Ten Takeaways from Miami's 52-10 Win over FSU

MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. – It didn’t exactly start out the way the Miami Hurricanes hoped.

With a handful of players already on the field going through pregame warm-ups, the skies darkened, lightning flashed and there were very real questions about whether one of the games every player, coach and fan looks forward to every year would start on time.

Miami and Florida State potentially delayed by inclement weather? It was another dose of uncertainty in a year and a season that have been filled with questions and challenges.

Ultimately, the game started on time and the Hurricanes responded in dominant style.

Miami scored on its opening drive and never looked back in a 52-10 thrashing of the rival Seminoles that made history in several ways.

The Hurricanes’ 52 points marked the first time in the rivalry either team topped the 50-point mark. Miami’s 35-point halftime lead was the most lopsided first half in the history of the rivalry and the Hurricanes’ 38 first-half points were the most scored by either school in one half of the rivalry’s history, according to Associated Press research.

That’s not exactly a bad response, given how the Hurricanes’ pre-game routine was disrupted.

“Really proud of our guys. It was 2020 in a nutshell. We get to the stadium, we’re getting ready to go into warm-ups and you find out there’s the possibility of going into a lightning delay. There was talk that it might be an hour long,” Hurricanes head coach Manny Diaz said. “So, again, it takes your routine, it takes your best-laid plans, like everything this year, and it kind of skews them.

“We ended up getting the green light that we were going to kick-off on time, but we had to completely change our warm-up routine. Everything was different for the guys and, like they’ve done with everything this year, they handled all of the adversity of just the lack of routine and structure. … So, like I say every week, I’m in awe of our guys and their ability to adjust with all of the things [thrown] at them in this challenging year. And they were worthy victors tonight.”

With another win over Florida State secured, the Hurricanes will now get a chance to take a little bit of time off ahead of an Oct. 10 showdown against top-ranked Clemson.

Before they start the work of preparing for the Tigers, though, a look at what Miami can take away from its win over the rival Seminoles.

1. This rivalry is streaky and right now, the Canes are riding high

The Miami-Florida State rivalry has produced its share of memorable moments. And no matter where the teams are ranked or how things may be going for either of them in any given season, this annual showdown usually brings with it a series of unique storylines.

One that has seems to pop up consistently though? The general streakiness of the rivalry.

Saturday night’s win marked the Hurricanes’ fourth straight over the Seminoles. Before that, FSU rattled off seven straight wins over Miami. From 2000-2004, the Hurricanes won six straight against FSU, including a 16-14 victory in the Orange Bowl and just before that, from 1995-1999, Florida State took five straight.

Is it an oddity that can be occasionally maddening for both teams in the rivalry? No doubt. But given how not all that long ago Miami found itself on the wrong side of this streaky phenomenon, the Hurricanes – and in particular their seniors – are plenty happy to be where they are right now.

2. An absolutely dominant first half set the tone

Ahead of Saturday’s game, the Hurricanes knew they wanted to start fast and make a statement early against the rival Seminoles.

They needed a mere 13 plays from scrimmage to do exactly that.

Quarterback D’Eriq King, who on Saturday made his first appearance in the rivalry, led the Hurricanes downfield on a 13-play, 75-yard scoring drive on Miami’s opening possession that culminated with a 24-yard touchdown pass to Brevin Jordan.

Miami’s second possession? It ended with a 3-yard Cam’Ron Harris touchdown run. The third? Capped by a 12-yard Harris touchdown run and the fourth? It resulted in a 3-play, 52-yard drive that included King and Wiggins connecting on a 40-yard scoring play.

The Hurricanes defense, meanwhile, put together a goal-line stand on Florida State’s opening drive, holding the Seminoles to a field goal. It later got a first-half turnover after Jaelan Phillips snagged a frantic Jordan Travis pass that was thrown under heavy pressure.

That all helped the Hurricanes build a 38-3 lead by the half and Florida State had no answer.

“Obviously, I do think we had a great attitude and a great focus all week, and I think it showed in the way we started the game,” Diaz said. “It’s hard to play and have a bye. We learned that a year ago. We know that’s a very difficult position for Florida State to be in, so we wanted to really start [fast] because sometimes you lose your game edge when you really don’t start a season and get in that game rhythm.”

3.  D’Eriq King is the fourth UM quarterback to beat FSU in four years

King, Miami’s graduate-transfer quarterback, grew up in Texas and wasn’t as exposed to the Miami-Florida State rivalry as his South Florida teammates.

