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I’m going Rebs 34-24. OM has only been held under 30 points twice this year (24 vs. LSU; 24 vs. WSU in a super weird game).
While Miami has one of the best defenses we’ve faced all year, they also lack depth. The Canes only have two players with more than 60 tackles on the season, and one is a DB. By contrast, the Rebs have 5 and three more sitting in the 50s.
I think the Canes will struggle to slow down an explosive OM offense for 60 minutes, not saying they won’t have success at times. Chambliss has thrown for 300+ yards in 8 of his 11 starts. I expect that to continue. Yards will be tough to come by on the ground for Lacy, but the Rebs will need to figure out a way to slow down the pass rush, whether it be delayed handoffs to get behind the rush, screens, or designed runs for Chambliss. Speaking of which, Chambliss will need to continue to protect the ball and escape pressure like he has all year. Know where Keionte Scott is. He has two INTs on the year and returned both for TDs. Offense needs to stay in front of the sticks and play clean from a penalty standpoint. Getting behind will allow their DL to tee off, and we’ll be asking a lot of our OL (while highly capable) to maintain blocks for 3-4 seconds while WRs gain ground on 2/3 and long.
On defense, Harris, Echoles, Franklin, Perkins, Brown, Dottery, Princewill, Womack, etc. need to get big. The Canes are very physical up front and follow that up with a bruiser in Mark Fletcher (6’2″, 225 lbs). OM has to stop the run and force Beck into passing situations. The Rebs defense cannot be on the field all night, allowing UM to run off 7-minute drives. Defense needs to win on base downs, create negative plays, and force UM to play behind the sticks. As opposed to Stockton, who finished the year with 462 rushing yards, Beck only has 56 on the year. Commit to stopping Fletcher and trust your DBs to make plays when called upon.
TL;DR
Offense – protect the ball; gameplan around the DL; run tempo; minimize penalties; stay in front of the sticks.
Defense – commit to stopping the run; create negative plays on base downs; force Beck to throw the ball.
