Miami Hurricanes News: Lance Guidry hiring official, 2023 SP+ rankings

The Miami Hurricanes football program officially announced the hire of Lance Guidry as defensive coordinator on Monday. Guidry was announced a day after reports emerged that Shannon Dawson will be the new Miami defensive coordinator, Derek Nicholson the linebackers coach and running backs coach Kevin Smith will not return.

The Miami Hurricanes athletic department announced on Wednesday that the women’s and men’s basketball teams will debut new uniforms on Thursday and Saturday to honor black history month. The women host Clemson at 6 PM ET on Thursday and the men Wake Forest on Saturday afternoon at 2 PM ET.

Reports on Guidry being hired by the Miami Hurricanes football program as the new defensive coordinator emerged last week before the official announcement. Guidry replaces Kevin Steele who left for Alabama. Guidry comes to Miami from Tulane where he was hired last month and coached last season at Marshall.

The Thundering Hurd had one of the most elite defenses in college football last season finishing in the top 10 in nearly a dozen categories nationally. Miami should be set with their defensive staff less than three weeks before spring practice begins with the unofficial addition of Nicholson from Cincinnati on Tuesday.

David Lake of Inside the U reported that Bill Connolly of ESPN has Miami 42nd nationally in his SP+ rankings for the 2023 season. Miami ranks 20th nationally on defense and 55th on offense in the sustainable and predictable 2023 rankings. Five Miami opponents rank ahead of them in the 2023 SP+ rankings.

Florida State ranks 11th in the SP+ rankings, Clemson is 12th, Texas A&M 17th, North Carolina 28th and Louisville 32nd. Miami has a more difficult schedule in 2023 entering the first season after the elimination of divisions in the ACC. Miami opens the season on September 1 versus Miami (Ohio) who is 91st in SP+.