The Miami Hurricanes are a team that college football fans want to cheer for and support. It’s The U! They’re the team that basically created swagger. It’s been a while since they’ve been on the map and while some might disagree (See: “Fire Al Golden” banners flying over the stadium), the team is now 3-0 and looks like they’ve come back to relevance.
Whoa! Pregame banners already flying re Al Golden at Nebraska vs Miami 3:30et abc/espn2. pic.twitter.com/KkGGD4V2af
— RodGilmore@espn (@RodGilmore) September 19, 2015
The Hurricanes topped Nebraska 36-33 in overtime and while the ending wasn’t as good as the start, the result is all that matters. They might be far from being a BCS contender but does Golden them have them back on the right track? We’ll find out for sure in the coming weeks but for now, here are four reasons why they have climbed back into college football conversations.
Kaaya Is The Real Deal
Golden signed Brad Kaaya as one of Miami’s best quarterback prospects in years and then preached just how important it is to have a passer with the desire to grow and become a four-year starter with the program. Golden’s faith in Kaaya has paid off early on this season as he has completed 61.4% of his passes for 839 yards and five touchdowns with only one interception. The sophomore quarterback has certainly shown he can be the real deal and the reality is that he still has the potential to be better as a young passer that continues to get better with every start.
Golden’s Faith In Yearby
It’s easy to forget that Golden could have dumped running back Joseph Yearby when he was struggling with family concerns away from the field last season but the head coach stuck with the talented young prospect and his faith in him has certainly paid off early on in 2015. Yearby has looked like an absolute stud, averaging 7.6 yards per carry with over 400 total yards and four combined touchdowns through three games this season. That includes 125 rushing yards and a score in last week’s win over Nebraska. The former high school All-American is another sophomore with the potential to keep getting better and is another example of Golden’s faith and vision paying off for the Hurricanes early on this season.
An Aggressive Defense
The Miami defense has been excellent so far, which is not something we’ve been able to say in a long time. While they are still prone to giving up big plays and chunks of yards at a time (see: second half versus Nebraska), there is no doubt about the playmakers they have and the job they have done early on. The Hurricanes secondary in particular was very good against Nebraska as they forced three interceptions to help hold off the Huskers charge in the win. Giving up 23 fourth-quarter points isn’t something Golden will be happy about and they clearly still have work to do to find a level of consistency, but they did do an excellent job forcing turnovers and stymying the Cornhuskers for three quarters. In the end it was just enough to clinch a big win at home over a tough opponent.
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The Game Plans Have Worked
Kaaya’s emergence at the quarterback position, Yearby’s arrival as a star running back and the play of the defense are all testament to how excellent of a job that Golden has done at Miami. Yet he still doesn’t seem to be getting enough credit early on. T
he #FireAlGolden tweets have stopped but the banners were in plain view again at the game on Saturday and rather than giving credit where it is due, the critics have dismissed the Hurricanes strong start because of a relatively mediocre schedule. The reality is that Golden was handed a complete mess and he’s had to wade through that. Even though the school is a big brand name, he had to basically start from scratch. He has done a tremendous job with this young Hurricanes team and while they have a tough road ahead of them, it’s fun to say at least for now that “The U” is back.
