Canes Roll Past Rattlers in Home Opener

MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. — After a dominant win at Florida to open the season, the 12th-ranked Miami Hurricanes were determined to carry that momentum into their home opener.

They scored touchdowns on their first three drives of the first half. They scored touchdowns on their first three drives of the second half. They racked up 548 yards and yielded only 194 yards. They didn’t allow a touchdown. They never punted.

The end result was a comfortable 56-9 win over Florida A&M on Saturday evening before a crowd of 57,886 at Hard Rock Stadium. The Canes improved to 2-0, while the Rattlers fell to 2-1.

Quarterback Cam Ward completed 12 of his first 13 passes and finished 20 of 26 for 304 yards and three touchdowns. He also scored on an eight-yard rush before calling it a night. Wide receiver Xavier Restrepo continued his stellar start to the season with four catches for 104 yards, including a 50-yard touchdown. Running back Damien Martinez rushed for 90 yards and his first touchdown as a Cane.

Defensive Tyler Baron paced an impressive defensive effort with three sacks. Linebackers Wesley Bissainthe, Cameron Pruitt and Adarius Hayes each had interceptions. Overall, the Canes amassed five sacks and 10 tackles for loss, holding the Rattlers to just 52 yards on the ground and allowing them to convert only 3 of 13 third down opportunities.

A&M quarterback Daniel Richardson completed 13 of 17 passes for 135 yards, while wide receiver Jamari Gassett had five receptions for 61 yards.

“It was good to play a lot of players tonight,” head coach Mario Cristobal said. “Certainly a lot of young guys got action and actually played at a high level, particularly the defensive line. They seemed to get relentless pressure on the quarterback and did a good job stopping the run. It was good to see those freshman linebackers get in there and get a couple interceptions as well.

“All in all, we handled our business and lots of errors to get better at.”

The Rattlers got the ball to start the game but they didn’t have it for long. Bissainthe made a juggling interception – the first of his career – to give Miami the ball at the A&M 28. Martinez ran for 11 yards to move the chains and then Ward found tight end Elijah Arroyo down the middle for a 17-yard touchdown. The Canes led 7-0 just 80 seconds in.

Miami forced a punt on A&M’s next possession, but the Rattlers pinned the Canes back at their one-yard line. No problem. Ward connected with Martinez for 15 yards to convert one third down, then hit tight end Riley Williams on another third down for 27 yards to midfield. On the next snap Ward threw deep to Restrepo, who caught the ball in stride and strolled into the end zone for a 50-yard score. Williams rushed for two and it was 15-0.

The Rattlers bounced back on the next drive as Richardson completed a 29-yard pass to wide receiver Quan Lee and then threw a 34-yard pass to Gassett to the Canes 14. But on 3^rd and goal at the one-yard line, A&M committed a false start and Baron stopped running back Thad Franklin, Jr., for no gain. Cameron Gillis booted a 22-yard field goal to cut Miami’s lead to a dozen.

Ward threw his first incompletion of the evening but then hit Restrepo for 33 yards, lifting the senior wideout into Miami’s Top 10 in career receiving yards. Ward then rolled right and found wide receiver Isaiah Horton for 27 yards to the A&M 14. Three plays later, Ward threw a nine-yard scoring toss to running back Chris Johnson, Jr., and the lead was up to 19.

The Canes forced a quick three-and-out and moved the ball to the Rattlers nine-yard line, where they faced a 4^th and 3. Ward eluded the rush and threw a touchdown pass to Horton, but tackle Markell Bell was flagged for holding. Miami settled for a 37-yard field goal by Andy Borregales and a 25-3 lead.

Defensive tackle Justin Scott and Baron registered sacks on the ensuing drive, forcing a punt that gave the Canes great field position at the A&M 20. The Canes quickly faced another fourth down and this time linebacker Jayren Fox broke up a Ward pass intended for wide receiver Jacolby George.

Thanks to a circus catch by tight end Karter Johnson, the Rattlers moved the ball all the way to the Canes 19 with five seconds left in the half. Gillis nailed a 36-yard field goal and Miami had a 25-6 lead heading into the locker room. The Canes’ defense held A&M to 137 yards in the first 30 minutes, including just two rushing yards.

Miami got the ball to open the second half and marched 75 yards in seven plays, capping the drive with a four-yard touchdown run by running back Mark Fletcher, Jr. Baron’s third sack forced a Rattlers punt and the Canes took over at their 25. Ward hit Horton for 13 yards and a 12-yard run by Fletcher pushed the ball past midfield. A&M was flagged for pass interference and on the next snap Martinez raced 33 yards for his first Canes touchdown. Miami’s lead was 39-6.

Junior Muratovic came in at quarterback for the Rattlers and handed the ball to running back Kelvin Dean, who rushed for 29 yards. A personal foul penalty moved the ball to the UM 31, but Miami’s defense held and Michael Smith drilled a 49-yarder to cut the Canes’ lead to 30 points.

Ward concluded his night by leading Miami on a nine-play, 55-yard touchdown drive, which he capped with an eight-yard run-and-leap into the end zone. Ward became the first Miami quarterback to throw for 300-plus yards and three touchdowns in each of his first two starts. Miami pushed its lead to 46-9 with 3:31 left in the third quarter.

Reese Poffenbarger subbed for Ward at quarterback and completed both of his pass attempts on a six-play drive that culminated with a one-yard touchdown run by running back Jordan Lyle. The Canes tacked on a late, 38-yard field goal by Abram Murray to provide the final margin.

Miami next hosts Ball State next Saturday at Hard Rock Stadium in the first-ever meeting between the teams. Kickoff is 3:30 p.m. on ACC Network.