No. 8 Miami Returns to Land Shark to Host Clemson
Oct. 20, 2009
Shannon Press Conference Quotes 
| Harris Press Conference Quotes
CORAL GABLES, Fla. – After three straight non-conference wins over Oklahoma, Florida A&M and UCF, the eighth-ranked Hurricanes will return to ACC play this weekend when they play host to Clemson at Land Shark Stadium on Saturday, Oct. 24 at 3:30 p.m. The game will be televised by ABC – the `Canes third appearance on the network this season.
Miami is coming off a convincing 27-7 win over UCF last weekend in Orlando. The win secured a 5-1 start for the Hurricanes – the best start in head coach Randy Shannon’s three-year tenure.
Sophomore quarterback Jacory Harris had one of his best performances against the Knights, going 20-for-26 for 293 yards and a touchdown in the 20-point victory. His 293 passing yards marked the second-highest passing total of his career, behind his season-opening 386 yard performance at FSU. On the year, Harris has passed for 1,518 yards with 11 touchdowns, seven interceptions and a 64.8 completion percentage. Heading into Saturday’s game against Clemson, he ranks eighth nationally and second in the ACC in passing efficiency (157.3).
Senior running back Javarris James continues to climb the ladder in the University of Miami’s all-time rushing lists. With 65 yards on the ground against UCF, James became just the seventh player in school history to reach the 2,000-yard rushing mark. He passed Frank Gore (1,975) during the UCF game for seventh place all-time and with 2,032 yards heading into the game this weekend against Clemson, he needs just 36 more yards to pass Willis McGahee (2,067) for seventh place on the rushing yardage leaders. In addition, with just three more carries, James will pass his cousin Edgerrin (474 attempts), for third place all-time on the program’s rushing attempts list.
Miami’s receiving trio of LaRon Byrd, Leonard Hankerson and Travis Benjamin carried the UM passing game against UCF, combining for 13 catches against the Knights. Byrd currently leads the group with 18 catches on the year, while Hankerson and Benjamin each have 15. Hankerson has a team-high 293 yards, followed by Benjamin with 280 and Byrd with 258. The threesome has also combined for five receiving touchdowns, with Hankerson and Benjamin each hauling in two apiece.
After a slow start to the season, sophomore linebacker Sean Spence has emerged over the last four games, averaging over seven tackles per game over that span. He recorded his first two sacks of the season at UCF and is currently third on the team with 34 total tackles. Ahead of him are fellow linebackers Colin McCarthy and Darryl Sharpton, who have 38 and 36 tackles respectively. McCarthy recorded his first interception of the season at UCF while Sharpton nearly matched a career-high with 11 total tackles against the Knights.
GAME 7 INFORMATION
Date: Saturday, Oct. 24, 2009
Location: Land Shark Stadium (Natural Grass), (74,916) in Miami Gardens, Fla.
Kickoff: 3:30 p.m. (ET)
TELEVISION – ABC (Mirror Broadcast on ESPN)
Dave Lamont (play-by-play)
Brian Griese (color)
Tape Delay Telecast – CSS
Mon., Oct. 26 at 7 p.m.; Thurs. Oct. 29 at Noon
LOCAL RADIO – 560 WQAM, 1450 ESPN DEPORTES
560 WQAM
Joe Zagacki (play-by-play)
Don Bailey Jr. (color analyst)
Fans can also listen online at www.wqam.com
150 ESPN Deportes En Español
Joe Pujala (play-by-play)
Joe Martinez (color analyst)
NATIONAL RADIO – ESPN RADIO
Satellite: 191 (XM)
Bill Rosinski (play-by-play)
Dennis Franchione (color analyst)
Joe Schad (sideline reporter)
WEBSITES
Miami (www.hurricanesports.com)
Clemson (www.clemsontigers.com)
THE MIAMI-CLEMSON SERIES
Miami leads the all-time series with Clemson, 5-2. The series dates back to 1945, when the Hurricanes won 7-6 on Nov. 2 in Miami. It will be the first meeting between the `Canes and Tigers since Miami came away with a 36-30 win in triple overtime at Clemson in 2005.
A `CANES WIN OVER THE TIGERS WOULD …
– Improve Miami’s ACC record to 3-1 this season.
– Improve Miami’s home record at Land Shark Stadium to 11-2 all-time and 4-0 this season.
– Give the Hurricanes a fourth straight win.
THE COACHES
Randy Shannon is in his third season as Miami’s head coach and owns an overall record of 17-14. Dabo Swinney is in his second season at Clemson and has a overall record of 7-6.
