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Redshirt freshman DE Gregory Rousseau recorded another sack against the Virginia Tech Hokies this past weekend, and continues to lead the team in sacks (4) and TFL (5.5) in limited reps.
Despite his personal success, the team suffered another loss on the season, falling short to VT 42-35.
“It was tough the way it went down,” Rousseau said. “But we just came back, went back to work, cleaning up everything to do our best for Friday… We’ll keep going hard, getting W’s. We’re not giving up, nobody’s sad, nobody’s ****ed off. We’re going to come in and work and get it right.”
As the team sits at 0-2 in the conference with their ACC Coastal hopes on the line, they’re preparing for division favorites Virginia this week with a little extra fire going into Friday’s matchup.
“Practice is really intense for sure, it’s really all about attention to detail to little things,” Rousseau said. “We’re trying to fine tune our craft, get ready for Friday, that everything we need to do we’re still doing and just keep building.
“We’re definitely going to play hard, they’re going to play hard. They pride themselves in being tough, have that tough culture over there. We have to play hard for 60 minutes, never give up, back down to anybody at any position.”
Last week, the Hurricanes struggled with the mobility of QB Hendon Hooker, who accounted for 76 rushing yards and 4 total TD’s, along with a host of missed tackles. This week will bring more of the same with UVA QB Bryce Perkins, who recorded nearly 1,000 rushing yards last season, 61 of which came in the Cavaliers 16-13 win over Miami in 2018.
“That’s what goes back to doing the little things right - with tackling we have to have everything perfect,” Rousseau said.
After being a top 5 team in the country in sacks last year, the Canes have slipped to a middling 37th in the nation with 2.60 sacks per game. With how aggressive the Miami defense usually is, that hasn’t been enough to take pressure off a young secondary that is still finding their way on the back end. What have opponents been doing to slow down UM’s pass rush?
“They’re running some quick passes, max protection too with the tight ends, wings and running backs,” Rousseau said. “Especially on Neo’s (Jon Garvin’s) side, they do a lot of that.”
**Playing in his first action this season since a leg injury sidelined him for the first 4 games, sophomore DT Nesta Silvera felt great just being able to run around with his teammates vs. Virginia Tech over the weekend.
“It was a great feeling. It’s been a long time coming just being healthy and playing football again,” Silvera said. “That’s what I was really worried about, being out there with the guys.”
In limited snaps coming off the bench, Silvera did his best to make his presence felt, recording one tackle and a QB hurry against VT.
“I had a pressure, it was a screen,” Silvera said. “I just stayed on the back-end and once Neo jumped up, I thought I could get him, but I just missed him.”
Does he feel he is back 100% and playing at his usual standard?
“It’s not a Nesta Silvera standard, it’s a Miami Hurricanes standard, so I have to keep working every day to get to that,” Silvera commented.
UVA comes into Hard Rock Stadium at 4-1, ranked 20th in the country, and with senior dual-threat QB Bryce Perkins. Heading into the Friday night contest, Silvera recognizes the challenge that’s in front of the D-Line and the rest of the team.
“I just think they’re a very tough team, they’re a good squad. It’s going to be a good game,” Silvera said of Virginia. “They have a good quarterback, he moves around a lot. He can make big plays at any moment, so we have a lot of respect for him.”
With head coach Manny Diaz taking more of a role in preparing the defense this week, Silvera says he doesn’t see much changing in terms of the expectations the coaches have.
“Like I said, it’s a Miami standard, the standard is the same,” Silvera said. “Whether it’s coach Diaz that’s working with us or coach Baker, the coaches are held to the same standard that we’re held to. That’s all it is, regardless of who’s around.”
Despite his personal success, the team suffered another loss on the season, falling short to VT 42-35.
“It was tough the way it went down,” Rousseau said. “But we just came back, went back to work, cleaning up everything to do our best for Friday… We’ll keep going hard, getting W’s. We’re not giving up, nobody’s sad, nobody’s ****ed off. We’re going to come in and work and get it right.”
As the team sits at 0-2 in the conference with their ACC Coastal hopes on the line, they’re preparing for division favorites Virginia this week with a little extra fire going into Friday’s matchup.
“Practice is really intense for sure, it’s really all about attention to detail to little things,” Rousseau said. “We’re trying to fine tune our craft, get ready for Friday, that everything we need to do we’re still doing and just keep building.
“We’re definitely going to play hard, they’re going to play hard. They pride themselves in being tough, have that tough culture over there. We have to play hard for 60 minutes, never give up, back down to anybody at any position.”
Last week, the Hurricanes struggled with the mobility of QB Hendon Hooker, who accounted for 76 rushing yards and 4 total TD’s, along with a host of missed tackles. This week will bring more of the same with UVA QB Bryce Perkins, who recorded nearly 1,000 rushing yards last season, 61 of which came in the Cavaliers 16-13 win over Miami in 2018.
“That’s what goes back to doing the little things right - with tackling we have to have everything perfect,” Rousseau said.
After being a top 5 team in the country in sacks last year, the Canes have slipped to a middling 37th in the nation with 2.60 sacks per game. With how aggressive the Miami defense usually is, that hasn’t been enough to take pressure off a young secondary that is still finding their way on the back end. What have opponents been doing to slow down UM’s pass rush?
“They’re running some quick passes, max protection too with the tight ends, wings and running backs,” Rousseau said. “Especially on Neo’s (Jon Garvin’s) side, they do a lot of that.”
**Playing in his first action this season since a leg injury sidelined him for the first 4 games, sophomore DT Nesta Silvera felt great just being able to run around with his teammates vs. Virginia Tech over the weekend.
“It was a great feeling. It’s been a long time coming just being healthy and playing football again,” Silvera said. “That’s what I was really worried about, being out there with the guys.”
In limited snaps coming off the bench, Silvera did his best to make his presence felt, recording one tackle and a QB hurry against VT.
“I had a pressure, it was a screen,” Silvera said. “I just stayed on the back-end and once Neo jumped up, I thought I could get him, but I just missed him.”
Does he feel he is back 100% and playing at his usual standard?
“It’s not a Nesta Silvera standard, it’s a Miami Hurricanes standard, so I have to keep working every day to get to that,” Silvera commented.
UVA comes into Hard Rock Stadium at 4-1, ranked 20th in the country, and with senior dual-threat QB Bryce Perkins. Heading into the Friday night contest, Silvera recognizes the challenge that’s in front of the D-Line and the rest of the team.
“I just think they’re a very tough team, they’re a good squad. It’s going to be a good game,” Silvera said of Virginia. “They have a good quarterback, he moves around a lot. He can make big plays at any moment, so we have a lot of respect for him.”
With head coach Manny Diaz taking more of a role in preparing the defense this week, Silvera says he doesn’t see much changing in terms of the expectations the coaches have.
“Like I said, it’s a Miami standard, the standard is the same,” Silvera said. “Whether it’s coach Diaz that’s working with us or coach Baker, the coaches are held to the same standard that we’re held to. That’s all it is, regardless of who’s around.”
