Miami Hurricanes rushing attack is undoubtedly here to stay

Yes, Saturday night’s loss was a tough one for the Miami Hurricanes. However, there were some good things despite the loss. The play of running backs Henry Parrish Jr.  and Jaylan Knighton stood out.

Parrish carried the football 16 times for 85 yards, and averaged 5.3 yards per carry. Miami’s game plan may have been a bit too conservative at times, but production out of Parrish Saturday night was a guarantee.

It’s been that way for the entire season to this point. He has 53 carries for 300 yards and four touchdowns on the year.

He ran with conviction. He ran physically, and was quick and decisive through the holes. It’s interesting to watch and see just how physically he can run, as well as his speed when he initially hits the holes.  He is the definition of a workhorse, and he showed that on Saturday night.

Knighton helps pace Miami Hurricanes ground game

Jaylan Knighton had a great night on the ground as well. He was able to carry the ball 14 times for 77 yards, and averaged 5.5 yards per carry. This was a game where we weren’t sure if he was going to get a ton of carries on Saturday.

He certainly did, running the football 14 times for 77 yards, and averaging 5.5 yards per carry. He looked comfortable when he had the football, and gave Miami a nice complementary running back on a night when the offense struggled a bit.

It’s always good to have multiple running backs who you can count on over the course of the game. A productive night for Knighton was important for him to get back into the swing of things.

Overall, we learned a lot about the running game on Saturday night despite the loss. For one, Parrish is an X-factor type of running back.  Secondly, the Miami Hurricanes have reliable depth at the position. It was encouraging to see them play well against a tough opponent, and hopefully this is something they can build off of.

This is similar to the type of strategy Josh Gattis employed at Michigan. The use of the running back was prevalent in his offense. A formidable ground game could do wonders for Miami, as they look to run a balanced offense.