Miami Football moved up to No. 5 in the AP Poll after upsetting Notre Dame 27-24 on Sunday.
The win marked the team’s first top-10 win since 2017, when they also defeated the Fighting Irish at Hard Rock Stadium.
Following the Hurricanes’ triumphant rivalry win, it’s no surprise that Hurricane football is the talk of the town across the country. And as the Week 1 Associated Press College Rankings dropped Tuesday afternoon, the Hurricanes made a quick climb to the No. 5 spot following their pre-season ranking of No. 10.
Such a win over a top-10 opponent could prove crucial on the ’Canes playoff resume, especially considering it was a Notre Dame side fresh off a National Championship appearance.
In addition to the dominant show the Hurricanes put on in front of its record crowd of 66,793 fans, the highlight for the team came as Georgia transfer Carson Beck made his season debut.
The sixth-year redshirt senior threw for 205 yards on a 64.5% completion rate and two touchdowns Sunday night.
Riding the emotional high of the game, Beck expressed deep gratitude for his teammates.
“Man, I love these guys and I’m so proud of the way they played–they played so hard,” said Beck.
The win capped off Miami’s seventh-straight home win against Notre Dame, tying them for the longest streak in Poll history.
Although ‘Canes Football is not the only Florida team on the rise. Following two dominant performances by Florida State and the University of Florida, both the Seminoles and the Gators have climbed the ranks, marking the first time since 2006 that all three Florida schools have surpassed the AP Top 15 mark.
Although it is a celebratory time for Florida residents everywhere, it also means the Hurricanes have a tough run ahead of them, as they face No. 13-ranked UF on September 20th and No. 14-ranked FSU to kick off the month of October. But before those highly anticipated rivalry games, the ‘Canes also face the South Florida Bulls at home on September 13th, and USF is riding its own first-game high after defeating Boise State 34-7 on Aug. 28.
As the battle for Florida continues to unfold in the coming weeks, the Hurricanes will use this week to strategize for their upcoming game against Bethune-Cookman (0-1) on Saturday, Sept. 6.
The Wildcats, coming off a 42-9 loss to the FIU Panthers, look to even out their current lopsided record and get revenge for their previous blowout on September 14, 2023, where the Hurricanes topped the Wildcats 48-7.
Having given up 223 rushing yards and 6 rushing touchdowns to the Panthers on Friday, the attention will be turned toward the young members of the Hurricanes’ roster who will likely see action as Miami looks to continue its momentum at Hard Rock this Saturday at 7:00 p.m.
