Against Florida, Will Miami Prove It Fixed The Biggest Offensive Woes From Last Season?

Before Miami plays at Florida, there are still questions about this Hurricanes football team.

That’s especially true of the offense. Too many times the UM offense came up short last season. With that overall point in mind, here are three pressing questions to consider when watching the Miami at Florida game.

1) Will Miami’s offense avoid the costly turnovers against Florida that cost it games last season?

Yes, former quarterback Tyler Van Dyke is no longer at UM and he did create many of the mistakes; he’s not alone. Miami is about to begin its 2024 season after last last year ranking 97th nationally in turnover margin , per CFB Stats.

While Van Dyke’s 12 interceptions cannot be forgotten, do not discount the 8 fumbles lost as being major reasons why Miami’s offense would cost it games.

Moving to 2024, quarterback Cam Ward is sometimes careless with the football as well, evidenced by his 14 fumbles for Washington State in 2023. That statistic comes from Pro Football Focus and it’s certainly key. Ward being sacked and losing even one fumble against UF could cost the Canes the game.

Point blank, Miami cannot be as sloppy against Florida and expect to win in The Swamp.

2) Playing at The Swamp, will Miaim’s offense be better in the red zone?

Miami’s 2024 offense is not going to jump over a high bar to do better than last season’s team in this category. The 2023 unit comes in at No. 90 in the nation for red zone touchdown percentage. 30 of 52 red zone trips would lead to a touchdown.

With all of Miami’s skill talent like Damien Martinez as a power running back, plus the additional speed in the backfield such as Ajay Allen and Chris Johnson, Jr . There are also top-notch returning receivers with Xavier Restrepo and Jacolby George , it’s hard to imagine UM’s offense not significantly improving in this area.

Do not forget about the offensive line talent either. Offensive line coach Alex Mirabal does not mince words when discussing the unit’s talent. You can read more about the offensive line HERE .

At a minimum, this season’s Canes’ red zone offense should go inside the top 25. There’s too much talent and experience for anything less.

3) Can the Hurricanes reduce the self-inflicted wounds brought by penalties even when the Florida crowd is going nuts?

95th in the nation would be the 2023 statistic. While it includes offense, defense, and special teams, here’s a synopsis of offensive penalty woes.

Pre-snap penalties like false starts need to be rectified. Those are mental errors that hurt Miami or any other offense. The needless 15-yard unsportsmanlike penalties that George sometimes acquires when he loses his cool. Those must be resolved before playing UF.

Finally, it’s the timing. For whatever reason, Miami does tend to shoot itself in the foot when it’s the most inopportune moment. Giving up even one touchdown drive because of a penalty right before entering the red zone could be costly against the Gators.

If Miami cleans up these three categories, it can absolutely be one of college football’s best offenses. The talent is there. Now it’s time to go out and prove it can make it happen beginning with the game against Florida.