Miami's Richt: 'You are not a top-10 program until the end of the year'

After two dramatic wins pushed its record to 5-0, many have claimed that "The U" is back among college football's elite.

Miami found itself ranked No. 8 this week in the AP Poll, but head coach Mark Richt warned against getting carried away with rankings after only seven weeks.

"You are not a top-10 program until the end of the year," Richt said Tuesday, per Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald. "We were 10th (last year) and then lost four in a row. (At the end of the year) we were top 20, a little bit relevant."

Miami raced to a 4-0 start last season and hit No. 10 in the polls before the four-game losing streak Richt mentioned. While he's certainly encouraged by the results, the dramatic manner in which the Hurricanes have won recently gives him pause when evaluating their performance.

"Florida State was a battle royale to the end. Georgia Tech was a battle royale to the end. We are not lining up and whipping people," Richt said. "We're excited about winning and trying to establish that mindset. We're not a dominant football team. We're a very solid football team that is fighting like mad to win close battles."

The Hurricanes will be heavy favorites in their next two games against Syracuse and North Carolina before a big back-to-back stretch against No. 14 Virginia Tech and No. 13 Notre Dame. Should Miami handle their business against those two strong opponents, there's a very good chance a top-10 ranking will be locked in for the end of the season.