PLAYERS TO WATCH
–RB Trevor Homer leads the Hurricanes in rushing with 732 yards and needs a big finish to get to the 1,000-yard mark for the first time in his career. He rushed for 966 yards as a sophomore after assuming the starting role five games into the 2017 season when Mark Walton went out with a season-ending injury. Homer has been dealing with nagging type injuries but still managed to rush for 133 yards against Duke on Nov. 3. “He’s just a tough, physical, smart, responsible football player,” coach Mark Richt said.
–WR Jeff Thomas ended a bit of a slump with a nice game against Georgia Tech, catching six passes for 84 yards. It was his most productive game since his 105-yard effort against Toledo back in September and was more than his total of 51 yards for the last three games combined.
–DT Gerald Willis III is a force in Miami’s defensive interior. Almost immovable, he has 50 tackles, which ranks fourth on the team and leads all defensive linemen. Of those stops, 17 have been for losses. He also has broken up four passes and been credited with four quarterback hurries to go with his 3.0 sacks,
–LB Shaq Quarterman took over the team lead in tackles with his 8-tackle effort in the loss to Georgia Tech moving him past S Jaquan Johnson with 66 stops. “If you watched the game, you saw him flash a bunch,” Richt said. “Had a bunch of big hits, a bunch of big shots.”
SERIES HISTORY: Miami leads the series with Virginia Tech 21-14. Miami won the last meeting 28-10 in 2017.
QUOTE TO NOTE: “That might be more of something I might say to them later on the week as we get closer.” — Coach Mark Richt, saying he has not yet brought up the matter of needing a win for bowl eligibility with his players.
