The Beast : Next stop, College Park

… and just like that, we’ve hit “the void”.

Yes it happens every year and yes, time will fly by as our lives remain busy the next five months. That said, there’s no doubt we’ll miss that constant flow of info from Greentree as kids battle it out, working their way into a starting role and preparing for yet another season.

When it’s all said and done, what was learned this spring? Let’s discuss.

Regarding the Spring Game, I left Lockhart Stadium with a less-than-satisfied feeling. That’s also the reason this blog is being posted Monday afternoon instead of Saturday night. I wanted to sleep on and digest what we witnessed. This isn’t a time for rash statements about Miami football and I personally wanted a cool-down period.

The weekend as a whole was a blast. Tailgating with other diehards, as well as catching up with so many former players at Miami Prime on Saturday. The buzz was in the air and as far as the event went, another one of those days where it was great to be a Mi-am-i Hur-ri-cane.

The game itself though, left much to be desired.

We saw two big runs by Lamar Miller, where No. 6 displayed his ridiculous speed and ability to hit the hole. We also saw a few good defensive plays, but other than that it was a ho-hum, two hours – which was mostly by design.

Word leaked before the game started that we shouldn’t expect much excitement regarding the offensive game plan. No motion, no crazy sets, no tomfoolery.

Because this scrimmage was being shown on TV, this was going to be the blandest of the blast – which is understandable and logical, but as a fan it leaves you a bit let down. Anytime you see your squad, you want to see high octane and even without that, seeing four interceptions between your two quarterbacks battling for a starting job, it adds insult to injury.

We could sit back, dissecting the picks and blaming either the quarterbacks or the receivers, but in the end there were four interceptions and that’s simply too many. In the words of American Idol’s Randy Jackson, the spring game was “just OK for me, dawg”.

On a positive note, this spring we did learn the importance of conditioning as far as Al Golden and his staff are concerned. Miami practiced faster and longer than any spring I can remember in recent memory and competition in the weight room is as important as the battles we’re seeing on the practice field.

There have been a lot of Andreu Swasey detractors these past few seasons, which I’ve always balked at. (If he’s good enough to train half the NFL, he’s good enough to coach up our boys in orange and green.)

When reflecting on the past several months and the way these kids are responding to Coach Golden’s views on conditioning, it lends more credibility to the fact that maybe the previous coaching regime and lack of direction given to Coach Swasey was the issue – not the man himself.

Miami will again reach that point where ‘four fingers’ raised in the fourth quarter actually means something again – and it beings with players going ‘next level during those final fifteen minutes instead of wilting in the late stages of a game.

The name of the game at Golden’s U is “competition”. There will be no politics, no favorites and no one pointlessly finding their way into the doghouse. No one’s job is safe, which was always the case when Miami was a top the polls.

Many guys I know who have played the game have always told me that this is one of the hallmarks that get programs back to winning ways. Complacency setting in and guys feeling safe in their starting spots – the result is cancerous.

We know now that this team will not be complacent and the quote that spoke volumes this spring; “the depth chart is written in sand”.

We also learned that being hurt isn’t a free invitation to loaf. If you wore the red jersey spring, you still worked your butt off. There were days out there at practice where I saw guys with casts still riding the bike at practice. A message was sent loud and clear; if you’re hurt, you’re going to work tirelessly to get back on the field. You’ll get your top-notch medical care, but just because you can’t go full contact doesn’t mean you’ll be chasing butterflies while the rest of the squad practices.

Sadly, we were reminded that turnovers are still a problem and while I can’t tell you what happened at those behind-closed-doors practices, in two of three public scrimmages we saw some ugly turnovers. Moving forward Miami needs to begin playing smarter football because even the best conditioning in the world isn’t enough to turn L’s into W’s.

We learned that neither quarterback has done enough to be named starter, which is more of an indictment on senior Jacory Harris than it is on sophomore Stephen Morris. Word behind the fences told me that Harris outplayed Morris most days, however what we saw publicly, that wasn’t evident.

For what it’s worth, I like Jacory a lot, but fear his easygoing, social butterfly personality may be a detriment when it comes to making the leap he needs to make on the field. No. 12 needs to do some looking within this summer, finding a way to gain some maturity and treating this competition like a grueling job and not just a ride on the Cane Train Of Fun.

I believe Harris has it in him and for his sake (and this team’s) that come August, he’ll have pulled it all together and will be ready for his final season at ‘The U’. Should he not, I have all the confidence in the world that Mr. Morris will be able to get it done. He’s a humble kid and a hard working with a gun for an arm, blazing wheels and showed some good decision-making in limited action as a freshman. For Morris, it’s about getting the nuances of the game down and in time, he will do so.

Another positive was learning that this group of running backs has a chance to remind us of an era where Clinton Portis, Willis McGahee and Frank Gore were all lining up in the backfield. The only thing holding back Miller, Storm Johnson and Mike James is their ability to hold onto the ball and to block. Those flaws will limit playing time, but as far as their talent, sky is the limit.

We learned that it’s hard to tell where you’re at as a program receiver-wise when just about every pass catcher was hurt at one point or another this spring. On paper, you expect LaRon Byrd and Travis Benjamin to be one and two. Aldarius Johnson was hurt, but when healthy you’d think it’d be his time to shine as that third receiver. Entering his senior year, his physique and talent shouldn’t be wasted.

After those three, Allen Hurns appears to have a lot of potential while three other guys still trying to prove they can do it on this level. Kendal Thompkins had a good day Saturday, but last weekend he upset the coaches by short-arming a pass. Davon Johnson hasn’t done much here and at some point is going to have to prove his worth, while Tommy Streeter remains consistently inconsistent. Hopefully Streeter pulls a Leonard Hankerson and gets it all together with some hard work this off-season.

