The degree of difficulty for the Miami Hurricanes football team has gone up a few notches.
No. 13 UM will leave Friday for its biggest game of the young season against the No. 24 Texas A&M Aggies, who play at a Kyle Field Stadium that seats 102,700 fans. The Aggies (1-1), of the Southeastern Conference, were No. 6 in the polls last week before being upset 17-14 by Appalachian State, and now they’ll face a 2-0 Canes team that will be without the services of top receiver Xavier Restrepo.
Restrepo, a 5-10, 198-pound third-year slot receiver with 172 yards and one touchdown on 11 catches, sustained a foot injury this week and is out indefinitely, the Miami Herald learned Thursday from multiple sources.
Miami did not respond to a request for Restrepo’s status. It has not been revealed how long he’ll be unable to play. Restrepo is clearly the team leader and has been repeatedly praised by coach Mario Cristobal for his unrivaled work ethic and discipline and example of everything positive.
Cristobal said Saturday after UM’s win over Southern Miss that he was “really proud of Restrepo because he got dinged up last week and a little in practice and he went out there and played.”
Restrepo last spoke to reporters Tuesday and seemed excited, like the other players, to face the Aggies.
“Guys are really talented,’’ Restrepo said of the Aggies, “one of the most talented DB [defensive backs] corps in the nation. Gotta respect them but also make them respect you.’’
The Hurricanes, who were 6 1/2-point underdogs Thursday despite their better ranking, must now compensate for the absence of Restrepo with a bunch of young wideouts with plenty of talent but limited production. Probably more important, however, will be the ground game.
Running game
More than anything, UM needs to continue to pound the ball behind leading rusher Henry Parrish and others that include Thaddius Franklin and Jaylan Knighton.
UM has run 91 times for 479 yards and attempted 54 passes (completing 42) for 557.
Hurricanes offensive coordinator Josh Gattis indicated earlier in the week that it would be important to control the time of possession against the Aggies to limit their offense. Last week, Texas A&M ran 42 fewer plays than App State.
“App State did a great job doing that, holding A&M’s offense to two, three maybe, possessions in the second half,’’ UM quarterback Tyler Van Dyke, Restrepo’s roommate and close friend, said Tuesday. “It’s tough to score when you don’t have the ball. Every throw is important. Every throw needs to be on the money. And if it’s not you just gotta forget about it and throw the next ball. We have a good game plan and I think it’s a good mix.”
That, of course, is where the running game will be key. After two games, UM is 16th nationally in rushing offense, averaging 241 yards a game.
Parrish, a 5-10, 190-pound third-year sophomore and Ole Miss transfer, leads all tailbacks with 217 yards and a team-leading four touchdowns on 37 carries (5.9 yards per carry). Franklin, a 6-0, 240-pound powerful runner, has 127 yards and three touchdowns on 21 carries (6.0-yard average).
Knighton, a 5-10, 185-pound sophomore out of Deerfield Beach, was limited to six carries for 19 yards last week in his first action this season after dealing with a minor injury. He ended 2021 as UM’s leading rusher with 561 yards and a team-best eight touchdowns on 145 carries (3.9-yard average) in eight games.
Receiving game
UM’s record-breaking receivers Charleston Rambo and Mike Harley departed after last season, leaving Restrepo as clearly the top performer and overall team leader to pick up the slack on a mostly young receiving corps still emerging. Without him, UM could put versatile, speedy sophomore Brashard Smith (six catches for 65 yards) in slot. Third-year redshirt freshman Michael Redding III, 6-2 and 195 pounds, has five catches for 76 yards and a touchdown. Outside receiver Key’Shawn Smith had 49 yards and a touchdown on three catches last week.
The Aggies are sixth nationally in passing yards allowed (112.5 per game) and could make it even harder now for Van Dyke, who was sacked four times last week.
Adding to the already massive challenge Saturday for the Hurricanes will be that huge crowd, hailed by the Aggies and across college football as the “12th Man.’’
The Hurricanes couldn’t wait to get there.
Crowd factor
“Really excited as a team to get to College Station — once in a lifetime opportunity,’’ Van Dyke said. “It’s a great team. They have a great defense, great players, high recruits. It’s going to be a challenge and we’re going to be ready for it. It’s just a good feeling going into another team’s stadium and making plays, making the crowd quiet.”
Veteran starting cornerback Tyrique Stevenson, who transferred to UM from Georgia last season, was asked what advice he could give to his young teammates who have never experienced such an atmosphere.
“Just tell them don’t get starstruck. We’re going into a hostile crowd that’s one of the loudest stadiums in college football,’’ Stevenson said. “We’re going into a big game. Just don’t let the game be bigger than what it is. We’re practicing just like them. We’re working just like them. We prepare for moments like this.”
Cristobal and his assistants know Kyle Field, and have been doing their best to prepare the Hurricanes all week.
“If you’ve never seen it before and never practiced in noise before and if you let it get in your head it will affect you tremendously,’’ Cristobal said. “If you practice in it, if you really stress the importance of how you signal, how you communicate, without having to verbally correct — because you’re not going to be able to do that.
“We understand that they create an unbelievable atmosphere, which is exciting for our guys quite honestly. When you’re growing up and you play college football you want to play in games like this. You recognize their tradition, you respect them and their program and you can’t wait for the opportunity to find out where we are as a program.”
