Tuesday, August 31, 2010

Shannon Says Seantrell Henderson Progressing Well

Randy Shannon was questioned about Seantrel Henderson's expected play time this week vs. FAMU. Shannon said "He knows about a quarter to half of the playbook and he's getting better every week and every day. He's very competitive and he's doing a great job of learning and competing and doing everything he needs to do to get ready."

Shannon also said that it took Orlando Franklin the entire season to get to the point that he could play a whole game. Canes fans are hoping that Seantrel can get up to full game conditioning by mid season or just after. Currently Henderson comes in at 6' 8" and 355 pounds but Shannon says he has already started losing weight.

Shannon has said that he is not sure whether or not Seantrel will play against FAMU, but we have to assume that he will and Orlando Franklin has stated that he thinks Henderson will play as well. Seantrel is going to be a great addition to the offense this year and for years to come, Canes fans should be super excited about his potential and all that comes with him being on the team.

Saturday, August 28, 2010

Herbstreit Picks Canes To Win ACC, Howard Puts Canes In National Championship

Kirk Herbstreit picked the University of Miami to win the ACC this year on the college football pre-season show. Desmond Howard said he thought the Canes would win the ACC, then he took it step further and said the "U" would make it to the National Championship against Alabama. Herbstreit said the Canes were young but were going to grow up this year and he picked them to win over Boston College. Howard said "I think they're going to have the talent to do it this year. I think the coordinators are in place, finally, for two years in a row, so I think Miami pulls it out".

Friday, August 27, 2010

Canes Looking To Shake The Rattle And Roll

Canes fans are gearing up for next weeks season opener against the FAMU Rattlers. This game will be an exhibition of how well the Canes can dominate against a weaker opponent, and they must dominate the game. The FAMU game needs to serve as a way for the Canes to work out all the kinks from preseason while using it as a proving ground for the strength to come throughout the year.

We wanna see the offensive line come out immediately and completely control the Rattler defensive line, we see know reason why this shouldn't happen. With nearly 700 pounds coming from two of our o-linemen we should have no problem giving Jacory all the protection he needs. The run game should be great next week as well and we expect big things from Damien Berry and Mike James while Cooper still pushes through his recovery which is going well.

Some Updates:

Laron Byrd's knee is doing just fine after tests show that it was just bruised.

Linebacker Jordan Futch is still recovering slowly and has a lot of progress to make still unfortunately.

Wednesday, August 25, 2010

Canes Kickoff Season In One Week

Next Thursday the U begins its new season and we could not be more excited. Canes fans are boiling over with anticipation for the first game against FAMU in Miami at Sun Life Stadium Thursday night.

The University of Miami officially had its first day of classes today and you could feel the excitement on campus. The Hurricane football team kicked off practice this morning at 6:45 am and Travis Benjamin was ready to roll early on scoring three touchdowns today. Ray-Ray Armstrong was dialed in as well. Armstrong came out focused and intent on getting all over the offense and he did this quickly by picking off a well timed interception.

The Canes have pulled back on full contact as the days wind down to the season opener, but the energy is full steam. Tight end Chase Ford is shaping up very nicely and the Miami Herald just did a feature article on his performance and our hopes for his future. Seantrell Henderson is gonna be lights out for the Hurricanes this year on the offensive line, so that's a huge plus to watch for. The Defense is still fine tuning itself but looking very strong.

Jacory has looked steady in practice as well, there seems to be a little more zip on his passing game. We will see immediately next Thursday whether or not he has chosen to improve the velocity of his passes or is sticking with his arch-like delivery. Either way this year is put up or shut up for Jacory. His numbers were great last year and he he can't claim inexperience at this point because he has had plenty. Jacory is really going to be a huge factor in whether or not the Canes are national contenders this year, Harris has to be absolutely phenomenal. J-12 needs to come out and show that he is a top Heisman contender by delivering commanding performances against Ohio State and FSU. Pressure is on Jacory to perform big time, there is no beating around it. Jacory must perform very well if he wants to standout and give our team the chance they need to be a top 5 team and national championship contender.

Gamtime is 7 pm, Thursday September 2nd for FAMU.

Lets go Canes!

Wednesday, August 18, 2010

Grandal & Hernandez Sign Deals

Chris Hernandez has inked a deal worth $375,000 with the Red Sox. Hernandez was a breakout freshman phenom and has been consistent his entire career at UM. Hernandez was one of the U's best pitchers over the past 3 years, it will be unfortunate he is leaving but we wish him the best. Congratulations Chris!

Yasmani Grandal has also inked his deal without he Cinncinnati Reds, his deal came with a $2 million dollar signing bonus. The deal is 4 years for $3.2 million. The "Yaz Man" was a great catcher at UM, he consistently got better every year and this past year was his breakout year batting over .400 and leading the ACC. Congrats Yasmani!

Friday, August 13, 2010

Two A Days Baby !!!

The Canes have hit two a days baby! Back to work Friday at 8 am today for the Miami Hurricanes after an off-day following the Wednesday night scrimmage, and back to work was the theme right from the start. The morning saw the Canes run through drills in the blazing heat, while Canes alumni stood watch on the sidelines. Former Heisman winner Gino Toretta was on the sidelines, along with Don Bailey Jr. and Joaquin Gonzalez.