BOSHER EARNS ACC WEEKLY HONOR
Punter/kicker Matt Bosher was named ACC Specialist of the Week for his performance at UCF last weekend. Bosher converted all three of his point-after-touchdown attempts and connected on two field goals in the Hurricanes’ 27-7 win over the Knights in Orlando. He had a season-long 46-yard field goal in the third quarter and extended his current streak of consecutive PATs to 62 straight. Additionally, he punted four times and averaged 33.2 yards per punt, while three of his kicks were downed inside UCF’s 20-yard line.
TURNING THE CORNER
Sophomore cornerback Brandon Harris is off to a strong start through the first six games of the 2009 season. He currently leads the country with 10 pass break-ups, ranks fourth on the team with 32 tackles and he recorded his first interception of the season two weeks back against Florida A&M. He tallied a career-high nine total tackles at FSU in the season-opener, earning ACC Defensive Back of the Week honors for his effort in Tallahassee. Harris, a 2009 All-ACC Academic Team member, recorded 30 total tackles and had just three passes defended in 13 games as a true freshman last season.
SHANNON OFF TO HIS BEST START
With last weekend’s win at UCF, the Hurricanes improved to 5-1 on the year – the best start under third-year head coach Randy Shannon. The last two seasons, the Hurricanes started off 4-2 (2007) and 3-3 (2008). Miami’s 5-1 start also marks the best start for a Miami team since the 2005 Hurricanes opened the season 8-1.
MIAMI ON THE BIG STAGE
The Hurricanes came right out of the gate in 2009 with its first four games against a ranked opponent on national TV. Miami opened its season Labor Day night in Tallahassee with a 38-34 win over No. 18 Florida State, 10 days before beating No. 14 Georgia Tech, 33-17, on a ESPN Primetime Thursday contest. Three weeks ago, the `Canes suffered their only defeat of 2009, falling at No. 11 Virginia Tech on ABC before picking up their third win over a ranked opponent two weeks back with a 21-20 win over No. 8 Oklahoma in primetime on ABC. After last weekend’s win over UCF on CBS College Sports, the `Canes are set to play their third game on ABC this season Saturday afternoon at Land Shark Stadium.
COASTAL DIVISION UPDATE
After opening the season with wins over No. 18 Florida State and No. 14 Georgia Tech and a loss at No. 11 Virginia Tech, the eighth-ranked Hurricanes are currently fourth in the Coastal Division with a league record of 2-1. Virginia (2-0) currently leads the division with early road wins over North Carolina and Maryland. Georgia Tech, coming off an upset win at home over Virginia Tech, is second with a 4-1 mark in league play. Behind Georgia Tech, the Hokies have a 3-1 mark in league play while the `Canes sit in fourth with a record of 2-1. Duke (1-1) and North Carolina (0-2) are currently fifth and sixth respectively. With Georgia Tech’s win over Virginia Tech last weekend in Atlanta, the top three teams in the Coastal in terms of national rankings (Miami, Georgia Tech and Virginia Tech) have all gone 1-1 against each other.
`CANES AT LAND SHARK
Miami is 10-2 all-time in Land Shark Stadium, going 3-0 in bowl games, 4-2 last season and 3-0 this year. The `Canes won the 1996 Carquest Bowl over Virginia, the 1998 Micron PC Bowl over NC State and the 2003 Orange Bowl over FSU before beating Charleston Southern, UCF, Wake Forest and Virginia Tech in the team’s inaugural season at its new stadium. The Hurricanes opened Land Shark Stadium in 2009 with a 33-17 win over No. 14 Georgia Tech on Sept. 17 followed by victories over No. 8 Oklahoma (21-20 on Oct.3) and FAMU (48-16 on Oct. 10).
GAME TIME SET FOR WAKE FOREST GAME
The Atlantic Coast Conference announced this week that Miami’s road game at Wake Forest on Saturday, Oct. 31 will kick-off at 3:30 p.m. The afternoon game at BB&T Field is slated to be televised by ABC.
MIAMI 10TH IN FIRST BCS RANKINGS
After winning five of its first six games – including three wins against ranked opponents – the University of Miami is ranked 10th in the initial Bowl Championship Series rankings. The `Canes currently have an average of .6273, right behind TCU (.7139) and LSU (.7083). Two of Miami’s 2009 opponents are currently ranked in the BCS Top 15, with Georgia Tech at No.12 and Virginia Tech at No. 14.
CURRENT TOP 10 BCS RANKINGSRankTeamRecordAverageHarrisCoachesComputers
1.Florida6-0.9886111
2.Alabama7-0.9526222
3.Texas6-0.8911336
4.Boise State6-0.8083555
5.Cincinnati6-0.7870664
6.Iowa7-0.7869783
7.USC5-1.76954411
8.TCU6-0.7139878
9.LSU5-1.70839107
10.MIAMI5-1.627310913
