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Student of the Game Video Review Series: Miami Hurricanes vs. Pitt

The Miami Hurricanes went into Pittsburgh and beat their second ranked opponent in consecutive weeks. TVD and the offense once again provided the fireworks.

By Roman Marciante
NCAA Football: Miami at Pittsburgh Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports

Tyler Van Dyke threw for 32/42, 426 yards and three touchdowns. When the national spotlight centered around senior Pitt Panther quarterback Kenny Pickett, and rightfully so, you needed to at least keep pace. The Miami Hurricane freshman quarterback not only kept pace, he pushed it.

Van Dyke’s performance was top ten all time in terms of yardage (426) in Miami Hurricane history. When you consider Pickett set the PItt school record with his 519 via the air, I guess you needed a historical vintage performance of your own.

In this clip you will see how the freshman gunslinger is using SSW to his advantage. Subtle shoulder warfare. The safety tucked firmly into the boundary needed to be moved. Key’Shawn Smith would be the recipient of the touchdown strike but it took slick body mechanics from his quarterback to make it work.

The Miami Hurricanes needed to slowdown their pace a tad. In consecutive weeks the Hurricanes have won the time of possession battle and the offensive line seems to be the immediate beneficiary. The protection calls have improved. The extra seconds to survey the defense has seemed to provide a distinct advantage in pass pro for the hog mollies.

Can roosters fly? The one wearing number four for the orange and green certainly can. The 3x1 Halfback lead/screen RPO utilizing pin and pull blocking has led to some big plays in consecutive weeks. Here you will see how much of a difference maker Jaylan Knighton truly is.

The numbers advantage play side was on your side when you let the back side defensive end go free. Then the scales tip even more in your favor when Knighton can make a defender miss and get vertical up field.

So much fun stuff to unpack this week in this edition of Student of the Game. Was it all rainbows and butterflies? No. The Pitt Panthers had 587 total yards of offense including 30 first downs. Some of that was aided on the backs of some coverage busts and most of the time you found yourself tipping your cap to Pickett.

The Hurricanes are now 4-4 with and outsider’s chance to make this interesting. Can the Hurricanes finish the season on an absolute high note? Pencils and Popcorn and one step at a time folks. Let’s just enjoy this one first. #BANG #GOCANES