''We Found a Way to Win''

MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. – There were more than a few plays late that defined the night.

There was Cam Ward eluding two potential sacks to find an open Riley Williams for a 26-yard gain. Xavier Restrepo making a crucial fourth-down catch – while flat on his back.

And wide receiver Isaiah Horton snagging the eventual game-winning touchdown, only to then come back onto the field as a defensive back to try and keep Virginia Tech from doing the same on the game’s final play.

Each of those plays had an impact on the final score.

But maybe, just maybe, the biggest moment of the seventh-ranked Hurricanes’ 38-34 win over the Hokies on Friday night came months ago, when Miami’s veteran leaders met and had a very frank, very serious heart-to-heart conversation.

It’s a conversation none of the Hurricanes have forgotten.

“We had a team meeting before the season started. We have a new Canes order, basically just saying ‘enough is enough,’” Restrepo said. “Enough of not finishing games. Enough of coming to lifts late. Enough of not coming to practice fully prepared. Enough of not fully preparing. It’s a new team. We’re not looking back at all. We’re super grateful that we got this win and again, we need to fix a lot of things. So, starting tomorrow, we need to get back in the building, get our bodies right and get ready for another good football team.”

Said Miami head coach Mario Cristobal, “Look, that could be a locker room with an ‘L’ right now and it’d be a lot worse. We found a way to win. I could sit here and talk about a billion things that we could have done better. I just don’t want to do that. I want to focus on the fact that this team, probably over the last 20 years, lost a game like this. This team found a way, so they can take that however they want. I’m proud of the effort. I’m not proud of the way we coached and played, but sometimes, you’ve just got to find a way to get a ‘W,’ and we found a way to get it.”

In their first three games, the Hurricanes (5-0, 1-0 ACC) scored early and often and as a result, never found themselves having to play from behind. Even last week, after in-state foe USF took two first-half leads, Miami responded in commanding fashion. By halftime, the Hurricanes had the lead, and they never trailed again.

Their Friday night ACC opener against Virginia Tech was different.

Very different.

The Hokies, a foe the Hurricanes know well dating back to their days in the Big East, came to Hard Rock Stadium hungry for an upset over their top-10 rival and eager to prove they’re a better team than their record indicates.

And all night long, Virginia Tech (2-3, 0-1) challenged the Hurricanes in ways the Hurricanes hadn’t yet been challenged this season.

When Ward fumbled on the game’s opening drive, Virginia Tech recovered and three plays later, capitalized, scoring when Hokies quarterback Kyron Drones – Ward’s cousin – connected with Benji Gosnell on a 25-yard scoring pass.

The Hurricanes responded with two quick scoring drives that gave them the lead, but Virginia Tech kept pushing – and finding ways to put Miami on the ropes.

The Hokies outscored the Hurricanes 17-3 in the second quarter to take a 24-17 lead into the locker room – a lead that wasn’t bigger in large part because Miami kicker Andy Borregales hit a career-long 56-yard field goal as the half ended.

The second half proved more of the same, with Virginia Tech again capitalizing on Miami mistakes and the Hurricanes struggling to find the kind of offensive rhythm they showed against Florida, FAMU, Ball State and USF.

That all led to another first for the Hurricanes this season: their first fourth-quarter deficit.

After Drones found Ayden Greene with a 16-yard scoring pass up the middle on a 3rd-and-9, Virginia Tech took a 34-24 lead with 12:05 left and Miami was in a world of trouble.

“Sometimes, you’ve got to go through it,” Cristobal said. “Some of today’s back and forth stuff, again, we caused it.”

But in the game’s final minutes, Miami found ways to make the plays it needed to make.

After Green’s touchdown, the Hurricanes marched down the field on a nine-play, 70-yard drive that featured Ward scrambling for a key first down and later, the quarterback connecting with veteran tight end Cam McCormick on a 6-yard touchdown play.

Miami’s defense – which at times struggled to contain Drones and Hokies running back Bhayshul Tuten – forced a three-and-out on Virginia Tech’s ensuing possession, setting up the Hurricanes’ gritty final drive.

Restrepo’s fourth-down catch, Ward’s escapes, Horton’s touchdown, and finally, a 38-34 lead.

And all of that was then followed by Miami’s defense ultimately keeping Virginia Tech from scoring on the game’s final play, a 30-yard Drones heave to the end zone that was incomplete.

“We played good team football at the end of the day,” said Ward, who finished the day throwing for 343 yards and four touchdowns. “I gave some points up on the board in the first half, [but] the defense rallied, and they made me better. They made the team better, and it came down to, you know, we wanted it a little bit more, I believe. We made plays at the right time as an offense and the defense stepped up in big-time ways. I’m just glad we got a win.”

Said Cristobal, “There’s a lot to learn off this film. It’s one of those days where you are fortunate enough where you can learn a lot of your lessons without having to suffer the consequence of a loss. We turned the ball over uncharacteristically. We had some pressure on our on our own quarterback. We had about five guys go down on defense. … But a lot of credit to just the resiliency of the team because that one field goal before halftime was invaluable. To come back and then go down by 10 points and come back and score again just kept us in it and fighting. … And finally, that three-and-out before the offense took the ball and went down the field and scored, that was ultimately the difference in the football game. A lot of stuff we need to clean up, but certainly a lot of stuff to be proud of as well.”

And now, with another ACC showdown looming – this one set to be played more than 3,000 miles away at California on Saturday night – the Hurricanes will look inward and do their best to learn from the mistakes made against Virginia Tech.

But they’ll begin that process knowing they are a resilient team that on Friday night showed it can handle adversity and can make winning plays in the most crucial moments.

“It’s about time we had one of these games. These games are going to be the standpoint going forward in ACC play. Everybody’s trying to win their games,” Ward said. “We put ourselves in a bad situation early, but we were able to come out of it. We’ve just got to be better on offense. We’ve still have yet to play a great game. … We’ve got to hone in on little things this week and get ready for Cal.”

Said tight end Elijah Arroyo, “Winning isn’t easy. … Just the fight that this team has overall, this is really the first big challenge that we’ve had as a team, and I think we did a really good job responding.”