Miami (FL) Hurricanes

Dissecting Mark Richt Pre-Game Presser Part I

Published Jun. 30, 2017 6:28 p.m. ET

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Mark Richt makes his first return to the state of Georgia as Miami’s Head Coach since he was dismissed by Georgia at the end of last season. The Hurricanes travel to Atlanta to face Georgia Tech.

The ‘Canes face their first challenging game of the Richt era in their ACC Opener. Georgia Tech runs an option offense, which can be difficult to defend, because of its scarcity. Miami is fortunate they get to see it every year, as Richt did when he was at Georgia.

Richt stressed the importance of not letting the Yellow Jackets control the possessions and the clock. He mentioned in a game with two up-tempo teams, that you’d likely get 12-13 possessions per game. Against Georgia Tech, that number could be reduced to about eight.

Richt mentioned the common elements of defending the triple option and/or the spread option. According to Richt Georgia Tech is not all option football. He is concerned about Yellow Jacket Quarterback Justin Thomas as a duel threat running and passing.

Richt said of Thomas “When they have a quarterback runner who can throw as well as they can, it creates more problems than you want to be dealing with.” In four games, Thomas has only attempted 51 passes and completed just 45 percent, but they average 7.1 yards per attempt and 15.8 per completion.

Wide Receiver can still thrive in the Tech offense. Stephen Hill had over 800 yards receiving and averaged nearly 30 yards per catch in 2011. He was a second-round pick of the Jets in 2012. The Broncos Demaryius Thomas also thrived in Johnson’s system. He had 47 receptions for 1,157 yards and eight touchdowns in 2009.

Running an option offense that’s not a spread makes it tough when a run-oriented offense attempts to come back. Richt is concerned about Thomas’ resiliency though“He’s tough. He can bring a team back.”

Controlling the ball is going to be important for the Hurricanes to keep their defense fresh. They are the ones that have had the dominant running game thus far this season. Led by Mark Walton and Joseph Yearby the ‘Canes have the ninth-best rushing offense in the country.

Walton is fifth in the country averaging 133.7 yards per game and Yearby ranks 50th at 85.7 YPG. Walton is a special talent who beat out Yearby for the starting running back position despite the fact Yearby had over 1,000 yards rushing last season.

Asked about Walton, Richt said “He’s probably the most energetic player in practice every day. … He loves the process, the grind of it.”

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With Brad Kaaya under center, the ‘Canes are balanced offensively. They have one of the most efficient offenses in the country as the calendar turns to October and we begin the depth of conference play.

Freshman Wide Receiver Ahmmon Richards has had a huge impact on the passing game. He has given Kaaya a big, big play receiver. He leads the team with 203 yards receiving and 22.6 yards per reception.

Richards had two huge receptions against Appalachian State. He and Kaaya connected on 61 and 62-yard passes that set the ‘Canes up deep inside Mountaineer territory. Richt has been happy with Richards production so early in his career. He said:

“He’s this guy that’s pretty calm, reserved, pretty well-spoken guy. In the game, something gets into him. He loves the game so much … I love that about him.”

Richt later touched on the Hurricanes injury report, who they expect back this week and who isn’t ready yet, on backup Tight End Jovani Haskins handling the scout team Quarterback duties, the Yellow Jackets skill position players on offense and their highly ranked defense.