Miami's Run Game Looks to Be 'Explosive' Against No. 7 Texas A&M
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CORAL GABLES, Fla. — No. 10 Miami has one of the best offenses in the country, but it does come with some whiplash.
The Hurricanes' rushing attack sits outside the top 70 on the season, but has shown signs of improvement. At the beginning of the season, many complained that Miami ran the ball up the middle too much and that stubbornness cost them in two games. Since then, they have inserted some juice into their lineup.
Freshman Girard Pringle Jr. has been one of the best midseason additions to the running back rotation and has proven to be an all-world back in four starts.
Now, offensive coordinator Shannon Dawson knows he has to get some of his players going, and it starts with a powerful run game.
Yeah, I mean, we're just focusing on running it up the middle more, because that would tend to lead to more explosive plays," Dawson joked. "You know, I mean, look, we just got to stick with it, you know, I mean, you know, there've been games where we've run the ball really well, and there've been games where defenses have stacked the box and made us do other things.
"And so I think that we have the ability to stretch you in a lot of different ways. I think we've been running the ball really efficient the last month. And we have people that can be explosive with the ball, you know, so I don't view it probably like you view it, but ultimately, I get, sometimes stats don't paint all the whole picture, you know? And so we've been pretty efficient in the run game. Now, I would like to be more explosive, yes. And so and I think, you know, I think that's coming."
Head coach Mario Cristobal also knows that the rushing attack has to be elite against the Aggies. He likes how much improvement it has had over the past few months, but still wants more explosive plays from his star backs.
"Well, I think it's improved the last month or so," Cristobal said. "I think we've created more explosive plays. I think it's a combination of a lot of things. Sometimes you're not blocked up as you should be, sometimes a guy falls off, sometimes the wide receiver doesn't get to a safety, sometimes you should throw it on that particular down. But I think we have gotten more in sync.
"I think we've created some opportunities with some other guys in there as well. Mark [Fletcher] was on the mend. He's fully healthy now, so I think we're in a good place. We've run the ball effectively for all the years we've been here, and we feel we're turning in that direction again, but we're always assessing and analyzing and adapting where we can to get better."
Justice Sandle is a graduate of Mississippi State University and is the site lead for the Miami Hurricanes on SI. He can be reached at Twitter @Justice_News5.
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Justice Sandle is a graduate of Mississippi State University earning a Bachelor of Arts and Science in Communications with a concentration in Print and Digital Journalism. During his time in Starkville, he spent a year as an intern working for Mississippi State On SI primarily covering basketball, football, baseball, and soccer while writing, recording, and creating multimedia stories during his tenor. Since graduating, he has assumed the role of lead staff writer for Miami Hurricanes On SI covering football, basketball, baseball, and all things Hurricanes related.