No. 12 Miami Favored By 3 Over North Carolina

Sports News - November 11th, 2009 - Written by Scott

No. 12 Miami realizes that there is still a chance that they could earn a spot in the ACC championship game, well, sort of. They would need Duke to upset Georgia Tech on Saturday to avoid being eliminated from the Coastal division title hunt. The Hurricanes must first focus on their matchup with North Carolina on Saturday. The Hurricanes (7-2, 4-2) are coming off a 52-17 win over Virginia and will look for their first victory in four tries in Chapel Hill. The Tar Heels (6-3, 2-3) defeated Duke last Saturday 19-6. North Carolina got the win last year over the Hurricanes 28-24.

The Hurricanes have been steady on offense all season and have scored 27 points or more in all but two games. They are led by quarterback Jacory Harris who has passed for 2,336 yards and 18 touchdowns. He has experienced some problems with turning over the football and has 12 picks on the year. He must cut down on these errors as he faces a very stout passing defense in North Carolina. Miami has made great strides running the ball and are led by Graig Cooper and Javarris James. They have combined for 899 yards and 6 touchdowns. Leonard Hankerson has been Harris' favorite target at receiver and has 517 yards and 4 touchdowns. Their 6'8" tight end, Jimmy Graham, has emerged as a threat in the middle of the field and has 4 touchdowns on the year.

Miami has been hampered at times this year by giving up big plays. The goal for the Hurricanes defense will be to stop North Carolina's running game which has come alive lately and force them to resort to the pass.

North Carolina's offense has been anchored by their running game. They did take a hit last week against Duke where they lost starting running back Shaun Draughn for the remainder of the season with a shoulder injury. Ryan Houston stepped in and performed well. He rushed for 164 yards against Duke and has 230 yards in his past 2 games. Quarterback T.J. Yates has passed for 1,278 yards on the year. His problem has been with turnovers and he has just 9 touchdown passes compared to 10 interceptions. Yates is throwing for just 142 yards a game and the Tar Heels will need to find a way to establish a balanced offensive attack with an improved passing game against Miami.

The Tar Heels have survived this season with their strong defense which is allowing just 249 total yards per game. They rank 5th in total defense and are holding their opponents to under 158 yards passing per game.

The Hurricanes will be favored by 3 on the road against North Carolina according to Betus sportsbook. The over/under College Football Betting lines are set at 43 for this matchup.

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