Canes Looking for Redemption in FSU Rivalry Series
By David Villavicencio
HurricaneSports.com
CORAL GABLES, Fla. – Rivalry games bring out the best in both teams and the Miami Hurricanes expect to get the Florida State Seminoles’ best effort this Saturday.
Miami and Florida State have met every year since 1969 and, thanks to the 2003 Orange Bowl, Saturday’s game will mark the 50thgame since the two teams began playing annually.
“From a motivation standpoint, this game is going to take care of itself,” offensive coordinator Thomas Brown said. “We’ll have some motivational stuff for the game, but we don’t need that. It’s Florida State and Miami. Enough is said. We have to do a good job of preparing well for them and going to execute.”
The Hurricanes won the 2017 meeting, a 24-20 thriller in Tallahassee, while Florida State has won each of the last six meetings in Miami. While the home losing streak has been a popular topic of discussion in post-practice interview this week, the Hurricanes are focused on the present.
“We just have to come out and dominate,” linebacker Michael Pinckney said. “We can’t really think about that. It’s a rivalry game, so of course it’s going to be a big atmosphere. We have to be focused on the job.”
The Hurricanes are 14-4 since the start of the 2017 season and have won 12 consecutive regular season games at Hard Rock Stadium, last losing at home on Oct. 15, 2016.
No. 17 Miami will be ranked for the 19thconsecutive game when it takes the field on Saturday, a sign that the Hurricanes have consistently been among the nation’s top 25 teams. But a victory on Saturday will only add proof to what head coach Mark Richt and his staff have built since they arrived in Coral Gables.
“It’s huge and we know that the history of the game is so huge,” linebacker Zach McCloud said. “We haven’t won at home against FSU, I think since 2004. So, you know, that we can’t keep repeating those kinds of mistakes. We are back to where we should be or getting back to where we should be and it has to show when we play FSU, especially.
Pinckney enters Saturday’s game 1-1 in his career against the rival Seminoles. A year ago, he helped Miami earn a victory at Doak Campbell Stadium. Two seasons ago, the Hurricanes fell by a point on their home field. The junior linebacker plans to do everything he can to make sure his third UM-FSU game ends in a victory because he knows just how much it means to him, his teammates and their legacy.
“It defines your season,” Pinckney said. “You can do a lot of great things, but a lot of people are going to ask you what you did in this game or ‘did you win this game?’ So I think we just have to come out and dominate; realize the atmosphere and how big this game is.”
Quarterback N’Kosi Perry will make his first appearance against the Seminoles on Saturday. After growing up watching Sean Taylor deliver big hits against Florida State, the redshirt freshman is looking forward to participating in the rivalry for the first time.
“I am very thankful and very excited for this opportunity,” Perry said. “It is something I have been looking forward to, growing up my whole life.”
Perry, who has completed 66 percent of his passes and thrown seven touchdowns and two interceptions this season, has impressed his teammates every time he has stepped on the field this season. With every game, Perry appears more comfortable with Miami’s offense and the speed of college football.
“I think he has performed well,” redshirt senior wide receiver Darrell Langham said. “He is doing his job, getting his calls in, he is not afraid to run the ball when he has to. He is tough when he runs it too–he stays up, no one knocks him down–so I feel like he has kind of taken over this whole offense, it fits his role.”
Saturday will be just the second start of Perry’s career and fifth game in which the young signal caller will play in. Despite his lack of game experience, Perry has proven himself as a leader to his teammates, especially after emerging as Miami’s starting quarterback a week ago.
“He’s trying to take more of a leadership role,” senior offensive lineman Tyler Gauthier said. “Even in weight lifting when we call each other up, he is the first one who wants to be in the middle to say something and break us down. He’s definitely grown up in that aspect, that he knows his role and he is applying it really well.”
The Canes have one of the biggest leaders back for this week’s rivalry matchup, as senior safety Jaquan Johnson will serve as one of Miami’s four captains against Florida State.
“He’s a great player,” Richt said. “He was a preseason All-American for a good reason – mostly because of his production. Tremendous production as a tackler. He has got great ball skills. He’s just a super competitor who lives his team and loves football. He’s just a fun guy to be around. He’s kind of a heart-and-soul type of guy. We have more than [only] him that has that type of attribute, but there aren’t many that are better than him in all those categories.”
The return of Johnson, who ranks fourth on the team with 22 tackles despite only playing in 10 of a possible 20 quarters this season, provides a huge boost for an already excellent Hurricanes’ defense.
“We love him,” Pinckney said. “We have a lot of confidence that he’s going to do his job, and he’s going to get everybody ready to go. We love to have him out there. I’m glad he’s back.”
Having won four straight games, including a 47-10 thrashing on North Carolina last Thursday, Miami enters Saturday’s matchup with excellent momentum. But the Seminoles earned a comeback victory at Louisville last week that has Florida State feeling good, too.
“They have talent and we have talent,” defensive back Sheldrick Redwine said. “It’s going to be a clash of titans. You know it’s a rivalry game, so you can really expect anything.”
The Canes have diligently prepared all week to face the in-state and conference rival Seminoles. They’ve watched film, lifted weights, conditioned and practiced. They are confident in their abilities and know they will be in a position to succeed if they do what they have prepared to do.
“We’ve got to go out and play our game,” Redwine said. “It’s not who they are, it’s what we do. That’s really all it is. It’s really a team thing. It’s just how we approach it and how it is in the locker room. We talk about winning; everybody wants to be a champion. It’s just how we approach everything.”
