Shannon Dawson used Monday's press conference to expand on the 33-20 win at Wake Forest, and also looked ahead to what needs to be fixed against Central Michigan.
The Chippewas come to Hard Rock Stadium, and the offensive coordinator's message was that a 31-7 lead means nothing if every position group takes a turn at failing to execute down the stretch.
Miami offense has been elite, but will need to be better after building a lead
"We have to keep doing the things that we did to get the 31 to 7 lead."Shannon Dawson
The Hurricanes scored on the first drive of the second half Friday night in Winston-Salem and led 31-7, but after that, Dawson said, the same calls that had been gaining five, six and seven yards started gaining two. Wake Forest, desperate on both sides of the ball, kept playing, and Miami stopped straining.
Dawson said he felt anxiety at intermission because he has seen this type of thing before.
"There's two things that really hinder success offensively: success and failure. If you're not playing well, you press. You try to do things that are outside of what you need to be doing. And if you are playing really well, you relax."Shannon Dawson
Dawson told the offensive unit on Monday that film of those late drives does not isolate one specific position group.
"It seemed like in that little stretch of time, everybody took their turn to sabotage. People can't take their turn to sabotage. You got to be dialed into your job, me included."Shannon Dawson
Dawson did have some positive things to say, mainly about Darian Mensah's sideline demeanor.
"By our communication and his body language, you wouldn't have known that we were going three and out. It was just more so of, hey, what are we gonna do the next drive?"Shannon Dawson
Dawson has come under scrutiny before for play-calling and the offense stalling. This past week against Wake Forest offered a good time for reflection and it is nice to hear him address those concerns head-on.
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