UM vs FSU: The Next Chapter
By David Villavicencio
Miami versus Florida State.
Hurricanes versus Seminoles.
Orange and Green versus Garnet and Gold.
The annual rivalry matchup between two of the best programs in college football history has once again arrived.
No. 10 Miami will host No. 23 Florida State at 8 p.m., on Saturday at Hard Rock Stadium. Like so many times before, all eyes will be on these two college football titans, as the game will be broadcast to a national television audience on ABC.
“It is going to be crazy, even in comparison to the past couple years,” Miami running back Joe Yearby said. “With the renovated stadium along with how we have started our season, we know the atmosphere is going to be amazing. I always have liked playing in prime time, with the idea that all eyes are on us. So we just have to go out there and do what we have to do.”
The Hurricanes and Seminoles have met every year since 1969 and Miami head coach Mark Richt has been on both sides of the rivalry.
Richt played quarterback at Miami from 1979-82 and was on Bobby Bowden’s coaching staff at Florida State from 1985-88 and again from 1990-2000. Now in his first year at the helm of the Hurricanes, Richt admits things are different since his last Miami-Florida State game.
“I haven’t been involved in 15 years. It’s been a while,” Richt said. “A lot of has changed since that time. One thing that has changed is that Miami is now in the ACC, and it’s an ACC game. It’s very crucial to our journey as we’re trying to become Coastal Division champs. That’s the biggest change.”
The two in-state rivals have met 60 times, with Miami leading the all-time series, 31-29, but Miami quarterback Brad Kaaya says the past results do not impact the future. Every meeting is unique.
“In these games, you can throw the past and the previous games out the window,” Kaaya said. “They don’t really matter in this game and anything can happen. We’re treating it the same way that we did last year and the way we did two years before that. I think guys still have a chip on their shoulder. Just because we haven’t lost yet [this season] doesn’t mean that guys here aren’t hungry. Guys here still feel the pain that we felt last year and the pain that we felt two years ago. I think we’re feeling pretty good.”
Kaaya’s play against the Seminoles the past two years has been excellent, throwing for 721 yards, five touchdowns and just one interception. His 405-yard passing performance last year at Florida State served as the most yards a Miami quarterback have ever thrown for in Tallahassee, Fla. But his past success has not affected how he prepared for this year’s meeting against the Noles.
“Just do your normal preparation protocol as a team, as an offense,” Kaaya said. “Don’t try to do too much, don’t try to take it off. Just do the same thing you do every week and just prepare like you always do.”
Saturday’s game will be a new experience for Miami wide receivers coach Ron Dugans. A former star wide receiver for the Seminoles, Dugans helped Florida State win a national championship in 1999, but now he is donning Miami’s orange and green and preparing the Hurricanes to do battle against his alma mater.
“For me, it’s just another game,” Dugans said. “It is my alma mater, but I just look at it as the next team on the schedule. That’s how I look at everybody. It’s a big-time football game. I’m excited to go against those guys and it’ll be a good game.”
While Dugans can look at this week’s matchup as just another game, several Hurricanes admit they always have the annual battle against Florida State highlighted on their schedule.
“That’s always at the top of our goals,” Kaaya said of beating FSU. “It’s one of the biggest rivalries in college football. It’s a great thing to be a part of, and it’s at the top of our goals.”
“I think everyone on the team knows the magnitude of not only an ACC game but also a big rivalry game,” Miami center Nick Linder said. “Everyone is just trying to lock in and crunch down on all the fundamentals right now and to remain focused.”
For redshirt senior Malcolm Lewis, Saturday’s game is his final meeting against the Seminoles.
“It means a lot, just like every other game,” Lewis said. “I am blessed to go out there and play with my teammates, to go out there and do my job and be a good teammate. So like every other game to me, it means the world to me to get out on the field.”
Sophomore running back Mark Walton understands the importance of Saturday’s game. As a Miami native, Walton grew up immersed in the rivalry, but he says the Hurricanes are not getting caught up in the hype surrounding the matchup.
“There’s going to be a lot of excitement and a lot of fans there,” Walton said. “Don’t make this game bigger than it’s supposed to be. It’s going to be a big game, but don’t make it a huge stage for us. We’re going to try and go out there and be focused.”
While the focus and preparation remains the same as it has been prior to each of Miami’s four games this season, Walton knows that a victory on Saturday would be special for him, his teammates and coaches, the program and the fans.
“It means a lot for this program,” Walton said. “It’s what everybody wants to see, Florida State versus Miami. Even though we’re ranked No. 10 and they’re ranked 23rd, it doesn’t matter. None of that matters without a win. We could be number one in the nation and lose this game, and it won’t matter. We just have to come and attack this game as the University of Miami versus Florida State rivalry. That means a lot for this.”
