2010 Miami Hurricanes Football: Miami vs Maryland

It was just another day in the ACC. A wacky league with very little top-of-the-line quality produced yet another ugly game that nevertheless managed to be immensely exciting and dramatic.

On a day filled with all sorts of twists, turns and surprises, the Miami Hurricanes got the last laugh against the Maryland Terrapins. True freshman quarterback Stephen Morris endured a baptism by fire in his first college start and hit receiver Leonard Hankerson for a 35-yard touchdown pass with 37 seconds left on Saturday, rallying Miami past Maryland in a thriller before a sparse crowd at Sun Life Stadium. The win gave Miami its sixth win of the season and made the Canes bowl eligible, but the sad part about this game for fans of “The U” is that this is what their team might look like for the rest of the regular season.

This game was a train wreck from the word go for coach Randy Shannon’s club. Playing on home turf did not make the men of Miami more comfortable. The Canes dropped a hold in the process of botching one extra point. A block by Maryland snuffed out a second PAT attempt. Miami also committed 10 penalties for 100 yards, with one of those flags wiping away a defensive score. A touchdown for Miami by Marcus Robinson on a 55-yard fumble return was negated when teammate Sean Smith was flagged for grabbing a face mask. That violation led to a Maryland field goal and enabled the visiting Terps to claim a 20-18 fourth-quarter lead before the Canes’ final drive got the job done.

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Morris, for his part, threw two interceptions, one of which became a pick-six thanks to Maryland’s Alex Wujciak’s 60-yard return in the second quarter. To his credit, though, Morris continued to stand in the pocket, and his patience was rewarded on his final-drive strike to Hankerson, an elite open-field playmaker who has saved the Hurricanes time and again this season.

Miami’s wasteful and ragged showing almost lost the game on a day when the Canes were superior up front. Miami virtually doubled the Terrapins in terms of total yardage, 504-254, and held Maryland to only 96 yards on the ground. Maryland scored just one offensive touchdown and was limited to a lonely field goal in the second half. The fact that Miami barely beat this Maryland team at home is a reflection of how far the Canes have fallen, and more specifically, of the extent to which they don’t have quality depth. That used to be Miami’s calling card, but now, Randy Shannon doesn’t have the bodies needed to survive an ACC season.

Fortunately for “The U,” Maryland just isn’t terribly good. That’s why a wild and wacky game remained in doubt to the wire. Enjoy the entertainment value; just don’t think the Miami Hurricanes are back to being their old dominant selves.

Miami Hurricanes vs Maryland Terrapins Football Recap