After Wednesday’s drills, Miami head coach Manny Diaz stated that he’s been pleased by how his team has looked this week coming out of the bye and preparing for Virginia Tech.
“Yesterday was actually our best Tuesday of the year, was our fastest practice of the entire season - we can measure all the data through our Catapult system,” Diaz said. “The guys have had a great attitude all week.”
Sophomore RB Lorenzo Lingard finally got himself all the way back off knee surgery ahead of UM’s last game against Central Michigan, and although the Canes planned on giving him a few snaps, the fact that Miami failed to ever pull away vs. CMU nixed that idea.
With the Hokies on tap for this weekend in an ACC Coastal matchup, Diaz again stated his desire to get Lingard on the field, but gave a caveat as well.
“We’re hoping so, but part of it is him understanding what to do,” Diaz said of Lingard. “You can’t account for the missed reps. This is not just `run right, run left.’ It’s pass protection, how we get aligned. And when you miss scrimmages, unfortunately miss the Bethune game…
“He’s not doing anything wrong. He’s just developing as a player. Sometimes you have to separate what we feel about a player in recruiting as opposed to their natural development when they get on this campus. Lo is a guy we think has a great future, he knows he’s getting better and better, more comfortable with his knee and a guy that we’ll get more of a role for him.”
Diaz also addressed the outside chatter of a potential Lingard transfer, saying he tells all of his players to “live in the now” and do their best to elevate themselves instead of worrying about what might happen down the line.
“We talk to our players about that all the time, because everybody knows what’s best not just for Lo, but for all of our guys,” Diaz said. “We talk about being in the now, which is what you can control, which is right now, right here. There’s nowhere you can go. You can’t transfer in September or October, there’s nowhere to go. You have to be here right now. So be where you are. We tell all the guys `Be the best you. There’s something you can do to improve who you are, whatever role you have on the field. So focus on what is real, what is actually in your control’.”
True freshman LT Zion Nelson has struggled this season, but Diaz still plans on leaving him out there to work out his issues and continue his development by gaining experience.
“He’s got to play,” Diaz said. “You’re talking about a true freshman playing left tackle. Give me a history of that ... you develop those guys, get them in the game. Every rep matters. You get to the game with what you’ve got, try to get better and better and better. The thing I love about Zion, Zion competes, man. He doesn’t flinch, doesn’t blink, gets back in there.”
Legendary defensive coordinator Bud Foster is in his final season at VT before retirement, and he has always presented a difficult defense for his opponents to solve.
“You’re talking about a defense that historically with Bud Foster is going to make everything difficult for you, will surround your running game with numbers,” Diaz said. “They’re going to challenge you on all the throws and they’re going to force you to push the ball into throws that take longer to develop. That’s why their sack numbers are very good.”
After playing both regular starter Ryan Willis and backup Hendon Hooker in last week’s loss to Duke, the Hokies have publicly declined to name a starting QB ahead of their game against the Canes. With Hooker being more of a runner than Willis, Diaz said that’s something UM is preparing for when they face-off vs. the VT offense, among other things.
“Offensively, they’ve had struggles getting their running game going but are still very dynamic - two-back runs, one-back runs, a lot of motion to get your eyes in the wrong post. And QB run game, which has not been a major part of the offense we’ve seen so far, so we have to make sure we’re prepared for that.”
UM is tied for last in the FBS in terms of converting third downs, with only a 23.3% success rate. Diaz is well-aware of the issue, and the team has dedicated large portions of their practices to getting third downs right.
“As we get better, our third down offense will continue to grow,” Diaz said. “And it’s something we practice all the time, was a major point of emphasis today. We probably spent over 20 minutes or so on third down today in practice, probably 25. It’s getting worked on.”
Diaz also followed up on something his OC Dan Enos said on Monday, saying that he is more confident in the backups on the OL at this point in the season and expects to rotate more come this weekend. Enos previously said John Campbell, Kai-Leon Herbert, and Ousman Traore were working in from the second unit OL.
