Making your first career start at quarterback is a daunting task for anyone. Making that first start in arguably the most raucous stadium in the country in front of fans who wouldn't mind seeing your head on a pole takes it to another level.
This is the situation Miami redshirt freshman quarterback Robert Marve faces entering Saturday's showdown with UF.
Marve was forced to redshirt last season after he badly injured his hand during a car accident in July 2007. Things didn't get easier for him as he was arrested later that year for punching and breaking a car mirror and resisting arrest. The arrest led to Marve being suspended for the Hurricane's season opener against Charleston Southern, a game Miami won 52-7.
Maybe it's the adversity he's faced in his short time at Coral Gables or maybe it's being the son of a former NFL linebacker, but Marve, who broke UF quarterback Tim Tebow's state records for passing and yards in high school, appears unafraid of the situation before him.
"I need to keep watching film and keep my head on straight … just go out there and have fun," he said. "You've got to realize you are playing a game and you've been doing this since you were real little. Yeah, the crowd is going to be bigger, the stadium is going to be bigger. My goal is to stay focused, stay as a leader and do whatever is best for the University of Miami to win the game."
After all he's been through from redshirting to the car accident to the arrest, those screaming fans may seem like nothing more than white noise to him.
"It's a little strange but you kind of have to go with the roll," he said. "It's not that big of a deal. I believe in the coaches and they thought it was the right thing to do. I am down for whatever they ask [of me]. I'm just trying to get ready. I'm focused on Saturday and I'm not worried about the past."
Coach Randy Shannon isn't asking much of Marve right now, though. He just wants his young gunslinger to be himself.
"You don't have to be the guy to make all the plays," he said. "If he does that, then he'll do a fine job for us."
Currently, Marve may only have six reasons to be confident in himself as he battles the Gators and the white noise. Six, as in the length of Miami's current winning streak over UF, but it's not something he's hanging his hat on.
"It's something we definitely pride ourselves on but at the same time we are worried about this game coming up Saturday," he said. "The past is the past."
FASTEST IN AMERICA?: Coach Urban Meyer's goal has always been to assemble the fastest team in the country. According to the fourth-year coach, they may still have one more program to hurdle.
"They've probably got us," Meyer said of Miami. "We'll find out after the game."