But for one year in high school, King was coached by former Florida State quarterback Charlie Ward. He heard plenty of stories then about the rivalry.

Now, King finds himself part of Miami-FSU lore for not only leading the Hurricanes’ dominant offense Saturday, but for becoming the fourth Miami quarterback to beat Florida State in four straight years.

The others? Malik Rosier, who led the Hurricanes on a final-minute, game-winning drive in Tallahassee in 2017; N’Kosi Perry, who engineered a 20-point comeback against the Seminoles in 2018 and Jarren Williams who led the offense in a 17-point win last year.

Saturday’s win didn’t necessitate any last-second heroics and may not have come down to a final drive as so many Miami-FSU games have, but King’s performance was memorable in its own right.

The redshirt senior was 29-of-40 for 267 yards with two touchdowns. He also rushed for a team-high 65 yards on eight carries.

The quarterback’s thoughts on what it meant to play in the game were succinct and simple.

“It’s a great win. It’s a big game for us,” King said. “It’s one of the best rivalries in college football. I was happy to be part of it.”

4. Offensive playmakers rise again

One of the defining elements of Miami’s 3-0 start has been the consistency shown by some of the Hurricanes’ veteran offensive playmakers, including King.

But also stepping up in Saturday’s win were Jordan, who had five catches for 40-yards and Harris, who had a game-high 12 carries for 48 yards.

Both veterans were a part of Miami’s first-half offensive explosion, with Jordan scoring once and Harris scoring twice. Senior Mike Harley, meanwhile, added seven catches for 53 yards.

In all, the Hurricanes totaled 517 yards, averaged 6.1 yards per play and converted on 11 of 16 third-down opportunities and 3 of 4 fourth-down opportunities.

Miami was also 6-of-6 on red-zone opportunities, with five of those going for touchdowns.

“It’s still early, but here’s what I’ll tell you: what we look at is what’s going on in practice. We saw something in four days of spring. Then we came back in training camp and saw some signs that this could be what it is,” Diaz said of coordinator Rhett Lashlee’s offense. “But we still have a long, long way to go. Obviously, the things that D’Eriq can do, again, on possession downs, makes it look the way it looks. I don’t think anybody is sitting around satisfied with where we’re at, but I think [we’re] certainly pleased at the way the first three weeks have gone.”

5 . Miami is starting to spread the ball around – and younger players are taking full advantage

The Hurricanes’ offensive veterans have been a steady force in Miami’s first three games. But as the season continues, it’s becoming more clear there are a variety of offensive weapons at Lashlee and King’s disposal.

Last night, King and Perry got the ball to 11 different pass catchers, including freshmen Michael Redding III, Jaylan Knighton, Donald Chaney Jr. and redshirt freshman Larry Hodges. When it came time to run the ball, Miami used six different ball carriers. In the end, five different players scored touchdowns.

Yes, some of Miami’s younger players got more time than they might normally, given the margin in Saturday’s win. But they delivered and showed their potential to be a part of the offensive gave plan moving forward.

“Spreading the ball around, I think our offense is made for that,” King said. “It’s made to hit the open guy, so we’re not into ‘We’ve got to get the ball to this guy this many times a game.’ We’ve just got to keep spreading the ball around and everybody’s got to keep getting better.”

Added Chaney, “I’ve never seen anything like it…it’s probably the best offense I’ve ever seen. Coach Rhett obviously knows how to score off of it. We get good points. Everybody scores, everybody has chances and sometimes, you just have to take advantage of the chances, like I did today. That offense is just crazy.”

6. The defense, again, delivered big plays

A week after debuting its new Turnover Chain, the defense put together another series of big plays Saturday.

Against Florida State, the Hurricanes totaled six sacks, 13 tackles for loss, three interceptions, broke up six passes and forced a fumble. The group held the Seminoles to just 10 points and adjusted nicely after giving up scoring drives early in each half.

The defense also held Florida State to 330 yards, limited the Seminoles to 6 of 14 on third-down chances and 0 of 2 on fourth-down opportunities.

In all, at least 32 different Miami players recorded at least one form of a defensive statistic.

Still, the defense’s leaders remain confident they can continue improving, especially with the season so young.

