Urban Meyer Takes Harsh Shot At Miami Hurricanes' Strength Of Schedule

Former coach Urban Meyer knows all about winning national championships. 

He won three during his Hall of Fame career, which should make many value his opinion on title-contending teams. The Miami Hurricanes and their fans, however, may not like what Meyer recently had to say about this season's College Football Playoff race. 

Meyer stopped short of saying the Hurricanes had an easy path to attaining the No. 1 ranking in the Associated Press poll earlier this season. The road has since gotten tougher due to the season-ending injury to receiver Malachi Toney and last week's loss to the Notre Dame Fighting. 

Meyer went far as saying as the Hurricanes lack the schedule strength to be considered one of the best teams in college football. He also noted they were tested against the North Carolina Tar Heels and Florida State Seminoles earlier in the schedule. 

 Basically, Meyer wonders what would happen if the Hurricanes were in, say, the Southeastern Conference. He said the Alabama Crimson Tide have a much better case for making the CFP than the Hurricanes this season. 

"If you stick them in the Southeastern conference right now, what is Miami's record," Meyer said on the Triple Option podcast. "On film, `Bama's best version is better than Miami's, especially with Malachi Toney out." 

The comments will likely upset the Hurricanes fan base. One, Meyer used to coach for the rival Florida Gators. During that time, the Gators dominated the series with Miami during the Tim Tebow years. Meyer led the UF to two championships before winning one later with the Ohio State Buckeyes. 

But does Meyer have a point about the Hurricanes? 

They did struggle on the road against the Tar Heels before holding on for a 38-35 victory. Two weeks prior, they needed double-overtime and a knock down of a desperation pass to defeat the Seminoles 42-35. 

The best win for the Hurricanes so far is a 33-20 win over the Wake Forest Demon Deacons and even that was a struggle. Critics will say the Hurricanes' lone loss came against their only game against a ranked team (Notre Dame). 

Perhaps the only way for the Hurricanes to regain some respect is running the table the rest of the way and then winning the Atlantic Coast Conference title game, something that has avoided them since joining the league in 2004. 

Still, even that isn't likely going to prevent others from thinking like Meyer. The good news is the Hurricanes will have a chance to prove themselves on the field. Barring a total collapse, they should make the CFP.