Florida Looms as Hurricanes Finish Practice Sessions
Dec. 29, 2004
ATLANTA – The University of Miami football team practiced for an hour and a half Wednesday afternoon at the Georgia Dome in shells as they wrapped up formal practices for Friday night’s showdown with Florida in the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl.
The Hurricanes put the finishing touches on their game plan during Wednesday’s workout session. Miami will conduct a light walk-through on Thursday evening in the Georgia Dome. Kickoff for the Chick-fli-A Peach Bowl is set for 7:39 p.m. Friday on ESPN.
“I think (Friday’s game) is a great opportunity for us,” Coker said following Wednesday’s workout. “The guys have practiced extremely well, and we are excited to play.
Coker expects defensive end Bryan Pata, who injured a knee in Tuesday’s practice, to play on Friday night. Running back Tyrone Moss is also expected to play against Florida after practicing the past two days for the first time since spraining his knee against Virginia Tech on Dec. 4.
Friday night’s game will be the last for Miami’s seniors who have won 43 games in their time with the Hurricanes, including the 2001 National Championship.
“You hate to see guys move on,” Coker said. “But that is a special time as too, because it is time to move on to that next level. I think that is part of college football and part of life. I think they have had a good career, and I want them to remember the good times. These guys have never lost to Florida. They have never lost to Florida State. They have been in BCS bowl games. They have a national championship ring and played for another national championship that we didn’t win. There are a lot of really good things they can take with them.
“Again, nothing would be better than to go out with a win against Florida.”
The curfew for the Hurricanes’ players has been moved up all week leading up to Friday night’s game.
“We do cut down on the time the players can spend out,” Coker said. “If we were at home tonight, we would not have a curfew, but here we will have a curfew. They will need to be in their rooms and we check rooms.”
