Hurricanes Not Affected by Hype

A quick glance at Miami's opening month of the college football season generated raised eyebrows. At Florida State, Georgia Tech, at Virginia Tech and Oklahoma, oh my. Many believed the Hurricanes would be OK if they split the games, two up and two down.

Don't look now but the expectations in Coral Gables, Fla., are rocketing skyward. UM players appear to have once again taken ownership of the program, pointing to opening victories over Florida State (38-35) and last Thursday against Georgia Tech (33-17).

While the undefeated Hurricanes are getting love from fans and the media, stoic UM head coach Randy Shannon says the hype won't affect his players. Shannon believes his team has learned its lesson from the past few years. He also credits players for their ability to stay focused and demonstrate a trait that some may not associate with UM teams -- humility.

And, just in case the Hurricanes feel too good themselves and get lost in this hugfest, they will have to answer to Shannon.There are a lot of people in the community that are praising us now, and they are hyping us up, but this team isn't taking anything to the head. We are very humble."
-- Randy Shannon

"It won't. I won't let it affect them," Shannon said Friday during his session with the media.

"They've been there before, that's what I keep telling you. Sometimes you have something bad happen to you before you learn your lesson. This team has learned its lesson.

"One thing I want to congratulate this team on is our ability to stay focused. There are a lot of people in the community that are praising us now, and they are hyping us up, but this team isn't taking anything to the head. We are very humble. We understand we have other teams at hand we have to beat."

UM certainly made that point against Georgia Tech, snapping a four-game losing streak in the series. The Hurricanes jumped out to a 17-3 lead in the first half and extended that with a touchdown on the first drive of the third quarter to win going away.

Quarterback Jacory Harris, who is quickly becoming the poised face of the program, completed 20 of 25 passes for 270 yards with three touchdowns and no interceptions after he enjoyed a 386-yard outing against the Seminoles. Nine different players caught passes against Tech.

Graig Cooper and Javarris James combined for 165 rushing yards. The Hurricanes finished with 458 yards of total offense (7.1 yards per play) and held a commanding advantage in time of possession, specifically in the fourth quarter (10:33 to 4:27) to thwart any type of comeback.

"He's using all his tools," Shannon said of Harris. "He's not a selfish guy. He's going to use what the defense is allowing him to use and he makes plays that way. And those guys are making plays for him, too, by catching the football."

Not to be outdone, UM's defense slowed Tech's triple option after the Yellow Jackets left a tire imprint on UM a year ago. Tech had just 95 rushing yards and averaged 2.4 yards per attempt.

Shannon said his team played like it practiced.

"They were focused," Shannon said.

"It started in practice with intensity -- they didn't let up. When you watch that as a coach you see those guys can really have something going for them in this game. We dominated in some phases, certain parts of the game. You look at the guys now, they're a lot older.

"Last year they ran up field, were taking too many chances. Guys understand we did all this last year; if you stay sound in what we're doing we'll be okay. And that's what we did. They learned their lesson. It's like a kid – they screw up, you say stop and they don't. You hit them on the hand and they stop. That's basically what it was in that type of game."

Last year UM rebounded from a 2-3 start to win five consecutive games. But, right when people thought UM was pointed in the right direction, the Hurricanes lost their last three games to Georgia Tech, North Carolina State and Cal. Many then wondered if UM's opening schedule in 2009 was simply too much, too soon.

"A lot of people expected us to go 0-4," strong safety Randy Phillips told CanesSport.com. "I don't know what they were thinking. They hadn't seen this team play. They hadn't seen our offense. We're ready. We're ready for anyone. We embraced the schedule, and we're still embracing it." Added sixth-year defensive back Eric Moncur: "Winning those first two games on national TV, all the doubt is turning into belief. They know the U is back."

The Hurricanes, of course, must continue to move forward. Off today, UM will certainly have an eye on the Nebraska-Virginia Tech game in Blacksburg, Va. The Hurricanes tangle with the Hokies next Saturday at Lane Stadium in a pivotal Coastal Division showdown. Oklahoma awaits on Oct. 3 at Land Shark Stadium.

Shannon isn't about to let his team become blinded by distractions.

"I thought the football team improved," Shannon said of UM's effort against Tech.

"They showed some signs of where we are at as a football team, showed maturity as far as coming out and playing the way they did, especially on defense starting out the game holding them to a field goal and responding back. They got a lot of push up the middle to get them in third and long situations, keeping them off balance. It was a tremendous job in the run game from last year, (and) was the difference in the game."

It also raised eyebrows across the nation.