The strongest position on this squad is proving to be offensive line, which hasn’t been the case in forever. There’s talent. There’s depth. There are a handful of the type of guys you want there personality-wise. There’s also Art Kehoe, a long-time missing piece. Add it all together and you have what can be a championship-caliber line.

The battle at tackle between Malcolm Bunche and Seantrel Henderson has been great, though I’ve been told the only one who has been keeping the bigger man off the field has been himself.

The maturity of Brandon Washington has gone through the roof and his talent isn’t far behind, while Brandon Linder might be the overall best of this bunch. Linder is so good that sometimes you forget he’s there. He doesn’t make mistakes and he’s cut from that special mold. Straight up, he’s a #WINNER!.

Tyler Horn is that veteran you want in the middle and then there are guys like Ben Jones, Harland Gunn, Jermaine Johnson, Shane McDermott and Jared Wheeler, all providing depth but also kicking butt and taking names.

Coach Kehoe must feel like it’s his birthday every day he’s at practice because this certainly isn’t the squad he left behind after the 2005 season – and good for him as no one deserves this second-chance as much as Art.

On defense we learned that the defensive line – especially defensive tackle – remains a work in progress. You really hope that Marcus Forston recovers well from what we believe to be an MCL injury (although that has not been confirmed by UM officials) and that guys like Luther Robinson and Curtis Porter have what it takes to step up. We’ve seen flashes from Micanor Regis and it’s time for him to go next level and we’ve heard pretty good reviews of Olson Pierre, another guy that battled injuries this spring.

At defensive end, I feel pretty good about the group there. I think Olivier Vernon has a chance to have a monster year, and I’d like to see Adewale Ojomo really rise up as well. Marcus Robinson has the tools to be a really good one and Andrew Smith has been around long enough to understand what it takes to be successful.

We learned that Jordan Futch has committed himself to making his final season count. I haven’t seen that many guys that have gone from the cusp of not mattering to being a vital cog in this short span of time like No. 58. He wants that middle linebacker job and I think he’ll earn it and good for him. Jordan has gone through a lot on the field and off, and he’s one of the guys that I’ll be cheering for day in and day out.

I think Jimmy Gaines is going to blossom into a good one. He showed a lot of flashes of great play this spring and had to deal with some injuries, as well.

Sean Spence is still the man and having gained some weight this off-season, I believe he’ll be an all-conference type player again this year. Ramon Buchanan also has the chops to be a good one and thankfully it appears he’s avoided major punishment for his Fat Tuesday incident in the Grove. More importantly, here’s hoping that the experience forces Ramon to grow and to realize what’s at stake here life-wise and career-wise.

Travis Williams is still growing into the position and we saw a little bit of Kelvin Cain last year, but this is the time for both of them to step things up. CJ Holton is another one that needs to focus on big goals. As far as Kevin Nelson, we still don’t know his status for now, so don’t count on him for now.

The secondary has some ups and downs. Safety should be a position of strength with Vaughn Telemaque and Ray Ray Armstrong doing their thing, while Andrew Swasey, son of Andreu, has come in from the community college ranks and has given a great effort thus far.

Unfortunately we haven’t seen consistent effectiveness out of Kacy Rogers, AJ Highsmith or Tyrone Cornelius.

The cornerback position will keep any diehard up at night. Jo Jo Nicholas has moved to corner and has done all right, though I wonder if he has the wheels to keep up with the burners on the outside. Thomas Finnie has come in and impressed everyone and looks like something special, but again, it’s spring ball – not fall. It’s a completely different ball game under the lights in front of 75,000.

You hope Brandon McGee capitalizes on his opportunities. He has the talent, but needs to put it all together, while Lee Chambers has dedicated himself to making that running back to cornerback move. Same with Eduardo Clements and while both are physically gifted enough to make the move, how quickly can they pick up the technique? Keion Payne remains an unknown commodity. Payne came in with his fair share of accolades, so hopefully he can live up to the hype.

We learned that kicking and punting is a serious problem exiting spring. This was one part of practice the media got to see daily and safe to say that Matt Bosher will surely be missed. It’s time for Jake Wieclaw to either prove himself or to be replaced by either a JUCO transfer (Dalton Botts) or a kid who hasn’t even been to his prom yet (Matt Goudis).

All in all, it was a good and productive spring for this program, even though it might not have been everything we as fans were hoping for. Take a step back and try to remember that this coaching staff installed a new system, a new mindset, a new way of doing things and new playbooks on both sides.

The productive nature of spring might not have been what it’s been in years passed, but the groundwork has been laid and the pace set for these players to pick it up their pace over the dog days of summer.

IN OTHER NEWS : We’ll have a complete spring wrap up on allCanes Radio this Wednesday night, kicking off at 7pm ET so click here to listen online or stream the show live through the allCanes iPhone app.

Also, a reminder that you have about two weeks to renew your membership to the Hurricane Club and I urge both members to renew and non-members to sign up. (You can join for as little as $50.) We want the best from our Canes, but have to remember that this program can’t get it done without the financial and emotional support from this fan base. Tax returns are coming back as we speak, so set a few bucks aside to support the Orange and Green.

If you have any questions about the Hurricane Club, email or call my pal Jesse Marks at 305-284.6699 and on that note, GET YOUR SEASON TICKETS NOW! There are great seats available at very affordable prices. Don’t wait until game day, overpaying for bad seats.

Football may be over until fall, but we’re not shutting down here. There is play to blog about and to sink our teeth into at allCanes Radio. The basketball coaching search continues, the NFL Draft is around the corner and the baseball team is looking working their way back to Omaha. We’ll be here for all of it, so stick around and Go Canes!

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