Miami Hurricanes Football Game 3 Preview: Nebraska

Game Details

Nebraska Cornhuskers (1-1,0-0 B1G) vs. Miami Hurricanes (2-0,0-0 ACC)

Saturday, September 19th, 3:30 PM EST, ABC or ESPN2 (check your local listings)

SunLife Stadium, Miami Gardens, Florida

Line: Miami -3

Passing Offense vs. Nebraska

The Hurricanes offense has put up 40+ points in their first two games to start this season, but sophomore quarterback Brad Kaaya has yet to have a big game. Kaaya had a much better game against FAU, almost hitting the 300-yard passing mark, but we haven’t seen the playbook open up, yet. Nebraska has been vulnerable to the passing game, throughout their first two games. Everyone knows about the hail mary to end the game against BYU, but they were getting torched through the air against backup BYU quarterback Tanner Mangum. Mangum went 7/11 in relief with 111 yards and the game-winning touchdown at the buzzer. South Alabama’s Cody Clements also had some success against Nebraska, putting up 271 yards of his own through the air.

Miami is still missing Braxton Berrios on offense, but they get back Stacy Coley and that’s going to be big for the Hurricanes. Miami needs someone that’s capable of taking the top off the defense and Coley can be that guy. Nebraska’s secondary is down from last year, which is good news for Miami considering that Kaaya threw for 359 yards with three touchdowns and a couple of picks in only his fourth collegiate game. Safety Nate Gerry is the one guy on the Nebraska secondary that Miami needs to be aware of. Everyone else is fair game.

Running Offense vs. Nebraska

While the passing offense has yet to break out for the ‘Canes, the running game has been terrific. Mark Walton and Joseph Yearby have become quite the 1-2 combo for Miami and they’ll need more of that against a pretty good Nebraska run defense. Nebraska has done a good job of holding running backs, but the level of running backs they’ve seen doesn’t compare to what Miami has to offer. Maliek Collins is the guy in the middle for the Hurricanes and the matchup between him and Nick Linder will be one to watch as the game moves on. Miami’s offensive line hasn’t been very good these first couple of games, but they’ve still been able to spring open some holes for Miami running backs to get big gains.

The Hurricanes don’t have to deal with a guy like Randy Gregory this season and that’s already a win for the Miami offense. Walton and Yearby will be called upon to control the game and leave the Nebraska offense on the sideline. If Miami is able to run the ball like they’ve done against Bethune and FAU, they should be in good shape on Saturday. If not, it’ll make Kaaya’s job a little bit more difficult.

Passing Defense vs. Nebraska

The Miami secondary is as talented as it’s been in a long time, but now they’ll have to prove it against a good Nebraska passing offense. Tommy Armstrong Jr. only threw the ball 13 times in last year’s meeting, but he looks a lot more comfortable in the pocket this season, and he’ll definitely throw more than that this year. Armstrong Jr. is known as a run-first quarterback, but he has 71 pass attempts through two games, all while running the ball just 11 times. This is actually good news for the Hurricanes as they’ve had their fair share of problems against quarterbacks that love to tug it in and run it themselves.

The ‘Canes have to worry about three main receivers on Saturday: Brandon Reilly, Jordan Westerkamp and Alonzo Moore. Reilly did not play against Miami last season because he was recovering from injury, but he’s the Huskers leading receiver (yards) so far this season with 141 yards on 10 receptions. While Reilly has the most yards, Westerkamp is the most talented out of the group and he’s someone that Armstrong Jr. relies on. Westerkamp only recorded one catch against Miami last season and that went for 14 yards. He’s a really tough guy to bring down once he gets the ball, and he’s the guy that Nebraska turns to when they need a play through the air. Miami needs to be ready for him. Moore is the other talented receiver for the Huskers and he also got some burn against the Hurricanes last season, catching 3 passes for 26 yards. Moore is someone that Armstrong Jr. loves to look for close to the end zone, as 2 of his 8 catches have resulted in a touchdown this season.

Rushing Defense vs. Nebraska

Miami got absolutely destroyed by Ameer Abdullah and the Nebraska run game in last year’s meeting. Abdullah titled the rock 35 times last year, going for 229 yards and a pair of touchdowns. Well, Abdullah is now playing on Sundays with the Lions so Miami doesn’t have to worry about him this time around. Instead, they’ll be facing talented junior Terrell Newby. Newby is definitely not Abdullah, but he’s a capable back in his own right. The junior from California has 241 yards and 3 touchdowns on the ground this season on just 38 carries. Newby, however, did most of his damage against South Alabama, after failing to get going against BYU with a 41-yard effort on 10 carries against the Cougars.

While the Nebraska run game isn’t as good as last year’s, Miami needs to make an effort to shut down the run game early and often.

Prediction

Some players have labeled this game as a revenge game and have taken it personal, which is always a good thing. Nebraska is the first true test for this Miami team and I think it’ll be interesting to see how they come out of the gates and respond to the criticism they’ve received over the first half against FAU.

I think last year’s Nebraska team was a bad matchup for the ‘Canes because of their ability to run the football and their option offense absolutely killed Miami’s defense. But this year under Mike Riley, they’ve asked Armstrong Jr. to pass more, and I think that might play in Miami’s favor.

Miami 35, Nebraska 27

I think Nebraska will have success on offense, but I don’t know if Armstrong Jr. can make enough throws to beat a pretty good Miami secondary. I think the ‘Canes are the more talented team and that’s why I’m going with Miami. But Miami has been the most talented team a lot in the past, and that hasn’t stopped them from losing, so who knows. Saturday should be fun.

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