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The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly: FAMU Edition

What went right, what went wrong, and everything in between Vs Florida A&M. Plus team grades.

By Jerry Steinberg
Jasen Vinlove-USA TODAY Sports

The Mark Richt Era is underway.

And it got off to a very auspicious start.

Sparked by a dazzling 42 point third quarter, Miami rolled to a 70-3 win over FAMU.

3 different 'Canes rushers went over the century mark (Joe Yearby, Mark Walton, and Gus Edwards).

A game that was supposed to be easy, was.

But that's not always the case, so this was impressive win nonetheless.

The particulars below.

The Good:

  • Corn Elder with the pick on the opening defensive series.  That is how you start the season.
  • And it led to this.....

  • About Williams.... he did a great job lead blocking all day.  And his presence alone led to the second TD of the game, a short run by Yearby.
  • This was nice to see too.....(Richards would later add the first score of his career).

  • Speaking of freshmen... 1st year LB's Shaq Quarterman, Michael Pinckney, and Zach McCloud started, and all played well.  The D as a whole mostly controlled FAMU the entire game.
  • Mark Walton has wheels.
  • Brad Kaaya, was Brad Kaaya (12-18, 135 yards, and 4 scores mentioned below).
  • Nice to see Edwards' foot is completely healed.


The Bad:

  • A few blown coverages in the 2nd quarter led to led to a Ratllers FG.
  • Tyree St. Louis got bear bad on a sack on the next drive, snuffing out the 'Canes drive.

Not much too complain about else wise today at all...

The Ugly:

  • Prior to the game we got this news:

The University of Miami Athletics Department announced today that it has suspended redshirt sophomore defensive lineman Gerald Willis for the FAMU game and freshman wide receiver Sam Bruce for the first three games for violations of team rules.

We knew about both, but Bruce was not expected to miss quite this much time.  Bad way for the freshman WR to start off his UM career.

Team Grades:

Offense - Yearby looked really good.  And the O line and receivers were effective as well, and did a nice job blocking all day, especially the skill guys down the field.  A few misses along the way by the unit, but that may be nit picky.

grades

Defense - Aggressive, Aggressive, Aggressive!    Kendrick Norton, Demetrius Jackson, Jaquan Johnson, and Chad Thomas to name a few, were everywhere.  Great 3rd quarter pick by Adrian Colbert.  One bad or play or two cost them a perfect score.

grades

Special Teams - Freshman Pat Bethel had a punt block in the 1st Q.  Braxton Berrios added a 3rd Q punt return score.  But Michael Badgley missed a chippy after UM's third drive.  The coverage units were solid though.  Great day overall for the ST's.

grades

Coaching - Despite the distractions of injuries and suspensions, the team came out sharp and focused Vs an inferior opponent.  The 3rd Q was a clinic by Miami in all three phases/ Great opening game for the staff as a whole.  Manny Diaz is worlds away as a DC from what the program has seen in recent memory.

grades