Fletcher Jr., Run Game Power Canes in Win over Stanford

MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. – For days, they faced questions.

Miami’s coaches were asked about it. So were the offensive linemen. Veteran running back Mark Fletcher Jr. had his turn, too.

After the Hurricanes were held to a meager 63 rushing yards in their loss to Louisville, everyone seemingly wanted to know when Miami would get its running game going again.

“We’ve got to be better,” Fletcher said last week. “And we’ve got to just move on.”

Saturday night against Stanford, the Hurricanes did exactly that.

Fletcher ran for a career-high three touchdowns, Miami totaled 199 rushing yards and ultimately, the Hurricanes bounced back from their first loss of the season with a 42-7 win over the Cardinal.

It was a performance Fletcher said showcased what the Hurricanes (6-1, 2-1 ACC) do best.

“I feel great because we believe that’s our identity,” said Fletcher, who posted his third 100-yard performance of the season. “That’s our identity. Running hard, running physical. The run game, shoot, that’s Miami Hurricane football, we believe. So, it was good to get that back going and now we’ve just got to continue on moving forward.”

As impressive as the final numbers were, though, it did take a bit for the offense – and the run game – to find its rhythm.

The Cardinal scored on its opening possession and held on to its 7-0 lead until the final minute of the half when receiver CJ Daniels caught a 5-yard touchdown pass from Carson Beck and Carter Davis converted on the extra point.

In the first quarter, Miami had just 14 rushing yards. But that number improved to 55 yards in the second quarter and the Hurricanes went into the locker room confident.

They believed if they kept pushing, Stanford’s defense would eventually give.

“I do think this, and it’s probably an unpopular take, [but] all these teams have good players. If you watch college football across the entire country, regardless of records, you’re going to see very tight games and at some point in time, the play calls – along with the execution of those play calls – if you feel confident in them and you feel there are opportunities there, you stick with them and eventually, it’ll give way,” said Hurricanes head coach Mario Cristobal. “And that’s what happened in the run game. A little bit more on finishing, a little bit more on hat position, a little bit more on pad level and then seeing it a little bit better. …

“There’s a lot of different schemes that we run, some between the tackles, some stuff outside or designed to go outside, but the run game, in my opinion, as the game wears on, you should get better. If you trust your offensive line, your bigs, and your running backs, you should get better.”

Cristobal wasn’t wrong.

Miami’s trust in its offensive linemen and running backs paid off in a big way in the second half.

Fletcher gave the Hurricanes their first lead of the game when he found his way into the end zone on a 1-yard run on Miami’s first possession of the third quarter.

On that drive, Fletcher also had carries of four yards, six yards and had a 7-yard catch.

Later in the third, Miami linebacker Wesley Bissainthe picked off Stanford quarterback Ben Gulbranson and his big 32-yard return put the Hurricanes inside Stanford’s 3-yard line.

One play after the interception, Fletcher was back in the end zone and Miami’s lead grew to 21-7.

The Stanford mistakes – and Miami touchdowns – kept coming.

Another interception – this one by Xavier Lucas – gave the Hurricanes the ball yet again and yet again, the Hurricanes put their trust in Fletcher.

The junior from Fort Lauderdale put together runs of 12 yards, 10 yards, and 16 yards on the drive before finally scoring his third touchdown of the game on a 7-yard run.

Fletcher finished with a game-high 106 rushing yards and unsurprisingly, earned praise from his coaches and teammates.

“I think Mark Fletcher again showed why he’s such a great player and so important to this football team,” Cristobal said. “You give him the carries necessary to get him going and I think the entire tone and the perspective of the game changes.”

But Fletcher wasn’t the only Miami running back to score in the second half.

Jordan Lyle had a 17-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter and Girard Pringle, Jr. added a 3-yard touchdown run to cap Miami’s scoring on Saturday.

Miami’s 199 rushing yards in the win over Stanford was its highest output on the ground since the Hurricanes totaled 205 rushing yards against USF on Sept. 13.

It was, Fletcher said, an effort to build on as Miami continues making its way through conference play and prepares to face SMU this week in Dallas.

“We know who we are as a team on all levels, special teams, offense and defense and we all just came together,” Fletcher said. “We had a target, and we just fixed it. That’s all we did. We went in there every day in practice and fixed it. … We just took it day by day. We knew the things we had to fix and we did it together. …

“This is very important to us. We’re not trying to feel that pain [of a loss] anymore. … We know how that pain feels and I know there’s a group of us, seniors, juniors, we need to make sure that we take over, so we don’t feel that pain again. … I love seeing everybody smiling. I love all the good energy. But it’s the 24-hour rule. We’ll enjoy this and then we’re excited to just get back to work.”