Miami football schedule 2019: Game-by-game predictions

Miami football ushers in the Manny Diaz and Tate Martell eras in 2019 and hope they bring more success than a disappointing 2018 season.

Coming off of a 10-3 showing in 2017, hopes were high for the Miami Hurricanes leading up to the 2018 season under Mark Richt’s watch. Rather than meet lofty expectations, though, the Canes struggled mightily with stability on offense and it showed in the record books. The U finished the year with just a 7-6 record on the year and, quite abruptly, Richt announced his retirement.

Thus, the Manny Diaz era is set to begin in South Beach as he takes over as head coach of the Hurricanes starting in 2019. There’s no question that he will look to keep the Miami defense looking strong as he moves up from his previous position at defensive coordinator, but he should also be able to help guide the offense to another level in the 2019 campaign.

When you look at the instability and inconsistency of the Hurricanes offense last season, the carousel of mediocrity between Malik Rosier and N’Kosi Perry was at the heart of it. That all changes in 2019, however, as former Ohio State quarterback Tate Martell has now taken his talents to South Beach and appears to be a shoo-in to helm the offense for the upcoming season.

Though Martell may not have prototypical size or every tool you’d want, he’s a dual-threat quarterback with far more prowess as a passer than anyone Miami had at the position last season. His ability to provide steady play (with upside) at quarterback should tremendously improve the fortunes of the Hurricanes in the 2019 season, especially when backed by an impressive defense.

Just how much of a difference will Martell make in terms of this team’s record in their first season with Diaz leading the way? We’re going to go game-by-game through the 2019 Miami football schedule and predict how each contest will play out to see where things stand coming into the year.