Hempstead, N.Y. ? Butch Davis must find a way to stop one of his greatest players in college.

Davis’ final season as coach at the University of Miami also was Santana Moss’ last year playing for the Hurricanes. Both moved into the NFL, and on Sunday, they’ll be on opposite sidelines.

Moss had a breakout game last weekend, catching five passes for 111 yards in the New York Jets’ 20-7 victory against Minnesota. Davis fully expected to see that out of the wide receiver and doesn’t want to see any more of it against his Cleveland Browns.

“Santana was a dynamic player for us in Miami,” Davis said. “He brought a lot of versatility. He’s a terrific kick returner, an explosive player with big-play capability not only in the passing game, but in reverses, which they have used. He just brings a lot of excitement. He has a quick change of direction, good speed, good hands, and he is a very talented player.”

Moss, who missed most of his rookie season with injuries and has been nicked up this year, now is at full strength. With Cleveland’s secondary banged up, he could be a bit more than the Browns can handle.

“That is a legitimate concern because of the quality of the receivers,” Davis said, also mentioning Laveranues Coles and Wayne Chrebet, who had solid games against the Vikings, too, as Chad Pennington threw for 324 yards. “As the week goes along we will have a little better idea of the status of the secondary.”

Cornerback Corey Fuller (hamstring) and strong safety Robert Griffith (shoulder) are out. Cornerback Daylon McCutcheon (elbow) is questionable.

Moss looks forward to facing Davis’ defense, especially if the secondary is undermanned. He has nothing but high praise for the man who recruited him to Miami out of Carol City High School, even though Moss was just a third-team all-state player in talent-rich Florida.

New York receiver Santana Moss reacts after dropping a pass against the Miami Dolphins. Butch Davis' final season as coach of the University of Miami also was Moss' last year playing for the Hurricanes. Both moved into the NFL, and on Sunday Davis must find ways to stop what was one of his greatest weapons in college.

“I caught 20 (passes), but 12 were touchdowns,” he said of his senior season at Carol City, which won a state title.

“I have nothing at all against Butch. He is a wonderful coach. He gave me a chance. All is good with me and Butch.

“I know he was a hard guy at college, and he got me ready to play at this level. We had one of the hardest practices and hardest drills at Miami. I thank him for getting me ready.”

Moss was a dominator in college from the outset. One of the nation’s best punt returners, he also holds the school record with 2,546 yards receiving, beating Michael Irvin’s mark.

Oddly, Davis was so hamstrung by NCAA penalties that the Hurricanes didn’t have a football scholarship for Moss. He attended the school on a track scholarship Moss was a two-time state champion triple jumper and went on to win the long jump and triple jump in the 2000 Big East outdoor championships.

“You could just see the explosion, the things he was doing for their track team and the vertical jump,” Davis said, referring to the 5-foot-10 Moss. “He plays like a 6-1 player. He was a great addition to our team. He is a football player that can run track.

“We sat down and said, ‘Let’s see if there are guys that we can maybe bring in on track scholarships, so after they are in the program for a year, flip them into football scholarships as they become available.’ The school said that was OK, but you can’t phony up any players. You couldn’t go get a 6-5, 275-pound offensive tackle and tell everyone that he was the state 100-meter dash champion.”

What Davis eventually got was Moss. What he’ll get Sunday is Moss’ best.