Miami Hurricanes: The Latest At “The U”

The Miami Hurricanes men’s basketball team fell short of an NCAA Tournament berth, while the Lady Canes keep doing their thing. Meanwhile, baseball is coming off a recent conference sweep and football continues its preparations for fall. Read about all and more in this week’s installment, “The Latest At The U”.

21 wins and a few signature victories weren’t enough for Miami, as those 12 losses (including head-scratchers against Green Bay and Eastern Kentucky) kept the Hurricanes from The Big Dance.

While it’s hard to complain about the omission, Miami’s lack-of-inclusion feels a bit snub-worthy when taking note of veteran programs who were on the bubble, yet found a way into the 68-team tournament.

Indiana (20-13), Purdue (21-12) and Texas (20-13) all found their way into the Midwest bracket, while LSU (22-10) earned a nine-seed in the East. Boise State (25-8), Georgia (21-11) and even UCLA (20-13) were invited, while the Canes wound up NIT-bound.

Second-seeded Miami opened the Not-In-Tournament with a home showdown against North Carolina Central and the combination of hangover and frustration was apparent, with the Canes squeaking out a, 75-71 victory.

Angel Rodriguez got his first start in five games and Miami took an early lead that soon vanished when coach Jim Larranaga swapped out all five starters almost halfway through the first period.

Nimrod Hilliard was on fire for the Eagles early, 3-of-3 on three pointers and finishing with 19 points on the night, while Jordan Parks finished 11-of-13, scoring 25 in the loss.

Manu Lecomte was the Canes’ leading scorer with 18, while Sheldon McClellan followed with 15. Lecomte was also a clutch 10-of-11 from the line and Miami as a team was 23-of-25 on the night—a difference-maker in a less-than-spirited overall performance. Tonye Jekiri and Ivan Cruz Uceda combined for 11 rebounds.

Next up for Miami, a Saturday home showdown against sixth-seeded Alabama. Should the Canes survive that, the winner of the Richmond / St. Francis Brooklyn / UConn / Arizona State bracket awaits.

Whatever comes of the NIT run, the season feels like a failure due to the ones that got away. Despite the losses to lowly non-conference opponents, Miami left a few winnable games out there. Virginia. Louisville. Florida State. Georgia Tech. Wake Forest. Notre Dame … twice.

Maddening as the Canes were legitimately one win away from a much different season-ending outcome. Opportunities were there. Had to capitalize and didn’t. Hopefully a lesson was learned and this team seizes the moment next year.

Where the men failed, the women prevailed as Katie Meier and the Lady Canes are dancing for the fourth time in five seasons. An eleven-seed, Miami (19-12, 8-8 ACC) will take on sixth-seeded Washington on Friday night in Iowa.

The Lady Canes enter the tournament much like their male counterparts; coming off a conference tourney loss to eventual champion Notre Dame, where Jessica Thomas scored a game-high 24 points and Jassany Williams followed with 16. Miami’s defense clamped down, holding the Fighting Irish scoreless for over five minutes, but still fell, 77-61.

Should the Canes top the Huskies, a showdown with either No. 3 seed Iowa or No. 14 see American awaits on Sunday. Best wishes to Meier and crew.

Miami baseball has won seven of its past eight—and six in a row dating back to a win over Florida Gulf Coast on March 10th. The Canes then knocked off Stetson before sweeping North Carolina State at home last weekend, followed by a Tuesday home win over Army.

Next up, a road series against Wake Forest.

Friday’s win over the Wolfpack took ten innings, with the Canes pulling the 3-2 victory by way of a David Thompson walk-off shot. Thompson was 0-for-3 on the night but delivered when it counted—as did Miami’s bullpen, which allowed only one hit after the fourth inning (and after started Thomas Woodrey was scratched pre-game with a stomach bug.)

Bryan Garcia earned the win for the Canes, pitching two flawless innings in relief, while George Iskenderian had two hits, two RBI and hit a two-run shot in the bottom of the third, driving home Zack Collins, who earned a one-out walk.

