Caleb Wilfinger
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The 2021 season had its pros and cons for Miami, but ultimately it resulted in another mediocre 7-5 finish. However, looking at the end result could be deceiving. After all, Miami lost to North Carolina, Virginia, and Florida State by a grand total of 8 points. The results ran the gamut from positive to negative, but now there’s more stability and experience within the program. After years of courting job rumors, Mario Cristobal is now the head coach in Miami. Cristobal clearly bleeds green and orange, and he appears to be the perfect fit going forward. However, can this new regime get Miami back to national relevance? We’ll just have to find out.
With the 2022 college football campaign beginning later this month, it’s time to take a look at what this season could have in store for Miami.
Jared Smith has a HUGE 3-unit futures play for the upcoming college football season
Miami Hurricanes 2022 college football season odds
Odds provided by FanDuel Sportsbook
Miami National Championship odds
Miami comes in at +10000 to win the College Football Playoff. That checks in alongside Florida and Oregon.
Miami ACC Championship odds
The Hurricanes are +550 to win the ACC title, making them the 2nd favorites in the betting market behind Clemson.
Read our College Football National Championship preview, including a +8000 longshot
Miami ACC Coastal division odds
Miami is the favorite in the ACC Coastal division, with odds of +155 to win the division.
Miami 2021 season recap
2021 was supposed to be about the return of D’Eriq King, and instead, it became the Tyler Van Dyke show. Van Dyke took over for the injured King at quarterback early in the season and promptly went off. In fact, the freshman threw for close to 3,000 yards with 25 touchdowns to just 6 interceptions. In his first year at the collegiate level, Van Dyke showed terrific maturity for a freshman and a calm demeanor in the clutch. Now in his second season at the helm, Van Dyke is being pegged as a dark horse Heisman Trophy contender. While I wouldn’t go that far, but I do think he’s in a good position for success, especially with most of the wide receiver room returning in 2022. On the defensive side, Miami was surprisingly mediocre in 2021. However, the Hurricanes should improve in that department with a defensive-minded coach at the helm once again.
Miami 2022 college football season predictions
There are two ways the 2022 season could go for Miami. For starters, the Hurricanes could pull off an upset win against Texas A&M and thrust themselves into the national conversation. However, that’s not something that I see happening. The other way the season could go is Miami drops a couple of games early on, and things go sideways. But what I see happening is somewhere in the middle of those two extremes. First off, Cristobal has a lot of work to do. He’s brought in Josh Gattis to lead the offense, but it could take a few weeks to click. Ultimately, the Hurricanes should thrive on the offensive side of the ball. Regardless, the defense underwent a serious overhaul this offseason. A couple of starters and key parts from last season are back, but graduation and the transfer portal ripped through the starting 11. Now, it will be up to several transfers and new faces to contribute right away.
I expect a solid season in Coral Gables, but it wouldn’t surprise me in the slightest if there were some growing pains as well. Still, it’s sure to be an entertaining campaign.
Best Bet: Miami under 9 wins (-115)
For my best bet, I’ll be backing Miami under their win total of 9 wins. Simply put, this number is a little high considering the roadblocks in the Hurricanes’ schedule. Miami is projected to be an underdog in a nonconference road game against Texas A&M. The path won’t get any easier once conference play starts. Miami should be considerable favorites in games against North Carolina, Duke and Georgia Tech. However, that still leaves the Hurricanes with a few toss-up games.
They should split road games against Virginia and Virginia Tech, but that still leaves them with a road game against Clemson. It’s more than fair to pencil Miami in for 3 losses, which already gets us a push. The ‘Canes end their season with a home game against Pittsburgh, in what should be a true coin flip matchup. Therefore, I like the value we’re getting at under 9 wins at this -115 price point.
Who could be this season’s Cincinnati? Read our non-Power 5 conference dark horses
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