprising for most Hurricane fans. We have already discussed the QB quandary in depth so no need to regurgitate those facts or sentiments.
The WR core was hurt by star WR Ahmmon Richards being hurt most of the season in one way or another. Richards was about half speed for half of the season when he could get on the field. Numerous key drops by other members of wide receiving squad hurt Miami's offensive production and reduced third down conversions and scoring opportunities.
Freshmen Jeff Thomas and Mike Harley made some contributions in 2017 and will be expected to step up next year with the departure of the 'Canes MVP Senior WR Braxton Berrios, Senior TE Herndon was severely underutilized in the Miami offense. That too must change with new talent coming in.
Solution For 2018: Ahmmon Richards must recovery from injury, manage to stay healthy and return to his Freshman form. Thomas and Harley must improve and team up with Cager and Langham to help the UM passing game.
Add in true Freshmen Mark Pope, Dee Wiggins and Brian Hightower along with highly regarded TEs Brevin Jordan and Will Mallory and you have quite the WR core with excellent depth. Assuming they have an accurate QB to get them the ball on time in the right location so that the yards after catch can also improve.
Scoring Offense: Clemson #21 / Miami #57.
This is where the rubber meets the road when it comes to offensive performance. Forget total yards, rushing yards and passing yards, just show me the scoreboard and I will tell you who won the game. And not surprisingly this is where Clemson outpaced Miami by 36 spots in the NCAA stats.
More specifically, that equals out to a TD more per game or 35 points for the Tigers versus 29 points for the Hurricanes. The old wise saying of "35 points will win you most games" still rings true even in pass happy 2017 college football.
Solution For 2018: Here we will choose to follow the famous KISS principle...Keep It Simple Stupid: Score more points!
With better quarterback play, more creative play calling and more talent on the field, Miami should be able to be more consistent and score more points in 2018. For Miami to catch Clemson they must find a way to convert more third downs, improve their running game, make more explosive plays in the passing game and improve their red zone offense.
Will it amount to a TD more a game? To keep it simple...It must and it better. Or else the same results will follow and that is not what head coach Mark Richt, his Miami Hurricanes or their fans want to see in 2018.