Canes Rewind: A Look Back at the Win over Ball State

MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. – Each week this season, we’ll take a look at the game that was for the Hurricanes.

Here are some key storylines, numbers of note and quotes from Miami’s dominant 62-0 win over Ball State, a win that, on Sunday, helped the Hurricanes rise two spots in the AP Top 25 to No. 8.

The Recap

After a pair of big wins to start the season, the Hurricanes have generated headlines, risen in the polls and have had more than a few players earn individual recognition.

But they’ve also worked to drown out all of the positive attention, focusing instead on the next opponent on their schedule and doing what needs to be done to go 1-0 each week.

Their approach is working.

Despite weathering a weather delay of more than two hours, the Hurricanes scored on their opening drive against Ball State and never looked back in what ultimately proved to be a record-breaking victory.

Miami (3-0) scored on 10 of its 11 possessions and totaled a school-record 750 yards of total offense in its win over the Cardinals.

Quarterback Cam Ward continued his hot start to the season and completed 19-of-28 passes for 346 yards with a career-high five touchdowns, while wide receiver Jacolby George had a season-best six catches for 109 yards and a touchdown and running back Ajay Allen had a career-high 104 rushing yards.

Miami’s defense, meanwhile, kept its opponent out of the end zone for the second straight week.

The Hurricanes held Ball State to just 115 total offensive yards and the Cardinals were just 1-of-12 on third-down conversions.

“From start to finish, I thought we became a better football team. I thought we left the field different than how we entered, just finishing drives, getting them off the field [with] three-and-outs more successfully,” said Hurricanes head coach Mario Cristobal. “[The] third down defense continued to play at a high level and got a shutout and really controlled the middle eight, which is a big thing for us so, all in all, just a really good performance and looking forward to a great opportunity next week.”

Numbers to Know

159 – Points totaled by the Hurricanes through their first three games. That’s the most scored by any Miami team through the first three games.

25 – Total yards allowed by the Miami defense in the entirety of the second half against Ball State.

2 – Touchdowns scored by Xavier Restrepo in the Hurricanes’ win over the Cardinals. The redshirt senior, who has now scored in all three of Miami’s games, finished the day with three catches for 47 yards.

16 – Number of Hurricanes who notched at least one solo tackle in Saturday’s victory. Linebackers Wesley Bissainthe and Francisco Mauigoa led the way with six stops each and as a whole, Miami’s defense totaled an interception, four sacks, nine tackles for loss and broke up five passes.

507 – Total passing yards posted by Miami quarterbacks Cam Ward and Emory Williams. It marked the second-highest output in a single game, behind only the Hurricanes’ 513 passing yards against UCLA on Dec. 5, 1998.

Quotable

“Well, I think now that it’s year two of [offensive coordinator Shannon] Dawson‘s  system, I think everyone is really starting to feel comfortable, excel at it, understand timing and spacing because, in the passing game, that is the most critical thing along with protection. We’ve got a good offensive line. Cam [Ward] sometimes checks us and puts us in great protection and when he knows he’s not protected, he knows where to go with the ball. He gets to that person quickly. Again, we’re hitting on all cylinders in the passing game but, you know, you’ll ask Cam, and he’ll tell you that he felt like he left some things out there that could have made it a better day and that’s the way we want to stay. We’ve got a lot of work to do and we’re looking forward to getting back to work tomorrow.”

– Head coach Mario Cristobal, on how Miami is spreading the ball around among receivers in the passing game

“We’re just stacking days. It’s like we want to go 1-0 every week and we just want to play our best ball, and we want to do our job, and we just keep the main thing, the main thing.”

– Defensive lineman Simeon Barrow Jr., on Miami’s businesslike approach to the season through the first three games

“We have to be more consistent. We can’t have lulls on one play. Every play has to be a statement. So, the more that we can, I would say, just keep having urgency and just keep playing hard every play. … Can’t take a play off. I think it’ll end up helping us in the long run.”

– Quarterback Cam Ward, on what he’d like to see the offense continue to show as the season continues

“We can be the best offense in the country. We just have to keep working.”

– Wide receiver Jacolby George, on the offense’s potential

“Both sides of the ball, we’re putting up points. We’re doing what we’ve got to do. So, I mean, I feel like we feed off each other’s energy. So as long as we do good as a group, we’re going to do good. When we’re down, we pick each other up.”

– Defensive lineman Elijah Alston, on how the offense and defense are playing complementary football and supporting each other

Up Next

After playing two games at home, the Hurricanes will hit the road, though they won’t have to go very far.

Miami is set to travel to Tampa this week, where it will face USF on Saturday night at Raymond James Stadium.

The Bulls, led by second-year coach Alex Golesh, are coming off a 49-24 win over Southern Miss and are looking to continue building after a 7-6 campaign last season that marked a six-win improvement from 2022.

USF quarterback Byrum Brown completed 19 of 29 passes for 193 yards and two touchdowns and ran for another 72 yards and a score in the win over Southern Miss, while Kelley Joiner, Jr. ran for 117 yards and two touchdowns.

The Bulls rallied from an early 14-0 deficit and scored 28 unanswered points to secure the win.

Miami and USF have met six times, and the Hurricanes hold a 5-1 lead in the series, with their most recent win over the Bulls coming in Tampa in 2013.