A good news/bad news weekend for University of Miami athletics. Actually, more a good news/missed opportunities-type week for the Canes.
Big ups to Hurricane baseball for taking care of business against Boston College. Nursing a 3-2 lead in the bottom of the seventh on Friday, Miami bats rattled off a school record four home runs that inning en route to a 10-7 victory. The bats stayed alive the duration of the weekend as the Canes rolled 8-3 on Saturday and 7-1 on Sunday, sweeping BC, improving to 9-1 and sitting pretty at #6 in the rankings.
Next up, Penn State (3/11) and Maine (3/12) in some out of conference action before the first road trip of the season – N.C. State, this coming weekend.
Speaking of the Wolfpack, Miami basketball takes on N.C. State in the opening round of the ACC tourney this week in Charlotte. The Canes lost a 79-77 overtime battle up in Raleigh-Durham back in January – their lone meeting with with Wolfpack this season.
N.C. State limps in riding an eight-game losing streak, yet confident they can beat Miami – as they have. Even more frustrating, Miami falling in overtime at Florida State this past Saturday, 75-72. On paper, just another rivalry game and season finale. In reality, much more was on the line.
Had the Canes beaten the backsliding Noles, it’d have guaranteed Miami a first round bye in the ACC tourney as well as a better seeding in the NCAA tourney when the field is announced next week.
At 21-9 and 8-8 in the ACC, it’s been a stellar year for Miami basketball. Respect. That said, a win over Florida State was a must… even if it wasn’t “technically” a must.
I know head coach Frank Haith questioned the officiating. How can you not when the Noles go 32 of 42 from the line and Miami, 19 of 24. A slew of missed calls and no calls in this contest – especially late against Jack McClinton. Still, a loss is a loss and it came at a pretty brutal time down the stretch. Florida State has now beaten Miami five straight and this one changes the outcome of the ACC and the NCAAs. That sucks.
The winner of Miami/N.C. State will face #4 see Virginia Tech. The winner of that game most likely gets #1 North Carolina in the semi-finals. No easy ride and tough to really expect Miami to win more than 1-2 games – but at bare minimum a win over N.C. State is a must if this team is even thinking NCAAs. Should be a done deal going .500 in conference this year, but if the Canes are on the bubble a 1-2 record down the stretch isn’t really going to help their cause. Step up, fellas.
On the Miami Football front, it’s still a feel-good fest and I’m hoping that Canes fans abroad are enjoying the ride after the hellish run this program has had since posting a 13-15 mark in its last 28 games.
This is a new Miami team and I believe even the harshest critics are finally starting to come around. At least for now. We’re finally hard-pressed to find anyone who won’t give Randy Shannon a mulligan for 2007. When knee-deep in the midst of last year’s 5-7 campaign, many hoped a new mindset and rah-rah mentality would be enough to will these Canes to a few more wins. That obviously wasn’t the case.
With all the new talent on board after this year’s recruiting class and a handful of early enrollees, youth is being served at The U. Miami has a long road ahead, but there’s reason to be excited again. There were signs of life in last week’s spring game. Hurricane quarterbacks are throwing the ball around, big time receivers are stepping in and making plays and there’s reason to believe.
Par for the course with Shannon, Miami is still looking ahead to 2009 regarding potential recruits and the Canes are picking up verbals while planting seeds with others. In this past week or so, The U has offered scholarships to the following:
Nick Alajajian – OT – Naples High School (Naples)
Carlos Hyde – RB – Naples High School (Naples)
Antwan Lowery – DT – Columbus High School (Miami)
Craig Roh – DE – Chaparral High School (Scottsdale)
Gabe Lynn – CB – Jenks High School (Oklahoma)
Abry Jones – DT – Warner Robins Northside High (Georgia)
Some interesting backstories regarding this half dozen. Alajajian and Hyde of Naples High both drove over to Miami for the spring game at Traz Powell Stadium last week. It was an unofficial visit and Alajajian already had been offered, Hyde received an offer when checking out UM’s campus during the day, before the game. Both were thrilled to receive offers from The U and have Miami listed in their favorites but both will wait until after their senior seasons to announce their intentions.
Lowery is a local kid and a long-time Canes fan. Getting the offer from Miami was a dream come true for the Columbus DT. Older brother Antonio Lowery is at RU, so no mystery the Canes are Scarlet Knights are the front-runners for Antwan. Lowery has stated he’ll wait until after his senior season to announce his intentions.
Roh is Miami’s second trek into the desert in the past month. A few weeks back, Miami landed a commitment from Brophy Prep High School TE Billy Sanders. Roh is being recruited by the typical Pac-1o powers as well as OU and plans on pulling the trigger before his senior season to avoid distractions.
Lynn has over two dozen scholarship offers from big time universities, but states that Miami has as good a shot as anyone else. Lynn hints that he’d like to make a commitment sooner than later.
Jones might be the most intriguing storyline of the bunch, though. The Warner Robins product is currently coached by Conrad Nix, father of Miami offensive coordinator Patrick Nix. This has allowed the Georgia-bred DT to have some early discussions with the younger Nix regarding The U and his future. Jones is being recruited by several big time programs in SEC and ACC but lists Miami and Georgia as his front runners.
March 2008 and Shannon & Crew are already trying to reel in the nation’s best for 2009, while rebuilding a program that faltered in 2007. The Canes are on the mend and the haters are started to recognize. U gotta love it…