No. 3 Miami stayed unbeaten Saturday night, sprinting out to a 25-point lead and skating by with a 28-22 win over No. 18 Florida State at Doak Campbell Stadium.
The Seminoles (3-2, 0-2 ACC) scored on the opening drive, going 70 yards before stalling and settling for a field goal. Miami (5-1, 1-0) dominated in every aspect after that, holding the nation’s top scoring offense to only 161 yards and no points over FSU’s next seven possessions. Midway through the fourth quarter, a Florida State offense that was among the country’s most explosive had thrown more interceptions (two) than completions of more than 20 yards (one). Then a frantic 19-point rally in the closing minutes made the final score feel closer than most of the night’s action let on.
The Hurricanes were equally impressive on the other side of the ball, in a performance that will boost their College Football Playoff hype. After relying heavily on its rushing attack through nonconference play, Miami opened up its passing game Saturday. Georgia transfer Carson Beck completed 19 of his first 23 passes with four touchdowns. His receivers did much of the work. Freshman Malachi Toney sped for scores of 40 and 44 yards — the latter on a gutsy fourth-and-2 call by Mario Cristobal and his staff. CJ Daniels dashed through the defense for a 26-yard touchdown catch in the second half (he also had a short score in the first).
Miami is off next week before hosting Louisville on Friday, Oct. 17. The Seminoles host Pitt next Saturday.