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 notes and quotes from Miami’s 42-14 win over ACC foe Wake Forest on Saturday afternoon at Hard Rock Stadium, a win that helped the Hurricanes move up three spots to No. 8 in the most recent AP Top 25.

The Recap

After a disappointing performance at Georgia Tech earlier this month, the Hurricanes had to wait two weeks to get back on the field and try to put that loss to the Yellow Jackets behind them.

Miami scored 22 unanswered points in the fourth quarter to pull away from an upset-minded Wake Forest team and secure its first 10-win season since 2017.

On their opening possession, the Hurricanes looked every bit the potent, high-powered offense they’ve been all year. Miami marched down the field and took a quick lead when Cam Ward connected on a 13-yard scoring pass with Jacolby George to cap a 13-play, 84-yard scoring drive that took more than six minutes off the clock.

Wake Forest, though, answered immediately.

The Demon Deacons (4-7, 2-5 ACC) needed just seven plays to tie the game with Hank Bachmeier completing a deep, 36-yard scoring pass to Micah Mays, Jr.

It was the only touchdown the Deacs’ offense would score all day.

Wake Forest’s only other touchdown came in the second quarter, moments after Meesh Powell gave Miami a 17-7 lead on a 76-yard interception return. Demond Claiborne took the ensuing kickoff, scored on a 100-yard return and pulled Wake Forest within three.

Just before the half, the Hurricanes extended their lead when kicker Andy Borregales connected on his second field goal of the half, a 25-yarder that sent Miami to the locker room with a 20-14 lead.

Then, after a scoreless third quarter, an offensive onslaught for the Hurricanes (10-1, 6-1).

After Miami’s defense stopped Wake Forest on a 4th-and-2, the Hurricanes took advantage of the short field, needing just five plays to get in the end zone on a 1-yard rush from Ward.

The Demon Deacons fumbled the ensuing kickoff, it was recovered by Miami and once again, the Hurricanes capitalized, pushing their lead to 35-14 after Jordan Lyle scored on an 18-yard run with 6:24 left.

The Hurricanes would add another touchdown on their next possession when Ward, once again, connected with George, this time on a 15-yard scoring play.

Ward finished the day competing 27 of 38 passes for 280 yards with two touchdowns. He’d also, in the process, break two Miami single-season records, both set by Bernie Kosar in 1984.

On Saturday, Ward passed the legendary Miami quarterback in both completions (263) and passing yards (3,774).

George, meanwhile, finished with seven catches for a team-high 91 yards and Lyle had seven carries for a game-high 115 yards.

The story of the game was the defense without a doubt. After that first series and the busted coverage, that’s what Miami Hurricane defense should look like,” Hurricanes head coach Mario Cristobal said. “Offensively, we had our struggles. We caused a lot of it ourselves with penalties, miscues, dropped balls and some turnovers. But the defense we leaned on them, and they came through in a big-time way even when they were on short fields. I hadn’t seen a defensive performance like that anywhere in a long time. That was really awesome, and they certainly deserve all the credit and all the mention of the game.

Numbers to Know

508 – Yards of total offense for the Hurricanes against Wake Forest. It marked the ninth time this season the Hurricanes have topped the 500-yard mark in a game. That’s the most of any FBS program.

25 – Seniors honored as part of Miami’s Senior Day festivities. Among those seniors were wide receiver Xavier Restrepo and offensive lineman Jalen Rivers , both of whom signed with Miami in 2020.

3,774 – Passing yards this season for quarterback Cam Ward. Ward on Saturday broke the single-season passing yards record of 3,642 set by Bernie Kosar in 1984.

115 – Career-high rushing yards for freshman running back Jordan Lyle. Lyle had a touchdown run, for 18 yards, in the fourth quarter.

2 – Field goals converted by kicker Andy Borregales, who this week was named a semifinalist for the Lou Groza Award for the fourth time in his career. Borregales hit from 40 yards and 25 yards in the win over Wake Forest.

Quotable

“[The seniors] closed out a regular season at home undefeated which was a big feat for us. Lot of progress. I know there’s a lot of people that I’ve known for a long time since I played that [say] defending home base and playing winning football at home was always right at the top of the food chain and top of the priority list. I also want to acknowledge our fans for coming out all year long and doing a really good job supporting this team. Every single week whether it be home or away, but today the focus is on the ones that were here and have been here all year because we certainly felt them all year long. We’re thankful for that, and that will keep getting stronger and stronger.”

– Head coach Mario Cristobal, on Miami finishing the regular season undefeated at home

“In the bye week, we harped on communication a lot. And especially on the d-line. It’s physicality and pushing the pocket and o-line vertical. The first half, the first series, they got us, but we [made] adjustments. We fixed up real quick and then we dominated.”

– Defensive lineman Akheem Mesidor, on what the defense focused on during the off week and how that work showed against Wake Forest

“Coming into this program in 2020, everybody says this time would go by really fast and I mean, they were right. So, walking down and looking at Coach Cristobal, dapping him up and getting a picture, it’s kind of crazy. Time has [gone] by really quick. It’s been five years [in a snap]. And then, after getting the flowers, getting the football, seeing my family … I don’t even think about it, of it being my last time in Hard Rock. I just think of it as like, ‘Dang, it’s the last home game.’ I’ll be in Hard Rock again, in the next level, hopefully.”

– Offensive lineman Jalen Rivers, on playing his final game at Hard Rock Stadium as a Hurricane

“It means a lot to have guys like that in the running back room. J Lyle, [Mark Fletcher], [Damien Martinez]. The receiving corps did their job today. They blocked well on the perimeter all day. But I think just us, going forward, we can’t have days like this. We still have yet to play our best game, and we’ve got one game left, so, clock’s running out. We’ve got to lock in. We’ve just got to do the little things. That’s something that we didn’t do the entire stretch of the game. … It comes to a time and point where we have to truly lock in, and we’ve got to do that. This week’s the last game of the year, so we have to go all out.”

– Quarterback Cam Ward, on the offensive performance against Wake Forest

“It meant the world to me, not just for me, but you know, for the seniors whose last [game] was here. I’m just proud. I made them happy and, you know, made the fans happy.”

– Running back Jordan Lyle, on what Saturday’s performance meant to him

Up Next

All season long, the Hurricanes have focused on going 1-0 every week.

This week, going 1-0 will put them in the ACC Championship Game.

Miami can clinch a berth in the conference championship for the first time since 2017 with a road win over Syracuse on Saturday.

The Orange have won two straight after a Nov. 9 loss to Boston College, including a 31-24 win over Connecticut this past Saturday. In that win over the Huskies, quarterback Kyle McCord threw for 470 yards and two touchdowns, while three different receivers went over the 100-yard mark.

This will mark Miami’s first trip to Syracuse since 2002, when both the Hurricanes and Orange were still members of the Big East. Miami won that game 40-7 and has a 16-7 lead in the all-time series.