Most people figured that after seven games, the Miami Hurricanes would have some problem areas to try and fix for the homestretch of the season. However, very few could forecast the massive problems that the front seven has had in stopping the run.

Tomorrow, the undefeated Hurricanes(7-0) enter Rutgers Stadium as the nation’s top-ranked team, but with a run defense that hasn’t played anywhere close to that level over the past three weeks. The ‘Canes surrendered over 650 rushing yards against Florida State and West Virginia, boosting their average up to 185 yards given up per game on the year.

“We have to take care of our responsibilities more often[in stooping the run],” Coker said. “We’ve settled in and played the scheme in the second half, but we’ve got to trust the scheme from start to finish.”

After spending several hours in the film room during the off-week following Florida State, Miami players and coaches went back there this week to focus on what they were doing wrong. The Hurricane players, particularly those on defense, don’t want to think too much on their past troubles, though.

“We’re moving on,” said linebacker Jonathan Vilma. “We’re worrying about Rutgers.

The ‘Canes’ problems in stopping the run have overshadowed some of Miami’s improvements in other areas, particularly their pass offense. Against FSU and West Virginia, quarterback Ken Dorsey rebounded from shaky starts to throw for 362, and a career-high 422 yards respectively in the two contests.

Fullback Quadtrine Hill, silent for most of the year, caught six Dorsey throws for 108 yards, easily his biggest output as a Miami Hurricane.

“Quad Hill’s [play] was a huge plus for us,” Coker said. “Now, you can’t just drop back and play zone and take out deep receivers because we can throw the ball underneath.”

The Hurricanes will be looking to run a more balanced offense against a Rutgers team that gives up 384 yards per contest. Although that number seems pretty inflated, Coker says the defense has been one of Rutgers bright spots.

“They are a much improved football team, especially defensively,” Coker said. “They really play hard on defense, and as you can see, they’ve played tough with some of the very good teams.”

The Rutgers offense has not seen much success running the ball, as the duo of Markis Facyson and Clarence Pittman have spearheaded a ground attack that manages just 58 yards per game on average, something that should bode well for the struggling run defense. If Miami stops the run, the Scarlet Knights will be forced to throw the ball. Coker expects QB Ryan Cubit, who injured his right elbow against Syracuse last week, to play tomorrow.

Either way, it will be tough to throw the ball against a talented and confident Hurricane secondary that gives up less than 110 yards per game. Not only is the secondary been the team’s best defensive weapon, but a unit that continues to increase their level of play every week.

“I think we had a little chemistry, beginning in the summer,” said safety Sean Taylor. “We knew that we would be the group that everybody wanted to pick on, and we showed everybody that we were here to play.”

A victory would give the Hurricanes their 30th consecutive victory, which would extend their nation-long winning streak as well as set a new school record, breaking the 29 games in a row that Miami won between 1990-1993. Although the players don’t want to focus on records and winning streaks, offensive lineman Brett Romberg admitted that setting a new school record would be an impressive feat.

“It’s awesome to be part of such a winning program and I guess you forget how it feels like to lose a football game,” Romberg said. “I hope it stays that way.”

Even if the Hurricanes win their 30th consecutive victory, it may not prevent them from dropping to No.3 in next week’s BCS rankings. The Hurricanes are currently ranked behind Oklahoma and ahead of the current third-ranked team, Notre Dame, by three-tenths of a point. However, Miami’s match up against a 1-7 Rutgers team combined with the Fighting Irish taking on a much tougher Boston College squad may be just enough to vault ND into the prized second-place spot. Either way, the Hurricane players don’t really care at this point.

“We know that if we keep putting W’s on the board, then the BCS will put us where we need to be,” Taylor said. “The BCS has done a good job putting everybody in their place and they should put us in the right place if we keep winning.”

All Miami will be concentrated on tomorrow is a victory against the Scarlet Knights. Although nothing short of James Gandolfini bringing his mob crew will give 1-7 Rutgers any sort of chance, Romberg says Miami will have to be on their toes, because after all, the man coaching on the home team’s sideline is former UM defensive coordinator Greg Schiano.

“You can never be prepared for what Schiano does,” Romberg said. “He’ll throw some crazy blitzes and plays at you. But we always try and show why he shouldn’t have left the UM and hopefully that will give guys a lot of umph.”