The Defense saw Vaughn Telemaque and Sean Spence lay out some big hits in the linebacker postions. Spence and Andrew Smtih both had a stop in the backfield on a Canes RB for loss. Ramon Buchanan had a nice pass break-up and good open field tackle.

The Offense saw Tommy Streeter haul in several deep balls. He used his leaping ability to pull in a few catches over the top of defenders which was impressive. Mike james put up a 70 yard touchdown today and he continues to shine, we expect big things from Mike James so continue to watch him. The rest of the receivers worked on their downfield blocking today. Seantrel Henderson and Malcolm Bunche combine for a total weight of 660 pounds with nearly 13 feet of wing span to block with. This combination is going to give Miami a serious edge this year with the running game and with pass protection for Jacory. We can't wait to see the offensive line do work this year. Greg Cooper was back in pads today along with linebacker Jordan Futch. Cooper continues to watched very closely by Canes fans and coaches as well all know his potential is tremendous if he recovers well.

The Second practice of the day takes place this afternoon.

Tuesday, August 10, 2010

Full Contact Monday: Canes Started Laying Hits

Monday marked the first full contact drills in practice for The Canes. Some early body crushing went on as does every year when full contact starts. The young players are trying to show their worth by laying as many hits as possible while veterans are proving they already get it done and intend to show it to the newbies. The sound of crunching pads just gets you excited in the morning! It makes you wanna stand up and scream out loud C-A-N-E-S !!!!!

NFL scouts were at the practice and got their first glimpses of NFL hopefuls in full contact situation this year.

Monday, August 9, 2010

Greg Cooper Will Be Ready For FAMU

Greg Cooper is being eased back into practice but if he has it his way he will be progressing fast. He is being led by the coaching staff who is monitoring his progress and not pushing him it too much just yet. Coop has had practice dummies thrown at him recently and he has been hitting the bags consistently,he might even see some contact drills by the middle of next week.

Cooper tore his right knee last year during the Champs sports bowl game. Last week Cooper stated he would be ready to play in all 14 games of the year. Cooper is one of the most beloved Hurricanes right along side Jacory so Canes faithful really want to see him return and be even stronger. It would be nice to see him pull a McGahee recovery and coming out swinging quickly, but only time will tell.

We will update you next week on his status and practice performance.

Sunday, August 8, 2010

Canes Season Ticket Holder Open Practice Recap

The Canes have had 5 practices now and one this past week in front of 3,000 on-lookers. Enthuhsiasm was incredibly high during the one and only practice open to season ticket holders. Canes fans saw Jacory Harris throw some on the money passes to a number of receivers.

The tight end position is starting to shape up nice as the Canes have a multitude of options now that Jimmy Graham is gone and the position is up for grabs. Asanate Cleveland had a stellar catch against 3 defenders where he went up the middle to grab a ball thrown high. Cleveland came down with the catch drawing contact from defenders and he still spun away to score a touchdown. Cleveland is a 6'5", 250 pound freshman. Chase Ford also had some great catches up the middle and looked very solid as well. Randy Shannon has said that both newcomers should see at keast 15-30 plays per game.

Allen Bailey sacked Jacory Harris and heard boo's from the crowd when he did. Funny Stuff.

Friday, August 6, 2010

Canes Rank 13th In USA Today Pre-Season Poll

Here is the Pres-seaon rankings from USA Today as of Friday, August 6, 2010.

1. Alabama Crimson Tide (4/1 odds)

2. Ohio State Buckeyes (5/1)

3. Florida Gators (6/1)

4. Texas Longhorns (10/1)

5. Boise State Broncos (7/1)

6. Virginia Tech Hokies (18/1)

7. TCU Horned Frogs (18/1)

8. Oklahoma Sooners (5/1)

9. Nebraska Cornhuskers (15/1)

10. Iowa Hawkeyes (20/1)

11. Oregon Ducks (40/1)

12. Wisconsin Badgers (40/1)

13. Miami Hurricanes (16/1)

14. Penn State Nittany Lions (30/1)

15. Pittsburgh Panthers (60/1)

16. LSU Tigers (30/1)

17. Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets (60/1)

18. North Carolina Tar Heels (60/1)

19. Arkansas Razorbacks (32/1)

20. Florida State Seminoles (50/1)

21. Georgia Bulldogs (40/1)

22. Oregon State Beavers (50/1)

23. Auburn Tigers (40/1)

24. Utah Utes (125/1)

25. West Virginia Mountaineers (tied with Utah) (80/1)

Tuesday, August 3, 2010

Brandon Harris - Thorpe Award List Watchee

35 players were named to the Thorpe Award watch list Monday, and Brandon Harris from the U was one of them. Harris a junior defensive back who is 5' 11' and 195 pounds. He was a 2009 All-ACC first team and a Second Team SI.com All-Amrican.

Harris led the ACC and ranked second overall nationally in averaging 1.3 passes defended per contest. He also was tied for second nationally with 15 pass breakups.Harris had 9 tackles against Florida State in 2009 and 3 interceptions on the year.