Miami Hurricanes Handle Clemson: Quick Thoughts

The atmosphere inside Memorial Stadium in Clemson on Saturday night was electric. One of the Top Five entrances and pregame hype feels I have had in all my years of traveling for road games.

Then the game started, and within a few minutes, the Canes sucked the life out of the Clemson faithful, scoring quickly on their first drive of the game.

From there, there were some ups, and some downs for Miami, but in the end, the Canes were just more talented, and executed much better than the Tigers, which resulted in a 41-13 road rout.

So what did I think of the game, as it unfolded? Here are my thoughts…

– The talent gap between the Canes and every other ACC team continues to show itself. There was a time, just a few short years ago, when teams, specifically Clemson, could match up athletically with Miami. That is no longer the case. The Canes made their share of mistakes Saturday night, but so did Clemson. And when the less talented team makes as many mistakes as the more talented team, it ends up how it did, in a rout.

– There was a time early in the third quarter when I texted several of my friends and said that this game was starting to have the feel of last year’s SMU game. The Canes were doing just enough things wrong, to let a lesser team hang around. But unlike last year, the current version of the Canes gathered themselves, and physically punished the Tigers in the fourth quarter.

– The injuries continue to mount. There was still no word after the game about the extent of Marquise Lightfoot’s injury. Lineman Max Buchanan and Mark McCoy both left the game hurt. The good news is both made it back out to the field after giving Canes fans a scare.

– Home field advantage is no longer a thing for the Canes on the road. Miami has gone on the road to two of the most hostile environments over the past nine months, College Station, and Death Valley, and has come away with victories in both.

– We have reached the point in this process that even when it doesn’t look crisp, the wins can end in blowout fashion. Miami did enough Saturday night to keep the Tigers and their fans, around. But that was not the case. The Canes regained their composure several times, and eventually wore down the Tigers.

– This win cannot be understated. This was a game they may have blown in previous seasons. Call me crazy, but I think this team actually grew up even more tonight. There will not be an environment the rest of the season, including the possible playoffs, that will be tougher than what they saw Saturday night. They also have now won three of their five total road games this season. Their only remaining trips away from home are North Carolina, and Notre Dame.

My final thoughts of the night are simple. If this team gets healthy, and avoids any further major injuries, this team will be right where we all expected them to be at the end of the season. In the playoffs, with a very realistic chance at finishing as the last team standing.