Click Here to See the Archive of all 2012 MPI Reviewed Miami Dolphins and Miami Hurricanes Games
Canesport Publisher’s Note: “Mind Games” is a column written for CaneSport each week by John Murray, a noted sports psychologist and author who has developed an index for evaluating the mental performance of players and coaches in games. We think it will provide all of us with a unique viewpoint as the Hurricanes navigate through the season.
Thanks for all the comments and enthusiasm about this column, now in its second season with CaneSport. I just wish we could be as excited about the performance of the Miami Hurricanes last week against Kansas State.
It was a brutal afternoon that returned the U to planet earth in a hurry, but I’ve always maintained that you learn more when you lose. When you lose in this manner – if the logic holds correct – you might learn even more. Al Golden faced a similar battle in developing his fine team up at Temple, and these Miami players are so young that there is really only one way to go from that loss.
In many instances, the final score is a poor indicator of performance, but I think in this game the 52-13 drubbing pretty much sums up the performance of the two teams well. Examine the MPI numbers below and you will see that while Kansas State performed overall at almost 60% of perfection in this game, Miami was way down around 43%. Kansas State Miami Offense: .621 Offense: .451 Defense: .542 Defense: .384 Special Teams: .682 Special Teams: .550 Pressure Offense: .719 Pressure Offense: .450 Pressure Defense : .575 Pressure Defense: .250 Total Pressure: .607 Total Pressure: .400
Total MPI Score: .594 Total MPI Score: .426
If you read my book “The Mental Performance Index,” you know that the best team on Super Bowl Sunday was the 1985 Chicago Bears team, and they only performed at .591 overall compared with this .594 Kansas State team last Saturday. Of course these are totally different standards of play, but this should still give you a little idea of how good 60% of perfect is in football. It is almost unheard of.
Like the coaches this week who often stated that they wanted to move forward and put this game behind them, I am going to keep this column noticeably shorter than previous ones. When your dog makes a mess on your new carpet, rubbing his nose in it hardly solves the problem. It only leads to a messier carpet and a dirtier dog. We would also be unwise to totally forget the past, and this one will sting for a long time, so let it sting but move on.
Stated simply, Kansas State ran their trucks, SUVs, and motorcycles over Miami. 288 yards rushing compared with Miami’s dismal 40 yards sums it up as clearly as a punch in the face. The most telling MPI statistic occurred in critical pressure situations with Miami on defense, and Kansas State destroyed Miami .719 to .250. This means that almost every time it mattered, K-State got what they wanted on offense on a silver platter while Miami got served dirt. I chalk it up to a more talented and experienced team playing against a lot of new players who will get better now in a hurry.
Miami’s special teams continued to play well, posting a .550 performance, but their on-field opponents even scored better in this area but posting a .682. To add further insult to injury, Miami lost the turnover and penalty battles as well as time of possession (by a huge margin), and the fumbles hurt a lot. As John Madden says, you cannot turn the ball over if you want to win. It’s the oldest law of the gridiron.
One almost bright light were the semi-respectable numbers posted by quarterback Stephen Morris (19/26/215 yards) and a Miami offense that again outperformed its own defense (.451 to .384), but this was not a scrimmage and there is no silver lining. Every part of the team stunk and everybody is responsible. Period.
Yet in all this stark reality, don’t forget to give the opponent credit too. Miami ran into a buzz saw that was well oiled and relentless and K-State caned the Canes.
Thankfully, Miami plays a much weaker Bethune-Cookman team this Saturday. One of the best ways to get confidence back is to have a game against another team with the initials of B.C., and I really don’t think there is a chance in the world that the Hurricanes will go into this one over-confident like they almost did last season.
It’s Miami’s time to remove the taste of this horror film by going out and playing professionally for 60 minutes. When they do so, a 2-1 record will not look so bad for a team that needs to grow. Georgia Tech is their next opponent and they are a solid team but not quite as good as Kansas State, so it could be the perfect set-up to go 3-1, but let’s not get ahead of ourselves. Before any of this is possible, PLEASE KEEP FOCUSED this week against Bethune-Cookman. One play at a time. High MPI total score. Have fun! Go Canes!
Dr. John F. Murray, described as “The Freud of Football” by the Washington Post, is a South Florida native and licensed clinical and sports psychologist in Palm Beach. He provides mental coaching and sports psychology services, counseling, speeches and seminars. He recently authored his second book, “The Mental Performance Index: Ranking the Best Teams in Super Bowl History,” destroying stigmas about the mental game in sports and showing football teams how to perform better and win more games by enhancing team performance assessments and training. For further information call Dr. Murray at 561-596-9898, visit johnfmurray.com or email johnfmurray@mindspring.com.
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