Canes Storm Past USF 49-12

MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. — In 1987, the Miami Hurricanes beat three consecutive ranked opponents to start the season. Nobody has done it since.

After opening with ranked wins over Boise State and Florida, the USF Bulls had a chance to match that feat Saturday at Hard Rock Stadium. But the current Hurricanes kept the alumni streak intact – in a big way.

Fifth-ranked Miami defeated No. 18 USF 49-12 before a sellout crowd of 66,591 that thrived and vibed through a 100-minute weather delay but was treated to the Canes’ ninth straight home win. UM improved to 3-0, while the Bulls fell to 2-1.

Miami racked up 576 total yards and held a 12-minute advantage in time of possession. The Canes averaged seven plays on their seven touchdown drives. Running back Mark Fletcher rushed for 120 yards and two touchdowns, averaging 7.5 yards per carry. It was the third 100-yard game of his career.

Quarterback Carson Beck completed 23 of 28 passes for 340 yards with three touchdowns and two interceptions. Wide receivers Keelan Marion and Malachi Toney each had six receptions, while freshman Joshua Moore had three catches for 61 yards and the first two touchdowns of his career.

Miami’s defense held USF to just 40 rushing yards. The Bulls converted 7 of 19 on third down and were 0 of 2 on fourth down. Defensive ends Akheem Mesidor and Rueben Bain each posted six tackles. Safety Bryce Fitzgerald picked off a pass for the second straight game, and linebacker Chase Smith recovered a fumble.

USF quarterback Byrum Brown completed 20 of 36 passes for 274 yards with one score and one pick. Wide receiver Christian Neptune paced the Bulls with seven catches for 32 yards and one touchdown. Fellow wideout Chas Nimrod amassed 128 yards on four grabs. Linebacker Jhalyn Shuler led USF with eight tackles.

“Really just fired up, impressed with our players, our team, our entire organization, in handling the week in preparation for a team that had been playing really, really good football and handling what they do best, which is tempo,” head coach Mario Cristobal said. “First goes out to our scout team. They simulated them as well as you possibly can all week long, and because that is a challenge, but the physicality, the level of energy that we played with tonight, although a couple of critical mistakes, was progress for our football team.”

The Canes received the ball to open the game and Beck hit wide receiver CJ Daniels for 15 yards on the opening snap. Beck then picked up a first down with his feet before connecting with Toney on a 20-yard gain down to the USF 27. Four plays later Beck connected with Moore on a crossing route for an eight-yard touchdown and a 7-0 Miami lead.

The Bulls managed one first down on their first drive but Miami got the ball back at its 15-yard line. Beck converted a third down with a seven-yard pass to Marion before Fletcher burst up the middle for a 17-yard gain. Marion followed with a 13-yard gain on a reverse and Miami was back in USF territory.

Three plays later, Beck looked deep down the sideline and found Moore in the end zone for a 39-yard scoring strike. Two drives, two touchdowns and a two-touchdown lead for Miami.

On the ensuing drive, Brown found Nimrod for a 43-yard gain down to the UM 29. But the Canes’ defense stiffened, and the Bulls settled for a 45-yard field goal by Nico Gramatica to cut the lead to 11 points with 26 seconds left in the opening quarter.

USF forced a three-and-out and took over at its own 25. Then the lightning delay disrupted proceedings. When play resumed, Brown scampered for a first down and then completed a 53-yard pass to Nimrod down to the Canes 12. But Miami’s defense held from there and Gramatica booted a 28-yarder to cut the lead to 14-6.

Beck went back to work, hitting Marion for 17 yards and Fletcher for 20 yards to move the ball to the Bulls 38. On the next snap, Fletcher bolted into the secondary and rumbled all the way to the end zone. The Canes were back up by 15 points.

The teams traded three-and-outs before USF faced a 3^rd and 8 from its 21. Brown — pressured by Mesidor — threw over the middle and was picked off by Fitzgerald. Fletcher picked up a 4^th and 1, and Beck followed with an 11-yard run, which set Miami up first and goal at the two-yard line. On the next snap, Beck faked a handoff and waltzed into the end zone untouched. Miami had a 28-6 lead.

UM’s defense forced another three-and-out and Beck looked down the right sideline for Daniels, who made his weekly circus catch – this one for 27 yards — down to the USF. But Beck threw his first interception of the season on the next snap. Cornerback Jarvis Lee returned the pick to the Bulls 42. The first half came to a close.

USF got the ball to start the second half but couldn’t move the chains. The Canes drove into Bulls territory, but Beck was picked off again, this time by cornerback James Chenault. But Miami’s defense returned the favor when safety Jakobe Thomas popped the ball away from Brown and Smith pounced on the ball at the Canes 47. USF’s defense forced a punt and took over at its own 10-yard line.

The Bulls put together their longest drive of the night, marching all the way to Miami’s nine-yard line. But on 4^th and 2, Brown was swarmed by Bain and Smith and the Canes got the ball back. Beck hit Toney for 24 yards to give UM some breathing room. The quarterback then looked deep for Marion, who made a gorgeous, over-the-shoulder catch down to the USF 30. Three plays later, Fletcher bulldozed his way into the end zone for his second score, a 13-yard touchdown that pushed Miami’s lead to 35-6.

The Bulls finally reached the end zone on their next drive as Brown capped an eight-play, 75-yard march with a 12-yard touchdown pass to Neptune. The two-point conversion failed.

Beck hit wide receiver Tony Johnson for 51 yards to move the Canes back into the red zone. Six plays later, Beck lofted a one-yard scoring toss to running back Marty Brown, which made the score 42-12 with 7:04 remaining.

Miami’s defense stopped USF on downs and quarterback Emory Williams replaced Beck under center. The Canes drove 57 yards in seven plays for their seventh touchdown, a five-yard run by running back Girard Pringle.

Next up for the Canes is another Sunshine State showdown at Hard Rock as they host Florida. Kickoff is next Saturday at either 7 p.m. (ESPN) or 7:30 p.m. (ABC). The time and network will be announced later tonight.