Going into the season, many wouldn’t have expected the Miami-USF game to be a huge top-25 matchup, and not because of the Hurricanes.
USF comes into Hard Rock Stadium as the college football darlings and is ranked 18th in the latest AP poll after defeating the Florida Gators in Gainesville last week. Head coach Alex Golesh has done a tremendous job in Tampa with the Bulls, making the program relevant. They’ve been a tough out for every team they’ve faced, and it’ll be no different on Saturday.
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Canes should not take this team lightly at all. USF put up a fight with Miami last season as the halftime score was 22-15. At the end, Cam Ward and the boys put up 50 while the defense (surprisingly) shut the Bulls out in the second half, but the flashes were there from USF.
South Florida comes into this game with a lot more confidence and momentum. The Canes will have their hands full, but if they win these three key matchups, it should be another ranked win for Miami.
Miami Offensive Line vs. USF Defensive Line
Miami has to dominate this matchup against USF.
The Canes (arguably) have the best offensive line in the country and need to impose their will against a light defensive line.
South Florida’s interior defensive linemen are Devin Lee, Traevon Mitchell, and Jacob Merrifield. In comparison to the Canes, they are a lot shorter and lighter in the trenches, respectively.
On the ends is where the drastic difference comes in. The Bulls are even lighter at those positions, and they’ll be going up against a future first-round pick, RT Francis Mauigoa, and 6’9 LT Markel Bell.
Miami can’t just win this matchup; they have to dominate it.
There is no excuse for this offensive line unit to be the reason why the Canes run for 150+ yards on Saturday. In the passing game, they should be able to keep Carson Beck clean and allow no pressure on four-man rushes.
According to PFF, South Florida’s defensive line is one of the worst graded units in the entire country, which makes it even more remarkable that the Bulls have two top-25 wins this season.
Mark Fletcher Jr, CharMar Brown, and Jordan Lyle (if he’s healthy enough to play) should have a great day on Saturday running the ball. Beck will have time to find Malachi Toney, CJ Daniels, and his pass catchers in the air. I’m expecting a big day for the offense due to the offensive line dominating their matchup.
LB Wesley Bissainthe vs. QB Byrum Brown
Signal caller versus signal caller.
Byrum Brown has been the engine that powers the USF offense. The quarterback has completed 38 of his 59 passes for 444 yards and only one passing touchdown. Where he is at his most dangerous is when he keeps it and runs.
Brown is one of the better dual-threat quarterbacks in the country as he has recorded 26 rushing attempts for 139 yards and two touchdowns. That is over five yards per attempt, and we all know that the Hurricanes have had their fair share of problems when it comes to mobile quarterbacks.
Miami’s MLB Wesley Bissainthe will be one of many to keep him in check. As the signal caller for the defense, Bissainthe will have his hands full against an up-tempo offense that loves to push the pace.
Bissainthe was coming off a game against Notre Dame, where he had the defense aligned and communicating effectively throughout the game. He played well and then had an unfortunate first drive against Bethune-Cookman in Week 2, where on the first drive, he got ejected for targeting.
The Canes will need him against the Bulls on Saturday. He is a linebacker who will get in there and stop the run, playing with an intensity that will be contagious to the rest. Bissainthe will be one of the few players who could potentially be a spy on Brown.
The last thing Miami wants is Brown running around everywhere without someone accounting for him, which perfectly leads to our third and last matchup to watch for.
Play-Calling Battle: Corey Hetherman vs. Alex Golesh
The biggest matchup on Saturday afternoon will be between Miami’s defensive playcaller and South Florida’s offensive playcaller.
USF head coach Alex Golesh is the play caller and architect of the Bulls’ offense. He has them as the early favorite to represent the “group of six” in the College Football Playoffs. Golesh has built a great offense around his mobile quarterback and puts pressure on defenses to keep up with them.
One thing you’ll see a lot on Saturday is a fast-paced tempo on offense from the Bulls. It presents problems for not only the defensive players but the defensive play caller, too.
DC Corey Hetherman has been the one everyone talks about when it comes to Miami this year. He is one of the main reasons why many analysts and pundits speak highly of the Canes, and it’s because of what the defense has showcased thus far.
In the offseason, there was a lot of optimism with Hetherman taking over the defense, and that side of the ball was going to look a lot better. We were all in a “have to see it to believe it” mode due to the atrocitiy we saw from Miami’s defense last year.
Week 1 comes around, and the Hurricanes’ defense was stout against one of the best teams in the country in Notre Dame.
Hetherman has his guys playing fast and physical on defense. The most important factor in their early success has been their effective communication. It’s been crisp, and the players have been flying around because of it.
The communication on the defensive side of the ball last year was poor, to put it nicely. Under Heatherman, you clearly see the players every play talking and making sure they are aligned properly and knowing their assignment on every down.
Against an offense that loves to speed things up and hurry it up, it’s even more crucial for that to be executed at a high level.
The chess game between Hetherman and Golesh will be a high-level one. It’s going to be the most interesting part of the game, and it’ll likely determine who comes out 3-0 on Saturday.
