We'd like to welcome 86cane from Canespace, a blog that once again proves that substance abuse and delusions of grandeur do not preclude one from blogging about college football (in fact, it apparently helps in attracting comments, of which Canespace has a very impressive amount of).
It's the usual - we send a few questions their way, they send a few our way, we swap answers and post. It was ugly (if you want something really hilarious, read their full posts/.comments), but that's what you get when you associate yourselves with Miami fans.
1) Randy Shannon - Solid addition to Miami? Will he bring Miami back to the "promised land"?
The majority of hurricane fans remain absolutely convinced that Shannon it "That Guy" who will lead Miami back to contending for a national championship on a regular basis (Editor's Note: Too bad they didn't feel the same way about Pat Nix.). The fact that many see him as the ultimate true Hurricane (player, coach, etc.) who bleeds orange and green makes it easy for fans to like and support Coach Shannon. You have to understand that Randy had nothing to work with talent wise (Kirby Freeman at QB? Please!) when he got the job and had to change the entire "Country Club" culture that was left behind by Larry Coker who couldn't recruit to save his life or his job at UM.
Of course as always there are the doubters and the haters out there too. They like to bring up Shannon's poor communication/PR skills, his sometimes cold or distant demeanor on the sidelines during games, his poor personnel decisions (Can U say Patrick Nix?) (Editor's Note: Yes. Yes we can. It's pronounced "Nine to six.") and his game day decision making and clock management issues. But they are in the extreme minority when it comes to The Boss.
However, Shannon has to start winning this year (9-3) and next (11-1) (Editor's note: Please note that this means they will either sweep the ACC or beat Ohio State. Shannon may be in trouble.) to keep the fans on his side. Recruiting alone will not get it done in Miami where most fans expect dominance and only follow winners.
2) If Sebastian and Buzz got in a fight, how long would it take for Sebastian to run away like a little bitch?
Whoa, whoa, whoa, hell no, that ain't gonna happen! Sebastian is hard core 305 and he ain't nobody's bitch! Even at the slightest provocation he'd go all psycho on Buzz, throw down the Soldja Boy routine and smack that sorry azz looking bumble bee thing you guys got up there in the 404 around so bad it would make your head spin.
C A N E S...CANES!
3) Our defensive line isn't going to go apeshit on you like they did last year, but let's be honest, Derrick Morgan is probably as good as Michael Johnson was last year. I noticed the lack of effective pass rush that FSU brought. How do you think Harris is going to do in the pocket - was the FSU game an outlier or a regular performance? Can your o-line hold down a stud like Morgan?
Everyone said that Miami's offensive line was supposed to be our weak link this year. Not so fast my friend! (Editor's note: Oh, Lee Corso answered these questions. That explains a lot.) After the FSU game Hurricane fans are feeling pretty good if not downright confident about this group (Editor's note: They can catch passes in no-coverage situations!). Now GT could change that and Morgan is the guy who is most likely to make an impact (DM is usually on top - Harris will be making the impact. Also, expect two picks from Morgan Burnett.) The Canes offense is now under the now excellent coaching of Mark Whipple who will obviously game plan to stop Morgan. they will have a RB chip him (...right) and also call draws and screens to his side of the field to slow him down or negate his outside pass rush. Don't say you heard that here, OK?
Jacory Harris is the Ice Man. He's as cool as they come and he certainly ain't afraid of no Techie. In case you were hiding under a rock and missed it, for his first game as a F/T starter JaScory waltzed into Doak Campbell Stadium and thrashed the Seminoles in front of 81,00 screaming fans on National TV. I was there and I saw it in person and I am here to tell U that the kid has skills. No, make that mad skillz!
Now for his encore he's going to serve up some home cooking at The Shark (Landshark Stadium) to the delight of a highly charged and highly drunk Thursday night crowd in Miami. Now if Morgan gets through and knocks Jacory out of the game, then that another story all together. But I don't see that happening.
4) Dane picked us to lose to you and VPI this year. What were your predicted losses for this season? Can you justify Dane's lack of confidence regarding Miami? (Editor's Note: Short answer - no.)
I picked the Canes to go 9-3 in 2009 with losses to GT, Oklahoma and North Carolina. To beat GT we still have to prove we can stop the run, which honestly I don't think we can. So to win this game we have to play solid special teams, get some turnovers and maybe even out score the Jackets.
After watching UNC play this past weekend I think we beat former UM coach Butch Davis and his Tar Heels badly. So the Canes could go 10-2 this year. Now, IF we beat GT on Thursday, you better just step aside and hide the women and children because all hell is gonna break loose and the fury that is Miami Hurricanes football is going to come raining down upon the NCAA like you have never seen before.
Unless of course you count the 2001 National Championship season and the 13 future NFL first round draft picks on that team. Yeah, that one was pretty good too.
5) Our rushing has only gotten better. Shannon has written off last year's game (which is probably a good move). However, what happens if we come down there and have 4 rushers go for 75 (or goodness, 100) yards apiece with a decent showing on the pass?
There is no sugar coating this answer: Make no mistake about it, Tech’s rushing game tore Miami’s defense up last year in Atlanta. The Canes defense looked lost, unprepared and poorly coached against the Yellow Jackets. But that was under former defensive coordinator Bill "Forever" Young’s read and react zone blitz defense. Young is now at Oklahoma State who got plowed last week after rising as high as #5 in the polls. Talk about over rated?
This year, new UM Defensive Coordinator John Lovett (Auburn, UNC) has the Canes playing old skool Miami defense: Play fast, play hard and attack! The Canes now have depth on the bench and speed on the field so we expect different results this year at The Shark. Lovett is the guy who will officially "let the dogs out" against GT, so we recommend that U strap up Yellow Jackets, we are coming for U! (Editor's note: this has me licking my chops. Hard, fast, football-hungry defense? Sounds like a delicious night full of busting 50+ yard runs. I can't wait.)
While I'm definitely feeling more confident about playing Miami on Thursday, I'd still like to thank 86cane for his feedback. Make sure you stop by Canespace later on today and look for our side of the story!