As Florida’s reopening coincides with a Miami bye week, Manny Diaz is wary of COVID-19

Bye weeks would have been a concern for the Miami Hurricanes no matter what 2020 was like. Miami went 0-5 in 2019 when it had more than a week to prepare for a game, and the Hurricanes right now are riding high, undefeated with one top-25 win and another against the Florida State Seminoles.

Getting ready to play the top-ranked Clemson Tigers after a week off is only part of No. 8 Miami’s list of concerns this year. After the Hurricanes blew out Florida State on Saturday, the COVID-19 pandemic reentered the front of their minds. Miami’s in-season routine has meant the Hurricanes haven’t had a serious brush with the coronavirus yet. For the first time this season, the routine will change this week.

“We all love routine and we all love structure, and we’ll still have a lot of that this week,” coach Manny Diaz said, “but there will be a little bit more idle time.”

So far, Miami (3-0, 2-0 Atlantic Coast) hasn’t lost any starters for any time because of COVID. Offseason workouts were only briefly shut down because of positive tests — there was no widespread outbreak like other teams including Clemson, had to deal with. The Hurricanes have had at least one player test positive for the virus, a source told the Miami Herald on Sept. 18, but it didn’t force a massive amount of players to go into isolation.

With no game this weekend, the Hurricanes’ routine is different this week. On Sunday, Miami only came to the facilities for the weekly postgame COVID-19 tests and for banged-up players to get treatment. On Monday, the Hurricanes only lifted and watched film. Miami will spend more time away from the facilities this week than they have at any point in September.

One of Diaz’s biggest concerns are the statewide developments the bye week coincides with. On Friday, Gov. Ron DeSantis issued an executive order to end the countywide closure of bars and restaurants in Miami-Dade County, and make mask mandates virtually unenforceable.

“If you look at where the state’s going, the numbers are going down, but we’re easing restrictions, too, and no one really knows how that’s going to go,” Diaz said. “What we told our team today is we’ve been at this since June 15 and Dec. 5 is basically just over 9 1/2 weeks away and no matter what it looks like right now, the story’s going to be written over the 9 1/2 weeks and that will determine what happens next ... It seems like it’s worth it for 9 1/2 weeks, right? Because we’ve made the right decisions for a much longer period of time, if you think about it, so for 9 1/2 weeks, if we continue to control what we can control and make the proper decisions when we’re not in this building — at the end of the day, it comes down to trust, and I trust our guys to do right and to protect the team.”

Accolades, honors and prime-time games

For the third week in a row, Miami had a player earn ACC player of the week honors.

For the second consecutive week, D’Eriq King was named the ACC Quarterback of the Week after completing 29 of 40 passes for 267 yards and two touchdowns in the Hurricanes’ 52-10 rout of the FSU Seminoles. The quarterback also chipped in 65 yards on eight carries.

He was, however, the only Miami player to earn weekly conference honors. Kicker Jose Borregales and safety Bubba Bolden were named players of the week at their positions following the Hurricanes’ win against the then-No. 18 Louisville Cardinals on Sept. 19.

The Hurricanes’ next game against the top-ranked Clemson Tigers will also be their third consecutive prime-time Saturday game. Miami-Clemson will kick off at 7:30 p.m. on ABC on Oct. 10, the ACC announced Monday.

The Hurricanes have had two consecutive games be featured as the location for “College GameDay,” and every game has been played in prime time — Miami’s opener against the UAB Blazers on Sept. 10 was a Thursday prime-time game on ACC Network.

More from Manny Diaz

Diaz made his weekly appearance on WQAM early in the day. His wide-ranging interview touched on multiple topics, including:

▪ On defense dominating: “Blake Baker and the defensive staff did a really really good job. ... It was really important we had a great red-zone stop and had a goal-line stand that first drive to hold them to three. By the second time they went out there, it was 14-3 and that really puts offenses in an uncomfortable position against our defense, and that’s really what leads to that feeding frenzy in the second quarter. Every other time they dropped back to throw, the quarterback had a Hurricane jumping on top of him. I thought we were relentless all night.

“We had 30 guys log either a tackle or an assist in this game, so the amount of people we were able to get in the game, and the amount of people that were able to contribute and say, I had a role in beating Florida State, made for a very happy locker room afterwards.’’

▪ On Zion Nelson starting at left tackle instead of John Campbell Jr.: “My suspicion is you’ll see both of those guys play because they both can provide a lot of value for us. That’s what we want. We want to have some added depth on our offensive line, be able to roll people into the game. Again if we’re pushing the tempo and rolling 85-some-odd plays a game, that just helps us. The more guys we can get in there and get to play, the more that helps us.”

▪ On Jaelan Phillips being ejected from game for two unsportsmanlike conduct penalties: “Jaelan was devastated. He knew right at the moment. He was so hyped up and he was having so much fun out there — he’s like a big kid running around. The most extraordinary thing is we spoke to him after the crazy interception and said, ‘Hey, Jaelan, you spiked the ball, so if you get another unsportsmanlike they’ll kick you out and you’ll be disqualified.’

“It was a great learning moment for Jaelan, but it also provided another opportunity. It was great for Jahfari Harvey, Cam Williams, Pat Joyner went in there and was knocking people around. Chantz Williams had a pressure late in the game. Our depth of the defensive line showed how important Jaelan is for us but that it’s a team thing and the other guys picked up the slack.’’

▪ On what is needed to get take it to the next level: “Just the attention to detail on all sides of the ball and that comes with repetition. ... It’s in that minutiae of staying square on the offensive line, nuances of running routes better at wide receiver, even D’Eriq [King] sometimes with his eye progression, the running backs trusting the tracks. Defensively, getting lined up, better communication at times across the linebacker and secondary. These are all the things that we can continue to get better at.

“This bye week comes at a good time where we can say, ‘OK, we’re at the quarter pole of the season, let’s see what we like.’ But good teams improve while they’re winning, they don’t wait until the pain of loss and then all of sudden they have the urgency to want to get better. They do it while things are good and everybody is patting them on the back.”