It wasn’t the prettiest of victories against a team with a dubious 1-7 record, but Miami did enough to dispatch rival Florida State, 36-14, Saturday night and remain unbeaten. The Hurricanes — who came in as 21-point favorites against the defending ACC champions — led 17-7 at the half and pulled away in the second half behind a barrage of Andy Borregales field goals and a season-high 148 rushing yards and two touchdowns from Damian Martinez.
Heisman contender Cam Ward finished with a season-low 208 passing yards on 22 of 34 passing, but did catch his first touchdown pass of the season with 4:32 left in the fourth quarter on a trick play.
FSU sacked Ward four times and dropped safeties deep into coverage to limit Miami’s explosive plays. The strategy managed to keep the Seminoles within striking distance most of the game.
Both teams produced season lows in yards. Miami finished with 439 yards including 224 rushing. FSU was held to 243 yards.
The Seminoles turned to freshman quarterback Luke Kromenhoek on the team’s third offensive series and he trimmed Miami’s lead to 14-7 after he escaped on a 42-yard scamper on a bizarre fourth down and short sneak.
The loss ensures that Florida State will finish with a losing record for the third time in head coach Mike Norvell’s five seasons and continues the Seminoles’ shocking slide from last year’s 13-0 start.
Did Ward’s Heisman hopes take a hit?
If all you care about are statistics, then Ward’s night definitely didn’t help him. It marked the first time all season he didn’t hit the 300-yard passing mark. Ward entered Saturday’s game leading the country in passing yards per game (362.6), touchdown passes (24) and ranked second in quarterback rating (183.48).
He also entered the day ahead of the curve through seven games compared to the last three Heisman trophy winners. He had more yards (2,538), plays of 20 yards or more (45) and touchdowns he was responsible for (27) than Jayden Daniels (2,294 yards, 26 TDs, 43 plays of 20 yards or more), Caleb Williams (1,971 yards, 22 TDs, 34 plays of 20 yards or more) and Bryce Young (2,082 yards, 24 TDs, 28 plays of 20 yards or more).
If Miami finishes the season unbeaten and Ward remains on pace with other Heisman winners, odds are good he’ll be a finalist for college football’s biggest individual award at the very least. — Manny Navarro, Miami and recruiting reporter
How ugly was this win for Miami?
If you want to compare this 22-point win over Florida State to other teams competing with the Hurricanes (8-0, 4-0 ACC) for the top spot in the ACC, SMU and Clemson both had their struggles with the Seminoles.
SMU only led FSU 14-9 at the half at home before pulling away with a 42-16 win behind a pair of fourth quarter touchdowns including an 82-yard interception return for a score.
Clemson led the Seminoles 23-7 in Tallahassee at the half and then hit a couple fourth quarter field goals to prevail 29-13.
The Hurricanes (8-0, 4-0 ACC) welcome former coach Manny Diaz and the Duke Blue Devils to Hard Rock Stadium next week before closing out the season with games at Georgia Tech, home versus Wake Forest and at Syracuse.
The Mustangs played at Duke Saturday and entered the day as one of four unbeaten teams in conference play along with Miami, Clemson and Pittsburgh. Pittsburgh plays both Clemson and SMU. — Navarro
Does Florida State have another new quarterback?
It’s worth asking after Kromenhoek, a blue-chip freshman, saw significant action for the second game in a row.
Brock Glenn started for the third consecutive game and was 2-of-6 passing for 17 yards in the first quarter. The Seminoles inserted Kromenhoek for the third drive, and he delivered Florida State’s longest run of the year by somehow turning a fourth-and-1 sneak into a 42-yard rush. That set up a Caziah Holmes touchdown run, ending the Seminoles’ three-game drought without a rushing score. Kromenhoek was 6-of-14 passing for 61 yards but looked sharper than his numbers suggest.
Glenn reentered in the final five minutes and led the final two drives. He finished 5-of-18 passing for 54 yards and a garbage-time touchdown.
Let’s be clear: Florida State has more issues than one position. DJ Uiagalelei was not the sole reason why the Seminoles got off to a rough start, just as Glenn and Kromenhoek aren’t the only reasons why Florida State lost Saturday night. The receivers didn’t help enough. Neither did an offensive line that started its seventh different combination in eight games. The running backs haven’t produced explosive plays. But Florida State entered the weekend ranked No. 129 in completion percentage (52.2) … and failed to hit that low figure Saturday. FSU completed only 34.4 percent of its passes — its fourth-worst mark since 2016.
With even bowl eligibility out the window, there’s not much the Seminoles can salvage from this lost season. They can, however, continue trying to figure out whether Glenn or Kromenhoek is their long-term answer at quarterback, or if they need to plan on trying to pluck another starter from the transfer portal. — Matt Baker, national college sports writer
Florida State continues to hurt itself
Miami deserves credit for the rivalry win, but the Seminoles made it easier than it could have been (a recurring theme for this team).
Florida State’s defense was flagged twice in the first half for having too many men on the field. Its tackling was poor early, too, with multiple missed tackles on running back Damien Martinez and a communication breakdown that allowed the Hurricanes to convert on third and 20. The receivers continued a season-long struggle. Hykeem Williams failed to locate a third-down pass, a screen hit BJ Gibson in the hands before falling incomplete, and a late third-and-long pass sailed through Ja’Khi Douglas’ hands. In the fourth quarter, Norvell had to burn a timeout before a third-and-11 call, and a defensive holding penalty allowed Miami to convert on third and 22.
Given the way both programs are headed, Florida State needed to play a clean game to have a shot at upsetting its archrival. The Seminoles failed to do so. Again. — Baker
(Top photo: Samuel Lewis / Icon Sportswire via Getty)
