The Miami Hurricanes finished the 2003 season with an 11-2 record including a hard fought 16-14 victory over Florida State in the Orange Bowl to end the season. The defense took a hit after the season as seven starters won’t be returning to join the 2004 squad. Coach Larry Coker believes this team can still dominate the way they did in their previous few seasons even though they’ve lost some big keys to the team. The Hurricanes will face a transition of a different type as they move from the Big East to the ACC to join the likes of Florida State, Maryland, and Virginia. The ACC, once thought of as a basketball first conference, is beginning to show it can hang with the Big XII and Big Ten when it comes to football. The Hurricanes should bounce back with another season of contending for the national title and they earn the #7 spot in my pre-season poll.

Brock Berlin has established himself as the QB of the Hurricanes through his work in spring camps. Berlin finished last season with a completing nearly 60% of his passes for almost 2,500 yards but he had 17 interceptions to only 12 touchdowns. He also lost tight end Kellen Winslow II to the NFL but he’ll still have receiver Ryan Moore to throw to this season. The running back position is still up in the air but there are numerous players that the coaches took good looks at in training. The loss of star players like Vince Wilfork, Jonathan Vilma, and Sean Taylor will hurt the team a lot but there are players in camp that feel they can ease the pain with strong play in the 2004 season. Defensive end Thomas Carroll will likely fill the void of Wilfork on the line and strong safety Willie Cooper, a redshirt freshman from last year, should contribute and partially make up for the huge effort Taylor gave game in and game out last year. Cornerback Antrel Rolle was expected to be a leader in the secondary but he was suspended indefinitely after being charged with felony battery on a police officer.

As if the annual Florida State/Miami game wasn’t important enough before, the stakes have been raised as it will now count in the ACC standings. Neither team will have much time to prepare as the game is the first of the season on September 6 in the Orange Bowl. If the Hurricanes can get by the challenge of the Seminoles, they’ll face minor battles on the road at Georgia Tech and North Carolina State before playing Clemson at home on November 6. They’ll hit the road again to take on Virginia in Charlottesville before finishing the season at home against Wake Forest and Virginia Tech. The Hurricanes have built the expectations so high that last season’s 11-2 record was a disappointment. This team should challenge for another national title this season but anything less than that will probably be considered another average season.

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