Defense Needs To Step Up For Hurricanes Against High-Flying Syracuse
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CORAL GABLES (CBSMiami) – You might call this week's Miami Hurricanes game with Syracuse the fast and furious.
The Orange offense, led by gunslinger quarterback Eric Dungey, runs a play about every 19 seconds.
The up-tempo, fast-paced offense is averaging 463 yards per game and 85 plays per game.
Dungey, a 6'4 222-pound junior signal caller is a risk taker, not afraid to run or throw into tight windows. He has thrown for 2080 yards with 12 touchdowns and 4 interceptions. He is also the team's leading rusher with 386 yards.
Coach Mark Richt is preparing for a track meet.
"I have never seen anybody go from the end of the play to snapping the next play faster," Richt said.
"Everybody talks about tempo, but I have seen nobody go that fast."
Syracuse Coach Dino Baber's is a disciple of Art Briles and he has brought the lightning quick tempo of Baylor offense to Syracuse.
"As soon as the ball is on the ground, they are snapping it, so we have got to get lined up quickly," defensive coordinator Manny Diaz said. "We have to make a call quickly so our guys can get lined up and play ball. It will be a challenge."
Syracuse ranks 14th in the country in passing offense at 318 yards per game. They are averaging 31 points per game.
Wide receiver Steve Ismael leads the nation in receptions with 62 in 7 games-8 per game.
Ervin Phillips is the nation's 3rd leading receiver with 56 catches including 17 in one game against North Carolina State.
"Our secondary has to make sure we're in the right place and always know where Ishmael is on the field. He is a dynamic receiver that can really go and get the ball said Diaz. We have to make sure we have plenty of bodies around him."
Syracuse defeated No. 12 ranked Clemson last week 27-24. The Orange have never beaten two top ten teams in back to back weeks.
The last time they beat two top ten teams in the same season was 1959 when they won the national championship.
The Canes have won 10 straight games going back to last season. In the 10 wins Miami is outscoring its opponents by 17 points per game.
Mark Richt offered his perspective on whether The U is back since Miami is 5-0 and ranked No. 8 in the nation. He believes the Canes still have a way to go.
"We're excited about winning. We are trying to establish that mindset of winning and doing the things it takes to win. But we're not a dominant football team," Richt explained. "We're a very, very solid football team that's fighting like mad just to win the close battles, is where we are right now. A lot of positive things are happening through the adversity that we've been able to overcome to this point."
"You're not a top-10 program unless you're a top-10 program at the end of the year," Richt said when asked if his team is ahead of schedule. "We're not at the point where we can just line up and impose our will on people. We're not lining up and whipping people and having margins of victory that are comfortable. We have to battle every week."