Miami Football: Canes have chance for statement win vs LSU

Miami football and LSU finish off a great weekend of football with a bang, in what should be a defense heavy slugfest in Arlington.

Of all the great games this weekend, there may not be one that I’m more excited for than Miami vs. LSU on Sunday night. It’s a top 25 matchup, between two teams that are usually extremely fun to watch, loaded with exciting players and storylines. What more could you want from a Week 1 game?

There are certainly questions about the two offenses in this one, mainly because of quarterback issues both teams had last year, but in terms of skill position talent, and the matchups at those skill positions, there’s no game more intriguing this weekend. Miami has receivers Ahmon Richards, Jeff Thomas and Lawrence Cager, going up against LSU’s excellent defensive backfield led by Greedy Williams and Kristian Fulton. On the other side of the coin, Jonathan Giles will look to establish himself against Michael Jackson and the turnover-hungry Miami backfield.

It may be a bit lower scoring than most would like, but these defenses going to work will be delightful, and the overall talent level is so high that this should be a fantastic way to end the weekend and help kick off the college football season.

Date: Sunday, Sept. 2
Time: 7:30 p.m. EST
Location: Arlington, TX
Venue: AT&T Stadium
TV: ABC
Live Stream: WatchESPN

Players to watch

LSU

• Joe Burrow, QB
• Jonathan Giles, WR
• Rashard Lawrence, DE
• Devin White, LB
• Greedy Williams, CB

Miami

• Malik Rosier, QB
• Travis Homer, RB
• Ahmon Richards, WR
• Michael Jackson, CB
• Sheldrick Redwine, S

LSU key to victory

If LSU wants to win this game, they’ll probably have to do it with an opportunistic defense. Malik Rosier is prone to mistakes, and if LSU can take advantage, it’ll give them a much-needed boost. I don’t see LSU moving the ball much on this Miami defense, but having the ball more, and being in great field position would make things a lot easier. If Joe Burrow ends up being awesome, that would help even more, but I don’t think they can bank on that.

Miami key to victory

Miami needs to trust their running attack. LSU is breaking in five new starters in their front seven, and Travis Homer should have room to run if the new faces struggle early with the speed of the game. LSU’s pass defense is probably too good to expect much from Malik Rosier, but he’s also a capable runner, so I wouldn’t hate to see a heavy option attack from Miami in this game. Put some stress on the new end Breiden Fehoko, and the two new edge players on this LSU defense.

Betting Odds

Odds courtesy of Oddshark

Points Spread: Miami -3.5

Over/Under: 47

Prediction

Miami and LSU are very similar football teams. Great defense, questionable offense, and a bunch of youth. Usually in games like this, with two very similar forces, the best bet is on the team that has more experience, and more security. I think that team is pretty obviously Miami. They return more players, including a veteran quarterback and almost every receiver from last year. That means they should be able to pass more than LSU can, and in a game that’ll likely be decided by just a possession, that small difference could be all they need to win.

Final Score: Miami 23, LSU 20