Clemson football coaches, players still wary of Miami Hurricanes despite recent dominance

CLEMSON – When Miami joined the ACC in 2004, the Hurricanes were expected to pack an immediate wallop, to bring strut and swagger to a league in dire need of a jolt.

The inclusion of “The U” was supposed to result in a significant upgrade, providing ACC football with another perennial contender for national honors as well as adding a “bad boy” persona to an assemblage with a reputation for being a bit stoic and stodgy.

But instead of the Hurricanes taking the league by storm, their impact has been downgraded to a tropical depression.

Miami was barely above .500 (33-31) during its first eight seasons against ACC competition and hasn’t claimed a title in the weak Coastal Division since 2017.

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As Clemson (9-1, 7-0 ACC) prepares to host Miami (5-5, 3-3) on Saturday (3:30 p.m., ESPN), the Tigers will do so without much of the fanfare and anticipation that surrounded their earlier meetings.

In short, “The U” has taken a U-turn, and landed at mediocrity.

The Hurricanes are 2-5 against Clemson since joining the ACC, but the Tigers have been dominant of late, winning the past three meetings by a combined 138-20. Miami fired coach Al Golden the day after a 58-0 home loss to Clemson in 2015 – the most lopsided defeat in program history.

Such has been a cold dose of reality for a program that won three national championships and 10 or more games nine times in a 10-year span between 1985 and 1994.

Since joining the ACC, the Hurricanes have won 10 games only once.

Bottom line: The Hurricanes have been more successful on the hardcourt than on the gridiron, which is a reversal of fortune that no one saw coming.

But don’t try selling that to Clemson coach Dabo Swinney.

“I’ve got a lot of respect for Miami,” Swinney said. “Make no mistake. They have some dudes. They can get off the bus with anybody.”

That may be true, but appearances can be deceiving.

This year’s Miami team, which was ranked No. 13 in early September, has been schizophrenic at best.

Under the direction of first-year coach Mario Cristobal, the Hurricanes have lost home games against Middle Tennessee State by 14 points, Duke by 24 points and Florida State by 42 points.

ACC victories have come against Virginia Tech, Virginia and Georgia Tech, which are a combined 5-16 in league play.

“They’ve not had the type of season that they wanted, but I think Mario’s going to do a great job,” Swinney said. “They’ve got a great staff. They’ve got a good tradition, they’ve won a bunch of championships.

“My only concern is Saturday. It only takes one good day and these guys are capable of lining up and playing with anybody.”

Swinney certainly appears to have convinced his players of as much, despite the Tigers being 19.5-point favorites.

“Miami is an historic program, with great athletes, great coaching,” Clemson quarterback DJ Uiagalelei said. “They’re very athletic. All of their guys can run and are pretty physical as well. They’ll come downhill and hit.

“They have talent, and I feel like injuries have hurt them a bit. At the end of the day, Miami’s a good football program. They’re going to be ready to play, so we’ve got to bring our best game on Saturday.”

Defensive tackle Ruke Orhorhoro agreed.

"It's college football, man," he said. "Anybody can beat anybody."

Clemson, which is still alive for a College Football Playoff berth and lucrative bowl, isn't without incentive. With a win against Miami, Clemson can extend the nation’s longest home winning streak to 40 games and cap a perfect 8-0 season in ACC play.

“That’s definitely a big motivator,” sophomore linebacker Jeremiah Trotter Jr. said. “And it’s going to be a big challenge for our defense. Playing a program like that and their history, I mean it’s still ‘The U.’ ”

This article originally appeared on Greenville News: Clemson football wary of Miami Hurricanes despite recent dominance