“The victory is nice, but UM fans expect more”

The victory is nice, but UM fans expect more

Posted: 16 Oct 2010 07:01 PM PDT

DURHAM, N.C. -- If the University of Miami's loss last week to Florida State was agony, the 28-13 victory over Duke on Saturday was torture.

The humbling by the Seminoles made Hurricanes fans want to hurl crockery. The display of mediocrity against Duke made them run for the medicine cabinet.

``A win is a win,'' UM defensive lineman Allen Bailey said, echoing his teammates and coaches in a perfect summation of the joyless, messy, successful performance.

But when you go to a five-star restaurant, you don't want to leave with the assessment that ``a meal is a meal.''

UM, a five-star program ranked No. 12 a month ago, should have beaten lowly Duke by more than 15 points, especially when the Blue Devils surrendered seven turnovers. Poor Duke quarterback Sean Renfree was the gift that kept on giving. The kid had a rough day, throwing five interceptions and losing a fumble. How close would the game have been without those turnovers? Duke has given up an average of 40 points per game.

Football isn't figure skating. Nobody is awarding points for artistry.

Scoreboard, baby -- that's all that counts.

UM got up after the FSU knockout, shook out the cobwebs, iced the bruises, went on the road, avoided an upset and kept its Atlantic Coast Conference title hopes alive. That's all good.

PLENTY OF POSITIVES

Iron man Jacory Harris played the entire game despite his aches and pains, threw a touchdown pass to Leonard Hankerson and did not throw an interception for the first time since the opener against Florida A&M.

Damien Berry bulled and bolted for this third consecutive 100-yard-plus game. Vaughn Telemaque picked off two passes. Defensive tackle Micanor Regis picked off another and looked impressively fleet for a 305-pound man as he rumbled into the end zone for the first return score of his life.

``I saw a big shadow -- it was Regis. I just started laughing,'' Sean Spence said of Regis, who frequently instructs defensive backs on the craft of catching the ball.

The UM defense, which has drills every practice on how to strip the ball and curl around it, caused most of the turnovers. The offensive line did not allow a sack.

All good.

But we expect more from this team. We don't expect 12 penalties for 90 yards (after they amassed 105 last week), a handful of them ``bonehead penalties,'' Spence said. Flubs on special teams, including a fumbled kickoff and an onside kick that seemed to take them by surprise. Only 3 of 12 third-down conversions, and 0 of 4 on fourth down. Dropped and careless passes.

We expect more from UM. That's part of the privilege of playing at UM.

Something is still missing.

Is it emotion? We've heard a lot of talk that coach Randy Shannon doesn't show enough passion during games, that he's not yelling or waving his arms or tossing his headset. We've heard concern that the team has adopted his personality, is too reserved, lacks fiery leaders like Ed Reed or Lamar Thomas.

Emotion is overrated. Phil Jackson isn't a sideline maniac. Nor was Tom Landry. And the best players tend to ``act like they've been there'' when they make a big play rather than going all Lady Gaga with the flamboyant histrionics.

This UM team has a quiet intensity that fans haven't learned to appreciate yet. But the Hurricanes were definitely flat Saturday when they should have been breathing fire in the wake of the FSU collapse.

``We started slow and sluggish,'' LaRon Byrd said. ``You can't just play to the level of your competition.''

BIGGER TESTS TO COME

On a sun-splashed, 70-degree autumn afternoon, UM played to the level of its competition. The good Duke team played the night before in the ``Countdown to Craziness'' for basketball season. The level of quality and energy was quite different under coach Mike Krzyzewski in Cameron Indoor Stadium.

The level of competition for UM rises markedly next Saturday when the University of North Carolina comes to Miami. Coach Butch Davis' team has beaten UM three times in a row.

Games against Georgia Tech and Virginia Tech loom in November.

It's no time to panic. It's no time to call for Shannon's head. Enough of the vitriol and second-guessing by wannabe experts. The ACC is ranked the sixth or seventh best conference on most lists. It's ripe for devouring. UM should focus on finally reaching the ACC title game. It won't get there if it plays the way it did against FSU and Duke. It can if it plays to the level of its talent and emphasizes attention to detail.

A win is a win. So true. But at UM, so much more is expected.

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