Richt: Winning is bottom line

CORAL GABLES – A day after their sloppy 24-19 win over a struggling North Carolina team, the Miami Hurricanes fell one spot to No. 9 in the most recent Associated Press top 25 poll released Sunday.

Miami remained unbeaten with the win and has the nation’s longest winning streak dating back to last season at 12 games. But pollsters weren’t impressed with the effort in Chapel Hill or the fact Miami has won its past four games by a combined 18 points.

And so, the Hurricanes were leapfrogged in the latest poll by Notre Dame and Oklahoma, a pair of one-loss teams that have put together convincing victories of late.

As the Hurricanes begin preparations for a game against Virginia Tech that could decide their Coastal Division fate in the Atlantic Coast Conference, Miami coach was adamant that the Hurricanes have issues that need to be corrected quickly, including Miami’s struggles to convert on third down and finding ways to jump-start a running game that has struggled the past two weeks. But he also noted wins can’t be taken for granted. “We as coaches, win or lose, we’re always looking to correct mistakes. That’s why we film things and why we’re always trying to get better at what we do, regardless of whether we win or lose,” Richt said. “At the end, if you win, that’s the bottom line.”

No. 9 UM vs. No. 13 Virginia Tech, Saturday,

Mark Richt Next game:

8 p.m., ABC