“It just felt great to be out there, playing and competing with these guys,” said defensive end Quincy Roche, who had three tackles, a sack, and two tackles for loss. “I feel like we’ve gotten better every week this season and I’m just excited to see us keep improving. We’ve got to keep working hard in practice and … achieve our goals for the season.”

7. Blades Jr., Bolden Shine in Defensive Backfield

While the Miami-Florida State rivalry is certainly special to every player that suits up for the game, a few Hurricanes have closer connections to the rivalry than others.

Among those is cornerback Al Blades Jr., the son of Miami legend Al Blades.

Saturday night, Blades Jr. collected his second interception of the season, this time picking off James Blackman in the end zone to end a third-quarter scoring threat.

As Miami heads into its off week, Blades Jr. is one of nine players nationally with multiple interceptions, putting him among the national leaders.

He wasn’t the only defensive back to have a big night.

Safety Bubba Bolden, who was injured in last year’s win over FSU, put together another impressive performance totaling four tackles, a sack, two tackles for loss, a forced fumble, a PBU and an interception.

And he did it all as his mother celebrated her birthday at Hard Rock Stadium, something Bolden made note of during his Turnover Chain celebration and in his post-game news conference.

“It means a lot. It’s her birthday tonight,” Bolden said. “Last year against Florida State, on my interception I broke my leg. So, coming out this week and getting that turnover chain and making a play, it made me happy also it made her happy.”

8. Donald Chaney Jr. makes his presence known

Miami’s two freshmen backs – Chaney and Jaylan Knighton – have wasted little time making an impact on the Hurricanes’ offense.

Last week, Knighton delivered two touchdowns in Miami’s win over Louisville. Saturday against FSU, it was Chaney’s turn.

Playing in his first installment of the rivalry, Chaney finished with seven carries for 35 yards, a 15-yard catch and two touchdowns – the first of his Miami career.

The South Florida native was, understandably, happy with his memorable night.

“I’m not going to lie to you. It felt amazing. Just seeing everybody getting hyped and do what they do – what we always do when we score, it felt so good. So good,” Chaney said. “To have those rings on, it was finally good to feel what my teammates feel and what Cam [Harris] always feels. So, it was finally good to share the moment with them.”

9. Penalties and ejections take a toll

As well as Miami’s defense played Saturday, it had to finish the game without two contributors after both Phillips and safety Gurvan Hall were ejected.

Phillips was disqualified after a pair of emotional unsportsmanlike conduct penalties and Hall left the game after a targeting call.

The penalties were part of a tough night for Miami on that front, with the Hurricanes being whistled eight times for 80 yards.

Though those ejections allowed other players to earn playing time, it marked the second straight week Miami was penalized for at least 80 yards, an issue the Hurricanes will want to continue working on as they approach a showdown with top-ranked Clemson.

“Jaelan had two unsportsmanlike conduct penalties. One after his amazing play on the interception and then another one later on. We knew actually going into that drive. We said, ‘Listen, once you have one, another one disqualifies you.’ He felt awful about it,” Diaz said. “I think it’s a great teaching lesson, not just for Jaelan, but for everyone else on the roster. But full credit to Cam Williams, Jahfari Harvey, some of the [young guys]. Pat Joyner went in there and did some nice things, [as did] Chantz Williams. It really gives some other guys a chance to step up.”

10. Hello, bye…and then hello, Clemson

After three straight wins, the Hurricanes will have a chance to catch their breath with an early-season off week. After that, their next game will feature a matchup against top-ranked Clemson, the reigning ACC champion.

After the win over Florida State, Miami rose to No. 8 in the most recent AP Top 25 poll, setting up a potential top-10 showdown at Clemson on Oct. 10. But right now, that’s not exactly the opponent Diaz said he is most worried about, not in the time of coronavirus.

“We just told them in the locker room, we’re going to face our most difficult opponent of the year and that’s not Clemson. No disrespect to them— [but] it’s going to be this off week and again, making sure everyone makes great decisions,” Diaz said. “You lose a little bit of the structure and the routine of game week.

“We’ll give them a couple off-days because that’s what you have to do during a bye week. So, it’s so important that we give ourselves the opportunity to have everyone in that locker room go play Clemson. That more than anything matters. Of course, there will be some guys we get back that are a little bit—bumps and bruises type deals. But, [we] really [need to be] focused on being smart on this bye week and continuing to protect this program and giving us a chance to play, obviously, a team we’ve got a ton of respect for.”