You can reach Jeremy Marks-Peltz at jmp310@hotmail.com.

The Miami volleyball team has a solid foundation laid out for the next few years, and at the center of their future plans is freshman middle blocker/outside hitter Robin Lewullis.

Lewullis has already made an impact on the court this season, serving as one of the main blockers up front and scrapping for loose balls. While her role on the court is very important, Lewullis feels the team would not be having as successful of a season if everyone weren’t clicking on all cylinders.

“Everyone’s role is critical to winning matches,” Lewullis said. “If one person isn’t doing their part then the whole team suffers.”

Most freshmen have trouble breaking into the lineup and some are even red shirted. Lewullis, however, has had no problem becoming a key contributor for the 19-3 (6-2) Hurricanes.

“At first it was a little intimidating,” Lewullis said. “Once we started practicing, though, we [the younger players] built up confidence and began to mesh as a team.”

Growing up in Allentown, PA, Lewullis starred in both volleyball and basketball for Central Catholic High School. As a senior she led her team to a state championship and was a first team all-state selection.

The reason why Lewullis has seemed so composed out there on the court is that she has a family with a history of success in college athletics. Her brother, Gabe, starred for Princeton’s basketball team from 1995 through 1999 and was known for making the winning shot in the 1996 NCAA Tournament to upset UCLA, the defending champion at the time.

Lewullis feels that her brother’s experience in college athletics has helped her prepare for a busy schedule and some of the other pressures that come with being a student-athlete.

“Gabe has always been an inspiration to me,” Lewullis said. “I talk to him every other day and he always gives me advice. He is in his second year of medical school but he still plays basketball when he gets the chance. He is very helpful to me.”

As for this year’s squad, Lewullis feels that if they are able to finish out the season winning their last six games then they have a chance to make some noise in the postseason.

“The Big East is very tight this year,” Lewullis said. “If we can win out then we have a very good shot to win the conference and go deep in the NCAAs.”

Lewullis points to St. John’s as the ‘Canes’ toughest opponent in the near future, but refuses to take any other teams lightly.

“St. John’s just beat Georgetown, so they have a lot of momentum,” Lewullis said. “But every game is important and we can’t underestimate any team in the Big East.”

Lewullis indicates that the team has a very bright future ahead and will continue to get better and better as time goes on.

“We have plenty of time to grow and develop as a team,” Lewullis said. “We all have at least two more years together, so we will keep on improving and gaining experience.”

Given her family history, it would be safe to say that Robin Lewullis will have a very successful career at UM. With Lewullis leading the way, it is also safe to bet that the Hurricane volleyball team will become a perennial powerhouse in the Big East.

You can reach Eric Kalis at elk777bc@hotmail.com.

Who can blame Jarrett Payton if he felt a little bittersweet about Emmitt Smith breaking his father’s record for career rushing yards in the NFL? When he watched his father, the great Walter Payton, break that record, Jarrett never thought about the fact that the record might be broken once again.

Smith became the NFL’s rushing leader last Sunday when his 109 rushing yards against the Seattle Seahawks pushed his career total to 16,743, breaking Payton’s record mark of 16,726. Payton held the record since he retired after the 1987 season.

Jarrett Payton was asked if he was hoping that Smith would not break his father’s rushing record.

“No,” he said slowly with a twinge of doubt in his voice. “I never wished that he wouldn’t, I just knew it was going to happen sometime.”

But that doesn’t mean Payton cheered as he saw Emmitt get those last yards on his quest to pass the elusive record of 16,726 yards.

Payton had to attend a team meeting during the record-breaking game, but he saw the highlight later that day.

“I just sat there for a little bit, I didn’t really know how to feel,” said Payton. “People that were in the room with me didn’t know what to say either.”

Payton never felt sad though. If anyone had to break the record, the humble Smith would have to top the list of candidates.

Payton said of Smith, “There have been amazing people in my life, and one was my father, another one would be Michael Jordan. It’s just that aura that they give off as a person. I’m just very lucky now, that even though my dad is gone, I still have someone I can look up to, and Emmitt has always been there for me.”

Payton has remained close with Smith ever since Smith received the Walter Payton

Sweetness Award this past summer. They have built a relationship over the phone that has helped to ease some of the sting of the many glitches that Payton has encountered throughout his career at UM.

Payton, a red shirt junior for the Hurricane football team, has had anything but a smooth road in his first three and half years as a Hurricane.

