Canes Trounce Temple in First Road Test
PHILADELPHIA — The Miami Hurricanes can confirm that it is not always sunny in Philadelphia.
Tropical Storm Ophelia made its presence felt Saturday, pelting the hearty souls in the stands at Lincoln Financial Field with a steady dose of rain and wind. And what they witnessed was a team built to withstand the elements – and the opposition.
Controlling the line of scrimmage on both sides of the ball, No. 20 Miami grinded out a 41-7 victory over Temple to run its record to 4-0. The Canes have won their first four games for the first time since 2017 and have scored 38 points or more in their first four games for the first time in 21 years.
It was Miami’s 14th straight victory over the Owls (2-2), which is the Canes’ longest winning streak against a single opponent in program history. Miami has won each game by at least 20 points, the second longest such streak by any FBS team over the past 40 seasons behind Florida State’s 15-game streak against Duke (1992-2006).
“Proud of our guys,” head coach Mario Cristobal said. “First road test and perfect football weather. I know the big guys certainly appreciated it. We had some really bright moments in the first half and felt like we started taking control of the game.
“We thought out guys came out in the second half and made it a point to really take control, especially at the line of scrimmage.”
The Canes delivered a balanced attack on offense, rushing for 323 yards while quarterback Tyler Van Dyke was an efficient 17 of 24 for 220 yards and three touchdowns. Miami’s defense held the Owls to just 11 rushing yards, forced three turnovers that led to 14 points and registered three sacks and six tackles for loss. The Canes nearly doubled Temple’s output in total yardage, outgaining the Owls 543 to 279.
“Our guys did a great job against the run,” Cristobal said.
Running back Henry Parrish, Jr. paced the ground attack, rushing for a career-high 139 yards and two touchdowns, averaging 8.7 yards per carry. Don Chaney, Jr. added 61 yards on nine carries, while Mark Fletcher, Jr. had 51 yards. Van Dyke even added 39 yards of his own on the ground. He was not sacked.
Wide receiver Xavier Restrepo continued his strong start to the season, catching seven passes for 41 yards and two touchdowns, the first multi-score game of his career. Jacolby George had five receptions for 90 yards, while Colbie Young caught two passes for 33 yards and one score.
“He was excellent,” Cristobal said of Van Dyke. “Considering there were some gusts, Tyler did a great job.”
Cornerback Te’Cory Couch picked off two passes and defensive end Jahfari Harvey recovered a fumble. Cornerback Jaden Davis led the Canes with six tackles, while linebacker Corey Flagg, Jr. posted four stops.
Miami forced Temple to punt on its opening possession, taking over at its own 18-yard line. The Canes then engineered their first touchdown march, beautifully mixing the run and pass over 13 plays. Chaney rushed for 32 yards and Parrish for 30, while Van Dyke twice connected with Restrepo – once on a key 3rd and 8 to keep the drive alive and again on a seven-yard touchdown toss to end it. Miami led 7-0 with only 3:04 remaining in the first quarter.
The Owls responded as quarterback E.J. Warner found wide receiver Amad Anderson for 46 yards down the left sideline to the Miami 29. But five plays later Couch picked off Warner in the end zone, and the Canes were back on the move. Parrish rushed for nine yards and then Van Dyke faked out the entire stadium, sending Parrish into the line and keeping the ball for 37 yards all the way to the Temple 34. Three plays later Van Dyke lofted a deep ball to Young, who rose to snag it and fell into the end zone for a 28-yard touchdown. Miami was up two scores.
The Canes forced a three-and-out and got the ball right back at their own 44. And Van Dyke went right back to work, finding George for 38 yards down the right sideline. But Temple’s defense held in the red zone and Miami settled for a 26-yard field goal by Andy Borregales for a 17-0 lead.
Warner hit another big gain of 37 yards to wide receiver Darvon Hubbard, which moved the ball to the Canes 33. But Taylor sacked Warner to force 4th and 12. The Owls went for it, but Warner threw high to wide receiver Zae Baines and Miami got the ball back. The Canes punted for the first time but on Temple’s next possession, Warner fumbled under pressure from defensive end Thomas More. Harvey pounced on the loose ball at the Owls 24.
Parrish covered 21 of those 24 yards, racing virtually untouched into the end zone from 13 yards out to pad Miami’s lead to 24 points with 1:03 left in the half.
The Owls responded with their best drive of the half, moving quickly to the Miami nine-yard line. On 3rd and goal Warner stood strong in the pocket and found tight end Reese Clark in the end zone to get Temple on the scoreboard heading into the locker room.
Miami wasted no time getting back on the scoreboard to start the second half, marching 63 yards in just seven plays. Parrish capped the drive with his second touchdown of the day, a three-yarder that pushed the Canes’ lead back to 24 points.
On the next possession, Temple went for it on 4th and 2 from its own 25. Warner rolled right and threw his second interception to Couch. On the next snap, Chaney raced 25 yards to the Owls 34. But the drive stalled from there and punter Dylan Joyce pinned the Owls back at their 12-yard line.
The Canes forced another three-and-out and Parrish took over, racking up 44 yards on five straight rushes deep into Temple territory. That put Van Dyke in position to cap the drive with a gorgeous 17-yard strike to Restrepo in the end zone. It was 38-7 Miami. Borregales hit a 39-yard field goal on the Canes’ next drive to push the lead to 34 points.
The Canes are off this coming weekend and return to action Saturday, October 7 at Hard Rock Stadium against Georgia Tech.
Tyler Van Dyke talks to the media after Miami's win at Temple.
