When the Miami Hurricanes go on offense against West Virginia in the Russell Athletic Bowl, they will face the nation’s 80th ranked defense.
Mark Walton and the Miami Hurricanes running game reasserted itself after struggling in October. In a month that saw a four game losing streak, the Hurricanes ran for an average of 75 yards per game. Miami opened the month with a 35-21 win over Georgia Tech. Their defense carried the way in that game.
Walton was named the team’s MVP at Miami’s annual football banquet last week. He was outstanding this season with 1,065 yards and 14 touchdowns and another 262 yards receiving with one touchdown. He struggled in the Hurricanes four losses in the middle of the season.
Walton averaged just 49.6 yards per game and three yards per carry in the Hurricanes five games in October. As a team, Miami averaged 62.5 yards rushing in their four losses and 203.9 yards rushing per game in their eight wins. They rushed for 652 yards, 34.4 percent of the entire season total in the season opening wins against Florida A&M and Florida Atlantic.
Although their run defense is ranked substantially higher than their pass defense, the WVU run defense has been shredded at moments this season. They have allowed 180 yards or more seven times in 2016. That includes 185 yards on ground against FCS Youngstown State. The Penquins will play for the FCS Championship next month.
West Virginia had to replace seven starters from 2015 in training camp. That number grew to eight when the Mountaineers lost starting safety Dravon Askew-Henry for the season in training camp.
The Hurricanes Pro Style offense might be able to do some damage against West Virginia. The Mountaineers are used to the spread and run pass options that are prevalent in the Big XII. Miami utilizes a fullback and tight end with some occasional two tight end sets.
West Virginia’s defense scheme is tailored to stop the spread. The Mountaineers leading tackler, linebacker Justin Arndt is undersized at 5’11 215 pounds. He finished the season with 80 tackles, including seven tackles for loss.
Al-Rasheed Benton finished second on the team in tackles and Rasual Douglas and Jarrod Harper lend support from the defensive backfield. Douglas was the only Mountaineer that earned All-League status on the defensive side of the ball. He was the runner-up for Big XII defensive player of the year and named to the Big XII’s first team defense.
The Mountaineers loss to Oklahoma showed what a team with depth at running back can do to the West Virginia Defense. The Sooners ran for 316 yards and five touchdowns on 64 carries. Most of the damage came from star running backs Samaje Perine and Joe Mixon.
Team Stats
| Stats | OKLA | WVU |
|---|---|---|
| First Downs | 27 | 22 |
| Rush-Yds-TDs | 64-316-5 | 38-388-2 |
| Cmp-Att-Yd-TD-INT | 9-15-169-2-1 | 12-27-191-2-1 |
| Total Yards | 485 | 579 |
| Fumbles-Lost | 1-0 | 3-3 |
| Turnovers | 1 | 4 |
| Penalties-Yards | 6-72 | 7-91 |
Perine ran for 160 yards on 31 carries with two touchdowns and Mixon added 147 on 24 carries with one touchdown. That comes out to 5.58 yards per carry combined. The Sooners running game consistently pounded West Virginia. Their longest run of the day was 21 yards by Mixon and Perine.
| Player | School | Att | Yds | Avg | TD | Rec | Yds | Avg | TD | Plays | Yds | Avg | TD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Samaje Perine | Oklahoma | 31 | 160 | 5.2 | 2 | 1 | 9 | 9.0 | 0 | 32 | 169 | 5.3 | 2 |
| Joe Mixon | Oklahoma | 24 | 147 | 6.1 | 1 | 1 | 10 | 10.0 | 0 | 25 | 157 | 6.3 | 1 |
Next: Russell Athletic Bowl Preview: Miami Hurricanes Passing Game vs WVU Pass Defense
The Miami running game is going to be important against the Mountaineers. Whereas Oklahoma primarily used two running backs to pound the running game, the Hurricanes have three options to chose from. Mark Richt and Offensive Coordinator Thomas Brown are going to need Joseph Yearby and Gus Edwards to complement Walton in the running game.