Miami Hurricanes Betting Odds Hinge On NCAA Decision

The Miami Hurricanes college football program is under siege by the NCAA, and the long term future of the program hinges on what is expected to be a lengthy investigation. In the meantime, the immediate future of the team is also in jeopardy.

The Hurricanes start the season in just over two weeks on Labor Day night against Maryland. Twelve players that have been implicated in the Nevin Shapiro scandal are at risk of serving at least a couple of games suspension due to their involvement in the scandal.

Among those that have been named in the Yahoo! story are quarterback Jacory Harris and defensive back Ray Ray Armstrong, two of the leaders of the Hurricanes squad. Harris is thought to be one of eight players that the institution has suspended indefinitely. That does not mean, however, that any of the eight will miss time.

By suspending the players on their own, Miami can now ask the NCAA for reinstatement. The NCAA will review each case individually, and then determine the amount of time each player will have to miss. The lengths of these suspensions could have a major impact on the betting odds for the Hurricanes this season.

Miami was picked as one of the favorites to win their division in the ACC, along with Virginia Tech. If a majority of the eight players misses time, the odds would likely swing against Miami winning the conference. Of the twelve implicated players, more than half are starters on a Miami defense that was expected to be among the best in the nation.

Miami may get a break with their schedule. The Hurricanes open up with a conference game against re-building Maryland. If Miami can survive that game, they will have a week off before facing Ohio State. The Buckeyes have eligibility issues of their own heading into that game in Miami.

The bulk of Miami's conference schedule comes after Ohio State, meaning that they could have some of their starters back if they are hit with two or three games suspensions by the NCAA. In that scenario, the Hurricanes could again be playing for a conference title late in the year.

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