UM recruited Payton out of St. Viator High School in Illinois, where he started playing football in his senior season. He previously played on his high school soccer team.

Disaster struck Payton his freshman year when his father, Walter, died of a rare form of liver cancer in early November. He played through the rest of his freshman year and then decided to red shirt his sophomore year after not seeing any playing time.

After his red shirt season, Payton ran into several costly injuries, including a nagging back injury related to a car accident that slowed down his progress and landed him as the third-string running back coming into this season.

Even though Payton has mixed feelings over Smith breaking his father’s record, he has formed a bond that he will undoubtedly cherish for the rest of his life.

You can reach Nate Johnson at NPJ44@aol.com

After a disappointing Big East Conference loss to Virginia Tech, the University of Miami volleyball team (19-3) bounced back with a convincing 3-0 road win over Florida Atlantic (13-13) Tuesday night in Boca Raton, Fla.

The Hurricanes received a stellar performance from senior outside hitter Marcela Gamarra (Medellin, Colombia), who dealt a match high 19 kills to the Owls. Her hitting percentage of .486 was also a match high.

“Marcela has had several outstanding performances, but this is one of her best ones,” Miami coach Nicole Lantagne Welch said. “She just comes out to play every match.”

Miami cruised to a 30-22 final in the first game, and then took consecutive wins of 30-28 and 30-21 to seal the contest.

In the second game, the Hurricanes trailed early, but rallied for the win. Lantagne Welch pointed to that particular game as “huge” for her young team, especially in terms of rebounding from the loss to the Hokies in Blacksburg.

“This win was important for our young team,” the coach said. “We were playing on the road against a good FAU team.”

Gamarra was complemented by a solid defensive effort from sophomore libero player Jamie Grass (Manhattan Beach, Calif.), who had a match high 21 digs. Lantagne Welch described Grass’ performance as “her best (since becoming) a libero player.”

“Grass played amazing in this match,” Lantagne Welch said.

The coach also cited the superior play of sophomore setter Mallorey James (Tucson, Ariz.), who chipped in 39 assists in the swift victory.

UM was solid at the net with freshmen middle blockers Robin Lewullis (Allentown, Penn.) and Karla Johnson (Houston, Texas) combining for 11 block assists.

The Hurricanes’ next match is tonight at 7 p.m. when they face St. John’s in a conference match at the Knight Sports Complex. Sunday, they will compete against Connecticut at home at 2 p.m.

Information provided by the UM Sports Information Department.

The University of Miami has two ranked men’s teams currently playing. Most people know about the No. 1 national ranked football team. However, most people do not know much about the men’s cross country team, the No. 9 ranked team in the South region, a team that heads to the Big East Championship this weekend with the potential for their highest finish ever.

“We have the best team we’ve ever had going into the Big East championships. This season has been a big improvement. We surprised a lot of people by being ranked in the South region poll by the USA Cross Country Coaches Association,” said senior Dan Boniface.

The Canes were as high as No. 8 in the poll a few weeks ago. Being ranked is very important to the overall success of the program because of the notoriety that comes with being a ranked team.

“Being ranked gives us more exposure and people out there are going to recognize that we are more competitive,” said Boniface.

The reason for their surprising success can be attributed mainly to the one-two punch of Boniface and junior Matt Mulvaney. Both of these runners will be looking to break the Miami Hurricane record in the 8 meter (5 mile) run at the Big East championships, which are being held in Boston, MA this weekend.

“Individually, both Dan and I will be running for the school record of 24:37,” said junior Matt Mulvaney.

However, in order to break this record, the conditions have to be right. The potential cold and inclement weather in Boston this weekend could hurt their chances to break the mark that they both strive to achieve. On the other hand, the course runs faster than any other course that the two have run this season, which means that both men could possibly break the school record.

“This course is much faster than any course we ran the entire season. The school record is definitely obtainable,” said Mulvaney.

As far as the team’s goals at the Big East championship, the ‘Canes have never finished better than ninth out of 14 teams at this event. However, this year’s team is looking to change that.

“As a team, we are looking for our best finish ever. We need to finish at least eighth for this trip to be successful,” said Mulvaney.

If they want to finish higher than ever before, they will need their younger runners to step up as well. That should not be a problem, as one of their youngest runners has been rising to the occasion all season.