Over the weekend, play was less competitive with the Canes dominating, 9-2 on Saturday and closing the series with a 6-0 win on Sunday. Junior right-hander Enrique Sosa went 6.1 innings, keeping the Wolfpack in check, striking out six, walking none and only giving up one run on 93 pitches.

Offensively the Canes put together three three-run innings, with sophomore Christopher Barr getting on base three times, going 2-for-3 with a triple, as well as a second inning RBI double which proved to be the game-winner.

Defense delivered in the top of the fourth for Miami, as North Carolina State loaded the bases with one out, but Sosa struck out back-to-back batters, getting the Canes out of potential jam.

On Sunday it was all Canes, all day in the 6-0 shutout victory. Right-handed junior Andy Suarez dominated with six shutout innings, striking out seven walking none and only giving up three hits. Offensively Miami had three two-run innings and ten hits on the afternoon.

Johnny Ruiz got the action started second by way of an RBI groundout. In the fifth an error scored Ruiz, while Collins tacked on an RBI single. In the eighth it was Thompson—Friday night’s hero—with a two-run shot, pushing the lead to six.

The Canes wrapped the week 5-0 and hopefully are turning a corner, where solid pitching and hot bats combine for a much-needed mid-season run. Miami enters this weekend 16-6 on the season and 4-2 in conference play.

On the football front, unfortunately it’s a lot of wash, rinse and repeat right now, which sets the stage for a mini-rant.

Looking back, the frustration kicked into high gear about 14 months ago when no staff changes were made and the Canes appeared—for one long weekend, at least—to be in the market for a new head coach.

Since then, two recruiting classes were highlighted by the ones that got away, while the on-the-field product was another disappointment—this time ending with a four-game losing streak.

As a result, spring football in Coral Gables doesn’t elicit the excitement it’s garnered in the past.

For programs on top, it’s a time to get excited about reloading (versus rebuilding) and a true next-man-up philosophy. Recruiting continues rolling on, preseason magazines drop in the summer—accolades, predictions and All-American designations spread all around—and fans of said programs can’t wait for kickoff.

The Canes haven’t seen that type of hype in forever and as a result, spring now elicits a bit of a falling-on-deaf-ears vibe. A we’ll-see and show-don’t-tell approach.

As a result, the hope-filled articles that once flooding Canes-themed sites in springtime now warrants more of a rolling-of-the-eyes. Lots of buzzwords and hype, but little substance to back it up.

Sensing this, UM used Monday to “officially” announce promotions for current staffers Larry Scott, Kareem Brown, Eric Josephs and Jorge Baez, as well as the addition of Josh Darrow, Evan Cooper and Jake Flahtery.

On the admin front, Scott gets to add ” Run Game Coordinator” to his resume, which currently reads “Tight Ends Coach”, while Brown is coaching up outside linebackers. Josephs is now the “Director of Player Personnel” and Baez, “Coordinator of On Campus Recruiting/Offensive Personnel”.

Congrats to all gentlemen for their career advancement, but as a fan, not to sound indifferent, so what?

Outside of the staff chatter, it’s been heavy doses of standard springtime fare (as well as a new depth chart that will mean nothing next week when it changes again, let alone half a year from now when the season starts.)

Recruits for 2016 and 2017 are giving standard soundbites about wanting loyalty, wins and/or love from the program where they wind up, while sharing the Canes’ rank on their theoreticall list of schools.

Outside of that, current players are also verbalizing their self-motivation tactics.

Hardest headlines to swallow this week; “McDermott: Expectation Is National Title”. Almost as bad and equally as cliche, a piece titled, “Scott Looks To Make Statement”.

Before going on a rant, let’s get this out of the way—wide receiver Rashawn Scott is due for a breakout season and if healthy (and out of trouble), should prove an integral part of the Canes’ offense this season, while offensive guard KC McDermott showed serious promise as a freshman pre-injury and a depth-challenged line welcomes his heart and skills in ’15. Here’s to monster seasons from both.

