Canes Rewind: A Look Back at the Win over Cal

BERKELEY, Calif. – 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 39-38 comeback win over California on Saturday night, a win that helped the Hurricanes rise two spots to No. 6 in the most recent AP Top 25 poll.

The Recap

After traveling more than 3,000 miles, adjusting to Pacific Time and waiting for a 7:30 kick on the West Coast, the Hurricanes found themselves in a world of trouble Saturday night.

Despite scoring the game’s first touchdown, the Miami offense sputtered, and its defense had a hard time containing Bears quarterback Fernando Mendoza and running back Jaydn Ott.

As a result, Cal made plays of 57, 51 and 66 yards and built a 21-10 halftime lead.

That lead grew early in the third quarter after Miami quarterback Cam Ward had an interception returned for a touchdown and again after the Bears, thanks to another explosive play from Mendoza, capped a five-play, 80-yard drive when fellow quarterback Chandler Rogers scored on a 9-yard rushing touchdown.

And so, with 8:06 left in the third quarter, the Hurricanes faced a 25-point deficit, on the road, in front of a raucous Cal crowd that reveled in the Bears’ brewing upset.

Then, things started to change.

After the Bears took a 35-10 lead on Rogers’ touchdown, Ward and the Hurricanes found their offensive rhythm and began chipping at the margin.

First came a 12-play, 75-yard drive that featured both a third-down conversion and a fourth-down conversion for Miami and ended when Hurricanes running back Damien Martinez scored on a 1-yard run.

Then, there was an 11-play, 75-yard drive that ended when Ward connected with wide receiver Isaiah Horton on an 18-yard scoring play. That was followed by a defensive stop and yet another Miami scoring drive.

That drive ended when Ward scampered into the end zone on a 24-yard run that pulled the Hurricanes within 38-32 after the extra point from Andy Borregales.

It was clear then, with a little more than four minutes left, that momentum had shifted at California Memorial Stadium.

Miami’s defense came back on the field, stopped Cal once again and got the ball back to Ward and the offense with 1:42 left.

And, again, the quarterback delivered.

On the first play of Miami’s final drive, Ward connected with wide receiver Xavier Restrepo – who had already made a series of clutch grabs – on a 77-yard play that put the Hurricanes deep in Cal territory.

Five plays later, Ward connected with Elijah Arroyo on a 5-yard touchdown pass that tied the game and set Borregales up to give Miami the lead with his extra point.

Borregales made the kick and with 26 seconds left, the Hurricanes had the lead.

Cal had one last opportunity to reverse the outcome, but Miami linebacker Francisco Mauigoa intercepted Mendoza with 10 seconds left and the Hurricanes clinched their sixth win of the season.

Ward finished the day completing 35 of 53 passes for a season-high 437 yards with two touchdowns, while Restrepo had seven catches for a game-high 163 yards. Mark Fletcher Jr., meanwhile, had a game-high 81 rushing yards, with a touchdown.

Miami’s 25-point comeback marked the second largest in program history and was the largest among FBS schools so far this season.

More than that, though, it was a tribute to the Hurricanes’ resiliency, something head coach Mario Cristobal noted in his post-game comments.

“The best way to sum it up … it’s the best example of resiliency and toughness and just no-quit mentality that I’ve ever been fortunate enough to be a part of,” Cristobal said. “I mean, the game was 35-10 at one point and all that you saw was guys saying, ‘We’re going to do this because we can do it,’ and they did. Just kept clawing and scratching. The defense started holding up, getting us the ball back and well, you guys saw the rest. …

“We did a lot of routine things that require discipline, technique and fundamentals, we did those wrong and it led to us being in a hole. We had to do a lot of things right – and still did some things wrong – to fight out of it.”

Numbers to Know

278 – Yards totaled by the Miami offense during the fourth quarter of Saturday’s win. The Hurricanes finished the day with 575 yards of offense and are now averaging 583.8 yards per game. That’s tops in the nation.

2 – Tackles for loss totaled by Miami defensive lineman Simeon Barrow Jr. Together, the Hurricanes had seven tackles for loss and two sacks of Cal quarterback Fernando Mendoza.

2,302 – Total career receiving yards for Miami’s Xavier Restrepo. During Saturday’s game, Restrepo moved into fourth place on the Hurricanes’ all-time list, bypassing Travis Benjamin (2,146), Mike Harley (2,158), Leonard Hankerson (2,160), Stacy Coley (2,222) and Lamar Thomas (2,271) in the process.

155 – Total offensive yards allowed by the Miami defense in the second half, including just 26 yards in the fourth quarter.

2, 219 – Cam Ward’s total passing yards through Miami’s first six games. That’s the most in the country among FBS programs. Ward is also the national leader in touchdowns (20) and yards per game (369.8).

Quotable

“Cam is a dog, man. He’s a dude. … I mean, in his eyes, he was 1,000 percent convinced that he was going to get it done. … That dude, all week long, knew that this game was going to be a challenge because of what they do, coverage wise. He had a look in his eye that was just like, ‘Okay, this guy’s going to rip it.’ And when he threw that pick that they ran back, it just like got [him] dialed up. It turned up even more so. I’ve said it a million times: complete and utter faith in that guy and everything he represents and stands for.”

– Head coach Mario Cristobal, on quarterback Cam Ward

“Just keep playing. Can’t win, can’t come back from 25 trying to get it in one drive. So, just take it play by play, have belief and when you’ve got the right guys on the team, like we do, you know you can do some good stuff.”

– Quarterback Cam Ward, on how Miami was able to rally from its 25-point deficit and win the game

“We’re tough. We’re a tough team and no matter what, we’re not going to back down and no matter what, we’re not going to flinch. We’re going to keep playing until that clock hits 0:00.”

– Defensive lineman Simeon Barrow, on Miami’s mentality down 25

“This [is] probably the best comeback I’ve ever been a part of. So, I think being part of that, it means a lot to me. And being able to come to the West Coast and beat a good team, like Cal, is special.”

– Linebacker Francisco Mauigoa, on what Miami’s comeback meant to him personally

“We need to fine-tune every little detail, and even on the bye week, we’re just trying to get one day better. Again, we can’t get too high or too low. We have to just keep pushing on, forward, and getting better each and every day on that beautiful, hot Greentree.”

– Wide receiver Xavier Restrepo, on the Hurricanes’ upcoming off week

Up Next

The Hurricanes are off this week and will return to action on Oct. 19 when they travel to Louisville for another crucial conference matchup.

Over the course of the next week, the Hurricanes will be focusing on not only getting better and cleaning up some of the mistakes that contributed to their early struggles Saturday, but on getting some much-needed rest and recovery time.

“Two things have to be done. Number one, we’ve got to get our guys healed up and rested and recovered, while at the same time, polishing technique and fundamentals and diving deep into a self-scout,” Cristobal said of the Hurricanes’ plan for the off week. “And the second part is we’ve got to continue the process and the push for development so that guys, when they have meaningful snaps, they’re not just kind of eating up space, that they’re actually out there performing their job at a high level and making plays.”

Louisville, which has lost two straight and is 3-2 on the season, is set to face Virginia on Saturday before Oct. 19.