Sun Bowl preview: Notre Dame vs. Miami
SUN BOWL
Notre Dame (7-5) vs. Miami (7-5)
When: 1 p.m. Friday at Sun Bowl Stadium in El Paso, Texas
TV: Channel 2
Radio: WLS 890-AM
Series: Notre Dame leads 15-7-1
Coaches: Brian Kelly (7-5, 1st year at Notre Dame; 178-62-2 overall); Jeff Stoutland (interim coach at Miami, first game)
ND players to watch: Since becoming the man early in Game 9, Notre Dame freshman QB Tommy Rees has stepped in and completed 63 percent of his throws with 10 TD passes. Junior WR Michael Floyd (165 catches) can tie Jeff Samardzija's career receptions record if he grabs 14 passes in what could be his final college game. ILB Manti Te'o is one of four FBS players who posted a season-high 21-tackle game during 2010.
Miami players to watch: Miami regains the services of junior QB Jacory Harris for this game. He'll start after missing the last three regular-season games with a concussion. His season (1,756 yards, 14 TDs, 12 INTs) hasn't matched his stellar sophomore-year showing. WR Leonard Hankerson broke Michael Irvin's single-season school record with 12 receiving TDs. He also needs 30 yards today to pass Andre Johnson and Eddie Brown to set the school's single-season receiving yards record. MLB Colin McCarthy (105 tackles) leads a defense that gives us fewer than 20 points per game.
The skinny: It's the first matchup in 20 years between the Irish and the Hurricanes, which has spawned remarkable interest for a game between two unranked teams. Notre Dame has the chance to end a season on a four-game winning streak for the first time since 1992. That's impressive considering the injuries to QB Dayne Crist, TE Kyle Rudolph, RB Armando Allen and other key players. Freshman QB Tommy Rees has a big task against a Miami defense that ranks second nationally in pass-efficiency defense. The Hurricanes allowed just 7 TD passes all year while picking off 16 passes. The return of slot receiver Theo Riddick, who caught 38 passes in the first 7 games before suffering an injury, could pay off.
He said it: Brian Kelly on WR Michael Floyd and the chance this could be his last college game: “I look at the present and, in the present, Michael Floyd is somebody that impacted our entire football team. And he impacted them every day by the way he worked every day in practice. He set a standard, from my perspective, of how you want champions to practice and prepare. A great work ethic and great with understanding what it takes to be a great player and we see that in practice.”
Looking ahead: Miami and ND meet at Soldier Field on Oct. 6, 2012, before enjoying a home-and-home series in 2016-17.
Sagarin says: Miami by 2 before neutral crowd.