The Russell Athletic Bowl on Wednesday pits two old foes from the Big East when the #16 West Virginia Mountaineers (10-2) take the field against the Miami Hurricanes (8-4).
For Miami, the team will be looking to win their ninth game of the season, and perhaps more importantly, their first bowl game since 2006. Yes, that’s right, the Hurricanes have not won a bowl game in nearly 10 seasons–hard to believe.
This game is primed to be a shootout, with neither defense as talented as the opposing team’s offense. For Miami, they’ll be looking for yet another game with a balanced offensive attack, which is a style of play that carried the team throughout two separate four game winning streaks this season. When the Hurricanes have been at their best, it’s been when the offense has supplemented a strong running game with a solidified passing attack behind junior quarterback Brad Kaaya.
Let’s start with Kaaya. The junior quarterback out of Los Angeles did not have the season that most expected him to have, but finished strong in the final month to cap off a season in which he passed for 3,250 yards and 23 touchdowns to only seven interceptions. Accuracy was an issue for Kaaya earlier on in the season, but he was able to right the ship to finish the regular season with a 61% completion percentage.
While West Virginia’s defense is not nearly as potent as their offense, they still have enough athletes in the secondary to contend with Miami’s passing attack. The Mountaineers rank 32nd nationally in passing efficiency defense, and will need another strong day on Wednesday to challenge a very talented group of Hurricanes receivers. The three receivers that Miami quarterback Brad Kaaya will look to throw to most often are freshman Ahmmon Richards, senior Stacy Coley, and junior tight end David Njoku. The trio has proved to be dangerous this season, combining for over 2,200 yards receiving and 18 touchdowns on the year.
As mentioned, balance is key for the Hurricanes offense, and it is expected that they will look to establish the running game early and often as well. Miami has a formidable backfield duo in Mark Walton and Joe Yearby who are both more than capable of carrying a brunt of the rushing load at a moment’s notice. Walton is the lead back for the Hurricanes, rushing for 1,065 yards and a team-high 14 touchdowns on the season. Yearby, meanwhile, has spelled Walton quite a bit, rushing for nearly 600 yards and seven touchdowns on the season. The West Virginia rushing defense is quite a bit weaker than their passing defense, with the Mountaineers allowing over 175 yards per game on the ground, which ranks 66th in the FBS. If Miami has issues getting their passing game going, look for the Hurricanes to ride Walton and Yearby in hopes of moving the football on the ground.
As for West Virginia, the conversation starts with their spectacular young quarterback Skyler Howard. Howard has thrown for 3,194 yards on the season, completing nearly 61% of his passes in the process with 26 touchdowns to 10 interceptions. Howard has also rushed for 400 yards and nine scores, proving to be an effective dual threat quarterback for Dana Holgorsen’s Mountaineers.
While Miami’s group of receivers are very, very good, West Virginia’s group has been every bit as effective. Four West Virginia receivers have at least 300 yards receiving or more on the season, and two of the receivers, Shelton Gibson and Daikiel Shorts, have combined for 1,760 yards and 13 touchdowns by themselves. While Howard utilizes Gibson and Shorts the most in the passing game, he also has looked a good bit in the direction of Ka’Raun White, who has 583 yards receiving and five scores on the season. The bevy of weapons has led to the Mountaineers ranking 30th in the FBS in passing offense, as the team averages 267.4 yards per game through the air. Much like West Virginia, Miami is strong against the pass, ranking 33rd nationally in passing efficiency defense, so even with all of the weapons that West Virginia has to offer, it will be no easy task to throw on the Hurricanes secondary.
Much like Miami, West Virginia is every bit as talented running the football as they are throwing the football. The Mountaineers rely heavily on lead back Justin Crawford, who has 1,168 yards rushing and four touchdowns on the season. The Mountaineers also employ Rushel Shell and Kennedy McKoy, who have combined for 980 yards and eight scores, as well. All in all, West Virginia has the nation’s 18th-ranked rushing offense, averaging 239.5 yards per game on the ground. Early on in the season, Miami struggled stopping opposing rushing attacks, but finished the season strong and ended up with a respectable 30th-ranked rushing defense that has plenty of athletes in the front seven capable of wrecking havoc. As the season wore on, the Hurricanes got healthier up front on defense, leading to an uptick in play down the stretch. Don’t be fooled, this Miami rushing defense is more than capable of holding up, even against this effective West Virginia running game.
This game will come down to which team can produce enough stops defensively to win the football game. In my opinion, that team is the Miami Hurricanes. West Virginia has plenty of weapons on offense, no doubt. However, while the numbers on that side of the football for the Mountaineers are impressive, I am under the impression that they are inflated a bit due to playing in a defensively-starved Big 12, in which only one side of the ball seems to matter. Miami has the athletes to compete with all that West Virginia has to offer on offense, and should score just enough with their own offense to get the victory on Wednesday. This should be a very exciting game and fun to watch, with two high-octane offenses going at it for four quarters.
Miami 38 West Virginia 34