All that being said, as a fan you wish these kids would keep these reach-for-the-stars motivational sentiments in house, while also dreaming of a perfect world where a 24/7 news cycle didn’t have the media crafting and pumping out full-blown articles on what used to be throwaway quotes.

Because these pieces come from a paid site and were deemed premium, let’s avoid too many specifics here and stick the the gist and general annoyance of both stories.

Regarding Scott, of course he looks to make a “statement” his senior season, after missing all of last year with a re-aggravated injury that kept him out most of 2013 … on the heels of suspensions that sidelined much of the previous season.

Water is wet, the sun is hot and Scott needs to get it together if he has dreams of playing in the NFL next year. Dude has 39 catches for 552 yards and three touchdowns dating back to 2011. The sense of urgency is obvious, understandable and hardly needs to be amplified in March.

Head coach Al Golden says that Scott is in the best condition of his life and hypes his maturity, while offensive coordinator James Coley praises the senior’s efforts in the weight room.

All good stuff, but on some level reminiscent of feel-good hype that surrounded guys like Lance Leggett or Ryan Moore when their final seasons approached years ago, only to disappoint come fall.

Here’s rooting for Scott to have a silent-but-deadly Allen Hurns-like senior year, going next-level—or even like Leonard Hankerson, who was low-key, put in the work and produced when it was go-time.

Scott has a lot to prove—not due to injury, but for the time he’s spent in the doghouse. This is his moment; seize it.

Would much rather see him produce and then read positive-themed articles about his transformation; praise from coaches and video montages as that’s the best way to keep someone hungry, level-headed and striving to be their best.

As for McDermott, having seen and heard this type of talk year-after-year from previous players, the national-champs-or-bust statement rings hollow on the heels of 6-7 and years of misery that he’s missed, only entering his second season with the Miami program.

Had kids on the 2003 beat the going-back-to-the-‘ship drum on the heels of a 34-game win-streak and championship getting stolen away, bring it. All day, every day. They’d been there two consecutive years, had the talent to make a return trip and earned the right to set the bar that highly.

But in 2015, with the Canes prepping for their twelfth season in the ACC and not even a Coastal Division crown**, let alone a conference championship? It comes off like listing “winning the lottery” as a life goal.

(**Even ’12, was a bit of a farce as Miami was 5-3 in conference and prior to self-imposing, would’ve backed in due to North Carolina being ineligible. UM hardly dominated a weak division.)

If this team internally is gunning for a national title, great. Love it. Dream big. Aim high. Chant “Coastal” when breaking the huddle and envision reaching the College Football Playoffs. If you dream it, you can do it.

That’s why these kids play the game, it’s why they came to “The U” and setting goal is part of a process. Just stick to player-speak and canned answers when talking to the media.

Soundbites and quotes like this; they take the soul out of what this team is working to accomplish and essentially gives the fans “bulletin board material” when the losses start to pile up—as has been the case every year for well over a decade now.

Sports is nothing but high-fives, back-slapping and atta-boys when a team is winning. Everything is harmonious and no one can seemingly do any wrong.

Even currently morbid message boards are filled with fans on the same side, with the trolls kicking back off as there’s little to bitch about. (Remember 2001 and 2002, when the biggest complaint about the Canes was not winning by enough points?)

When losing becomes normal , a team enters that no-win territory regarding anything it says. Knowing that, why not go silent—or at minimum a bit more vague with predictions?

Miami has always been an us-against-the-world type program and based on where it sits coming off another disappointing season, it’d make much more sense to stop sharing aspirations and soundbites with the conent-starved press—especially during those dog days of spring and summer.

Bond, join together and put in the work. Hit, stick, bust d–k, talk s–t and do all those things former greats have done en route to domination runs, BCS games and post-season accolades.

Coastal Division champs and a national title are the goal? Great—and per these recent articles, players admittedly have the size, strength, talent, conditioning and are unstoppable as a team when come together?

Then stop talking about it and simply do it, already. It’s time.

Five years into the Golden era and an unthinkable 14 seasons removed from a championship. It was never supposed to take this long to be “back”, yet it has.

Make it right, Canes. Just speak softly and carry a big stick while doing so.

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