“Alex Brutvan has stepped up big time. He ran 25:37 this year, which is great for a freshman. He is a guy to build this program around for the future,” said Boniface about his freshman teammate.

As if the ‘Canes needed anymore motivation, Nov. 1, the day of the Big East championships, is head coach Mike Ward’s birthday. The best finish ever by his team in the Big East championships would be the perfect gift for Ward.

“We should have a very good showing. November 1 is Coach Ward’s 38th birthday, so we are hoping to give him a great birthday present,” said Boniface.

You can reach Darren Grossman at drg215@aol.com.

University of Miami has had the reputation of “Quarterback U” for years, but with the recent success of Hurricane tight ends, it may be time to call Miami “Tight End U.”

In the past few years, Miami has positioned their offense in a way to put an emphasis on their tight ends. Both Bubba Franks and Jeremy Shockey passed up their senior year at UM to enter the NFL draft. Both were picked No. 14 in the first round: Franks in 2000 to the Green Bay Packers, and Shockey in 2002 to the New York Giants.

Shockey was “welcomed” this past weekend by the rowdy fans at Veterans stadium.

“It’s like every game,” Shockey said. “You want to win. I don’t see what I did wrong; I played with emotion, that’s why I play. I said some things to get the team pumped to go out and play hard.”

Running his mouth off all week to the media was not the best idea for the tight end, being a rookie in the NFL.

“That’s just Jeremy. I mean I wasn’t here when he was but I know him, and he’s not cocky, its just confidence and he likes to show it,” said true freshman Eric Winston. “When he catches the ball he gets excited about it, that’s just the way he is.”

Eric Winston is a 6-foot 7, 270 pound freshman that has notably contributed as a backup, when the Hurricanes use two tight ends. Six foot five inch, 230 pound sophomore, Kellen Winslow, has more than sufficiently filled the gap left by the departure of Shockey.

“Kellen is more of a Shockey type, I’m more like Franks,” explained Winston. “Franks really got open well but didn’t have great speed, and that’s what makes me more of a Bubba-type. We make a great combination; we’re both young guys and we’ll be here for a while.”

After spending most of last season splitting his time between receiver and tight end, Winslow ended up played mostly on special teams. He returned this year with around 20 pounds of added muscle. His size and speed are a nightmare for the opposing teams defense coordinators. Through the first six games, Winslow leads the team in receptions (22), and has four touchdowns. Last week he was honored and named Mid-Season All-American First Team.

“I want to be a big-time tight end. I want to be like Shockey or my dad, or even both of them,” stated Winslow. “They better stick a corner out there to match up with me though. I’m a receiver playing a tight end position.”

Winslow’s father, Kellen Winslow Sr. was a Hall of Fame tight end for the San Diego Chargers.

“Being Kellen Winslow’s son is real hard. There’s a lot of pressure that comes with this glamour,” Winslow explained. “My father is in the Hall of Fame, arguably the greatest tight end ever. Then Shockey is the greatest tight end to ever come out of Miami. There’s a lot of pressure that comes with that. I can handle it, but I do it because I put more pressure on myself than anybody else does.”

The Miami coaching staff is full aware that there is a lot of pressure on Winslow to fill Shockey’s shoes, because of how critical that position is for the team. Offense Coordinator Rob Chudzinski, said, “I think he’s just being hard on himself. He’s done a good job. He’s a perfectionist, and a younger player. There’s a lot of things he can improve on and I’m sure he will.”

Winslow and Winston make a great team of tight ends to add to the status of Miami. They have the ability to play the position; they are fast, quick and have good, soft hands. Splitting them out as receivers and putting them in the backfield is a huge advantage to the offense. They can also block well, which is important so the team can spread the middle of the playing field and throw the ball downfield.

“It has gotten pretty good between Kellen and I,” said Winston. “At first it was like we didn’t really know each other and we were fighting for the same spot, but we’ve came to be pretty good friends. He’s a great guy and he’s doing a great job out there. He deserves everything he is getting.”

Waiting in line is 6-foot 6, 200 pound freshman Curtis Justis. He was rated one of the top five tight ends in the nation last year by many recruiting organizations. As he watches Winslow and Winston practice their positions, he will soon enough get his chance to uphold the somewhat newly formed Miami reputation of Tight End U.

You can reach Dana Strokovsky at Hoopg1rl6@aol.com.