Manny Diaz: Kicker Camden Price is “in the mix” vs. Pittsburgh
The cliche that is used for quarterback competitions is now relevant for the Miami Hurricanes when it comes to kicking.
If you have three kickers, you have none.
The last three Miami offensive drives against Georgia Tech ended with a missed field goals. The worst part is that none of them were longer than 35 yards.
Turner Davidson looked like the new kicker after a perfect performance against Virginia but after three made extra points, he missed a 34 yard field goal in the third quarter and Bubba Baxa came in to miss a 27-yarder in the fourth quarter. Davidson went back in and his 25-yarder got blocked and the Hurricanes went on to lose 28-21 in overtime.
“You’ve got to count on your guys to make kicks when we’ve got the ball [inside] the 20-yard line,” Miami head coach Manny Diaz said. “I mean, that’s got to be worth three. We’re not asking them to kick very difficult kicks. The thing is, they are kicks that they make at an almost 100-percent rate in practice, so they’ve got to be able to turn that over to the game.”
I saw Cam Price (AKA the other other kicker) warm up during overtime vs GT this past Saturday. I asked HC Manny Diaz if he was gonna kick in OT and will he kick at PITT this coming Saturday. @5ReasonsSports pic.twitter.com/OBKA9PywVe
— Tony Capobianco (@TonyCapobianco) October 21, 2019
On the season, Miami is 6-of-13 on field goals, with missed or blocked kicks taking their toll in each of the Hurricanes’ four losses. The Hurricanes might be entering Saturday’s road game against Pittsburgh with another new kicker. Camden Price was unavailable for two games prior to last Saturday due to undisclosed reasons but was warming up during overtime as if he was going to kick the extra point should the Hurricanes have scored.
Should Price get his shot, the obstacle that he or any of the kickers must hurdle over is a mental. The pressure is already there it only rises which each miss until it turns into a downward spiral similar to being flushed down the toilet. These kickers may look elite in practice but the switch seemed to be turned off when the crowd is present but at some point that should change.
One thing is for certain, the support from teammates is there and is real.
“We can’t do anything but love them up, but there’s also a standard for them as well,” Miami linebacker Shaq Quarterman said. “It’s not above anybody. It’s not above me. It’s not above the coaches. So we love them up, but we hold them accountable.”
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