Kaaya, Hurricanes Continue Preparing For Florida Atlantic
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CORAL GABLES (CBSMiami) – For the second straight day the Miami Hurricanes' preparation for their game against Florida Atlantic University was interrupted by a weather delay.
Eventually the team got most of its work in. The theme has been respect the opponent and be consistent.
"They can run, they're physical on defense. We're going to have to get the ball into some tight windows," said head Coach Al Golden following Tuesday's practice. "On offense, quarterback Jacquez Johnson is a force. We have to get him on the ground. They score in bunches so we have to really tackle well."
The Miami defense is coming off its first shutout since the 2010 season. The Canes had ten tackles for losses and five sacks against Bethune Cookman last weekend.
Outside linebacker Trent Harris led the Canes with 5 tackles and a sack while cornerback Corn Elder had 3 tackles, a sack and a pass breakup.
Miami's focus is on containing FAU quarterback Jaquez Johnson who at 6'4 240 pounds will challenge the Canes run defense.
The Owls suffered a disheartening 47-44 loss to Tulsa in their season opener despite piling up 563 total yards, with Johnson accounting for 360 yards.
The new look Miami offense got in a lot of reps during the nearly two hour practice.
Quarterback Brad Kaaya worked more out of the shotgun and a show and throw offense wants to be able to spread the ball around against the Owls.
Kaaya was pleased with the first game in this offense, but acknowledged Miami missed a few opportunities early that would have gone for touchdowns.
Kaaya was off target on the third play of the first drive on a pass to Joseph Yearby that if connected, Yearby would have glided in for a score.
"We just have to keep working hard as a team and make sure our execution is precise," said Kaaya. "We're going to have to be accurate on Friday."
Notes
Wide receivers Braxton Berrios and Stacy Coley are listed as day to day.
Offensive lineman KC McDermott and Joe Brown could be in line for more playing time. McDermott had a key block on Yearby's 25-yard touchdown run.
Overall Miami was pleased with the play of the offensive line vs Bethune which was a question mark going in.
Follow Joe Zagacki on Twitter (@canesvoice)
