2011 Miami Hurricanes Football: Miami @ Maryland

Who could have known that the Labor Day night game concluding the first week of the 2011 college football season would acquire such a distinctly bizarre backdrop, featuring a program that’s about to go off the grid for the next several seasons?

When the Miami Hurricanes take the field against the Maryland Terrapins, the team from South Florida with a new head coach will be staring at NCAA penalties that are certain to be severe and substantial. The Nevin Shapiro scandal, revealed in all its unsparingly nasty details last week, will surely sideline the Canes for a long time, representing a crushing blow to a program that owned the college football world from 1983 through 1992, and then acquired similar prominence from 2000 through 2003. Miami will be unable to compete for division and league championships, not to mention the national crowns that were expected at “The U” in the second half of the 1980s, the early 1990s, and the first four years of the 21st century.

Everything about this game against Maryland has immediately ceased to matter. All anyone can or will talk about in this game is how quickly Miami’s first-year head coach, Al Golden, will bolt for another program, since he won’t be able to win titles in Coral Gables, Florida.

For what it’s worth, here’s a general overview of the two teams competing in this contest:

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Maryland brings in a new head coach (Randy Edsall from Connecticut) but returns tons of productivity on offense and may feature the best offense in the ACC Atlantic Division. Quarterback Danny O’Brien comes into his sophomore season after winning ACC Rookie of the Year in a sterling campaign. O’Brien was 192-of-337 for 2,438 yards with a 57 percent completion rate. His freshman TD/INT ratio was 22 to 8, a sparkling number for a young signal caller. It is very possible that, as just a sophomore, O’Brien may already be the best QB in the ACC. Unfortunately, he loses his best target: Maryland receiver Torrey Smith declared early and was drafted in the second round of the NFL draft. Smith totaled 1,055 yards on only 67 receptions, for an eye-popping 15.7 yards per catch. Unfortunately for O’Brien, the Terrapins’ second-leading receiver Adrian Cannon graduated, leaving the quarterback with a young and untested receiving corps. Fortunately, Maryland has outstanding tailback Davin Meggett to carry the load as a ballcarrier to take pressure off the passing game. Meggett ran for 720 yards on a team with two productive backs in 2010, but running mate Da’Rel Scott (708 yards last season) is no longer with the team, so Meggett will likely get more carries this year unless a second back is able to fill the gap. The offensive line will likely continue to be a concern for the Terps, but they had injury issues throughout last season and still managed to field a strong offense.

On defense, it’s all about the front four’s ability to allow linebacker Kenny Tate to roam the field. He’s the only Terp to make the preseason All-ACC team, but he will be a contender for national postseason All-American consideration if the young defensive line allows him to do so. Only one starter returns on the line, so Tate may have to fill in gaps rather than roam the field. Maryland lost a lot of productivity on defense, including linebacker Alex Wujciak, who was the 2010 leading tackler, so Tate will have a number of young players around him.

On offense, the Hurricanes return starting quarterback Jacory Harris, but he can sometimes be more of a liability than a playmaker. He is interception prone, having thrown 15 last year despite splitting time with Stephen Morris. Harris was 148-of-270 for 1,793 yards, but the 14/15 TD/INT ratio was unacceptable. Leading receiver Leonard Hankerson is gone, along with his 1,156 yards. Travis Benjamin (743 receiving yards last year) should lead a solid receiving corps, along with LaRon Byrd (441 yards). Leading rusher Damien Berry is also gone, but Lamar Miller showed a ton of potential as a freshman last year (646 yards). The offensive line should provide protection for Harris and a nice push for the running game; four starters return from a good 2010 line.

The defensive line for “The U” returns most of its starters from last year, but it loses All-ACC end Allen Bailey. Marcus Forston is an outstanding tackle, and Olivier Vernon has a lot of potential at defensive end. Senior linebacker Sean Spence leads the second level of Miami’s defense – he posted 111 tackles last year. Safety looks to be a very strong position for the Canes, with Ray-Ray Armstrong piloting the back line of defense for Miami. Armstrong was the team’s third-leading tackler last year. Spence and Armstrong were both All-ACC preseason picks.

There’s your overview of the Terrapins and Hurricanes. You may now resume discussing just how badly the NCAA will hammer Miami into irrelevance.

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