Canes Look to Keep Growing As They Host Ball State

CORAL GABLES, Fla. – Not long after the Hurricanes posted a 47-point win over Florida A&M in last week’s home opener at Hard Rock Stadium, Xavier Restrepo faced a question.

After adding a slew of talented players to their roster in the offseason and opening with two big wins over in-state opponents, it was more than likely that the Hurricanes would find themselves ranked among the nation’s top 10 teams before they played their next game.

Would that matter to Miami’s coaches and players, Restrepo was asked.

The veteran wide receiver’s answer was blunt.

“It doesn’t matter,” Restrepo responded. “I mean, we’re just thinking about going 1-0 and we’ve got Ball State next week. That’s all we’re focused on.”

Through their first two games of the season, the Hurricanes – now ranked at No. 10 in the AP Top 25 poll – have outscored their opponents 97-26.

They’ve averaged 539 yards per game to their opponents’ 225.5, and more than a few individuals – from quarterback Cam Ward to defensive lineman Tyler Baron – have brought home a slew of honors, ranging from spots on preseason watch lists to ACC Player of the Week recognition.

There are eyes on the Hurricanes (2-0) and they are definitely generating plenty of buzz, but as they prepare to host Ball State on Saturday afternoon at Hard Rock Stadium, coaches and players say they’re doing their best to drown out all the noise, no matter how positive it may be.

“We’re not even close to playing our best football,” said Ward, who through two games has completed 75 percent of his passes and thrown for 689 yards and six touchdowns. “If you go back and really watch the tape from the first game, I would say there was a minimum of 10 bad plays. … And from this last game, the biggest takeaway was with the fourth downs. That’s just us not doing the little things, so that’s something we’ve got to clean up. I mean, we say we want to win games, but you know, if we don’t clean up the little stuff now, it can hurt us in the back end. So, we’re getting better at that. We got better this week at working those situations and working the right concepts that we’re supposed to dun. But we’re going to continue to chop wood at it and just keep playing ball.”

Added Miami head coach Mario Cristobal, “Every team has good football players and if you don’t really believe that and you don’t really train like that, there’s going to come a Saturday or Friday or Thursday where [you’re] going to be disappointed, you know? For us, the best thing that we do, the very best thing that we do, is the way we practice; the way we practice and prepare. And the best thing that we have going for us – it’s led by the team – the best thing that we’ve got going for us is our culture. It allows us to be just very blunt and real and right to the point and get to business. … We made it very clear from the beginning: there are no easy games on our schedule and whoever thinks that way, you’re going to be disappointed one day. So, stay hungry, stay driven. The most important game of the year is at 3:30 on Saturday and we’re looking forward to it.”

That game on Saturday will feature an opponent in Ball State that is coming off a 42-34 season-opening win over Missouri State.

The Cardinals (1-0) will be bidding for their first win over a top 10 team in program history and are looking to start the season with two straight wins for the first time since 2013.

Quarterback Kadin Semonza had a solid showing in Ball State’s opener, completing 28 of 39 passes for 262 passing yards and four touchdowns. He also ran for a score.

The redshirt freshman has already notched some big-game experience, playing in the Cardinals’ matchups against both Kentucky and Georgia last fall before redshirting.

Meanwhile, running back Braedon Sloan, a transfer from Eastern Kentucky, totaled 149 all-purpose yards in the opener, and linebackers Joey Stemler and Keionte Newson led the defense with seven and six tackles, respectively.

And Cristobal acknowledged Ball State – which held Missouri State to just 62 rushing yards – is a physical team, particularly in the trenches.

“First thing [that] sticks out, their offensive line is big, nasty, [and] physical; four or five returning starters. A ton of starts together. Just nasty. I mean, they get after you. They really, really do,” Cristobal said. “The quarterback played a great game this past game. They have explosive wide receivers and they’re a veteran offensive crew. They have a lot of change over on defense, but you don’t see a drop-off on defense. You’re looking at a team, I believe the last half of their season last year, they allowed barely over 15 points a game and they fortified their roster with some transfers and some freshmen and some other guys that have been in the program for a while. … Throughout the summer, we knew that this was going to be a really good opponent coming to play us, so we’re excited for the challenge.”

Along with finding ways to contain their opponent, the Hurricanes will continue looking to build on their early-season success.

Through Miami’s first two games, a slew of playmakers have delivered on both sides of the ball. Ward has thrown passes to 15 different pass-catchers, led by Restrepo, who has 11 catches for 216 yards.

Eight different Hurricanes have notched at least one carry, with running back Damien Martinez pacing the group with 26 rushes for 156 yards. And on the other side of the ball, seven defenders have notched at least five tackles, led by defensive back Jaden Harris (12) and linebacker Francisco Mauigoa (11).

There is a lot for Miami to be encouraged by in its first two games, but there’s still plenty of room to grow. And that’s something the Hurricanes say they plan on doing, on Saturday and beyond.

“I think we’ve just got to keep on trying to better ourselves,” Restrepo said. “I mean, again, we’re just super excited to take the field every single day and try to find flaws in ourselves.”