The No.3 ranked Miami Hurricanes (5-0, 1-0 ACC) took the show on the road on Saturday night, defeating the rival No. 18 Florida State Seminoles (3-2, 0-2 ACC), 28-22.
As the season rolls into October, the UM look to continue to build on its success. But what have fans learned from the 70th all-time showdown between the ‘Canes and the Noles?
Freshman playmakers are the engine behind Miami’s success
While headliners like Carson Beck and Reuben Bain are the main focus of the media’s attention, Miami’s freshmen are solidifying their position as key contributors.
Malachi Toney continues to make an impact and establish himself as one of the premier playmakers in the ACC. Toney got started quickly with a 44-yard touchdown reception to put Miami up by double digits in the second quarter. The 18-year old did not wait long to get his second, as a 40-yard scamper put Miami up 21-3 six minutes into the second half.
Toney finished with seven catches for 107 yards and two touchdowns on the day. This doesn’t include a 52-yard touchdown that was called back after a penalty in the second quarter. But he wasn’t the only freshman to make an impact last night.
Safety, Bryce Ftizgerald, a Miami native who attended Christopher Columbus High School, has been steadily climbing the depth chart. On Saturday night, he showed why, picking off Florida State quarterback Tommy Castellanos in the second quarter. The takeaway halted a promising Seminoles drive, and set up Miami’s second touchdown of the night.
As Toney and Fitzgerald have shown, Miami’s freshmen aren’t just the future, they’re the present as well.
Miami is the most complete team in the ACC
Florida State had one goal in mind defensively: stop the run. After combining for 196 yards and three touchdowns on the ground against Florida, Miami running backs Mark Fletcher Jr and Marty Brown struggled against the Seminoles, finishing with 3.3 and 2.4 yards-per-carry, respectively. Florida State decided to load the box and force Carson Beck to beat them through the air.
And he did.
Beck finished with 241 yards and four touchdowns with a 74.1% completion percentage. He completed big play after big play, with pass completions of 47, 44, and 40 during the game. Receiver CJ Daniels also had a significant impact, with two touchdowns and 78 yards of his own.
Miami’s win on the road in a raucous environment like Doak S. Campbell Stadium on a Saturday night shows one thing: the Hurricanes can win in a myriad of ways. When one area of the team isn’t producing as much as it usually does, others can pick up the slack. And that’s a major quality of truly great teams.
There should be no good reason for Miami to lose any game remaining on its regular season schedule, with most of what many consider to be its “toughest tests” now out of the way. However, doubts continue to hang over the ‘Canes.
Miami’s conservative second-half approach will cost them a game
If Saturday night’s game was three quarters instead of four, Miami might have woken up this morning as the number one team in the country. The Hurricanes had held the nation’s number one scoring and total offense to just three points and 216 yards as the final quarter began, and led by a commanding 28-3 margin.
However, as some Seminoles fans filed out of the stadium with their heads hung low, their offense began to wake up.
Florida State scored a touchdown and two-point conversion with ten minutes remaining in the game. Then, seven minutes later, another touchdown and two-point conversion. After a fourth-down stop and a field goal, Florida State found itself one onside kick from having the chance to finish the comeback of a lifetime.
Despite recovering the onside kick and securing the six-point win, the near-collapse put a damper on what had been a dominant performance for Miami. The Seminoles had outgained Miami 188 to 17 in yardage in the fourth, and had outscored the Hurricanes 19-0.
The reason for this: conservative playcalling in the fourth quarter.
While Miami capitalized on big “chunk” plays throughout the first three quarters, the Hurricanes seemed to think the game was in hand. After completing 18 of his first 21 passes, Beck threw the ball just six times, completing it just twice for three yards.
Florida State’s run defense also stiffened while Miami’s playcalling creativity waned. The Hurricanes rushed for just 14 yards on nine carries in the fourth, an average of 1.6 yards per rush.
When Miami desperately needed to run the clock or get a big play to steal back momentum, the Hurricanes failed to convert a single third or fourth down. This, combined with Miami’s laid-back approach on defense, allowed the Seminoles to get back into the game.
This is not a first-time issue, as Miami has had points of struggle against Notre Dame and Florida where games that seemed firmly in their control began to slip away due to play-calling and shifting momentum.
While Miami is more talented, on paper, than any other team remaining on their regular season schedule, the Hurricanes may find themselves in tougher positions than necessary if these issues are not resolved. And as we saw last season, issues that appear minor at the beginning of the year can have major consequences in November and December.
For now though, ‘Canes fans can enjoy an undefeated start and the, though unofficial, all-important Florida “state championship.”
Miami heads into their second bye week before facing off against the Louisville Cardinals (4-1, 1-1 ACC) on Friday, Oct. 17.