Canes Rewind: A Look Back at the Win over NC State
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, notes and quotes from Miami’s 41-7 win over NC State on Saturday afternoon at Hard Rock Stadium.
After the win, Miami improved to 8-2 overall and 4-2 in ACC play. The Hurricanes also rose two spots to No. 14 in the AP Top 25 poll that was released Sunday. NC State, meanwhile, fell to 5-5 overall and 2-4 in conference play.
The Recap
There was every reason for Miami to be on high alert entering its game against NC State.
The Wolfpack were coming off a confidence-building upset win over a top-10 team. They had an extra week to scheme for the Hurricanes. And they were getting two of their biggest offensive weapons back after being sidelined by injury.
But it didn’t take long after kickoff for the Hurricanes to take control and put together the kind of dominant performance that made it clear early NC State wouldn’t be notching another upset – at least not on this particular day.
The Hurricanes put together an 11-play, 77-yard scoring drive on their opening possession and took a quick 3-0 lead after Carter Davis connected on a 31-yard field goal.
Later in the first quarter came one of the biggest defensive plays of the day: Jakobe Thomas picking off Wolfpack quarterback CJ Bailey and returning the interception 60 yards for a touchdown.
Six plays later, on NC State’s ensuing drive, Thomas intercepted Bailey again.
It marked Thomas’ third interception in the last two weeks.
Miami added to its lead in the opening minutes of the second quarter thanks in large part to receiver Malachi Toney.
A state-championship winning quarterback in high school, Toney got the Hurricanes deep in NC State territory when he completed a 44-yard pass to fellow receiver Jojo Trader.
Two plays later, Marty Brown scored on a 1-yard run and Miami’s lead was up to 17-0.
Toney, of course, was far from finished.
The freshman helped Miami add another score just before halftime when he caught a 14-yard touchdown pass from Carson Beck.
Toney and Beck would connect again, this time on a 15-yard touchdown, to cap Miami’s scoring in the fourth quarter.
In between, Elija Lofton caught a touchdown pass from Beck, and Davis hit another field goal, this one from 38 yards out.
Beck finished the day completing 21 of 27 passes for 291 yards, while Toney had five catches for 54 yards. Fellow receiver Keelan Marion had a team-high seven catches for 96 yards.
Meanwhile, Miami’s defense made things difficult for Bailey and the Wolfpack offense all afternoon.
The Hurricanes held NC State to just 143 total yards – with 75 of those coming on NC State’s final drive late in the fourth quarter. Miami also held NC State to just nine first downs and limited the Wolfpack to 3 of 11 on third-down conversion opportunities.
“That’s a really good football team and I told our guys that those guys have really good culture. They’ve been there a long, long time,” head coach Mario Cristobal said. “They have really good players and they, offensively, were probably one of the hottest teams coming in after their last game and coming into this game. So, to be able to do that, and just be able to play complementary football with some of the guys that were down [because of injuries], that was the energy, and the enthusiasm.”
Numbers to Know
116 – Rushing yards for freshman running back Girard Pringle Jr., who made the first start of his Miami career against NC State. Pringle, a former four-star recruit, finished with a team-high 148 all-purpose yards.
10 – Hurricanes who caught at least one pass in Saturday’s win. Three of those Hurricanes – Marion, Toney and Joshua Moore – had at least 50 receiving yards.
23 – Total rushing yards for NC State. That was a season low. Hollywood Smothers, one of the ACC’s top backs, was held to negative two yards by the Miami defense.
78 – Completion percentage for Beck. Beck, a sixth-year redshirt senior, has a 73.2 completion percentage on the season. That’s second highest in the nation.
581 – Total offensive yards for the Hurricanes. That was a season high.
Quotable
“We’ve been really good. We’ve been really good and we’ve really kind of found our rhythm again in the pass game, the run game and just playing complementary football on offense, which is so, so important. And then also just being able to find explosive plays. There’s so many talented playmakers all over the field, from the wide receivers and running backs, tight ends. … There’s so many playmakers you don’t know who’s going to pop off and have a night. So again, just continue to roll and continue to get better and work. Don’t get complacent and be happy with a really good game. Let’s go try to have a better one next week.”
– Quarterback Carson Beck, on how Miami’s offense has played the last two games
“I just enjoy being out there with my brothers and being able to execute any play that’s given to us, no matter what the defense is. So, that’s what I find fun, that we can impose our will on the team, the opposing team, no matter what play is called.”
– Receiver Malachi Toney, on whether he enjoys throwing or catching the ball more in games
“They’re out from playing with us on Saturday, but they’re still in the meeting rooms with us every day, getting the next guy ready. It’s always next-man-up mentality. So, all those guys in that room, from the bottom of the depth chart to the top of the depth chart are approaching it every week the same way. So, guys are prepared for the opportunities and when opportunities arise, they make plays.”
– Defensive back Jakobe Thomas on how the Miami secondary has responded after injuries to cornerbacks OJ Frederique and Keionte Scott
“It always feel great to dominate, especially at home. But for the seniors, this is our last regular-season game at Hard Rock, so it means everything to us, and I think it meant a lot to the young guys too, to send us off with a bang.”
– Defensive lineman Akheem Mesidor, on what Saturday’s performance meant, given that it came on Senior Day
“Well, it’s all about one, one game. That’s what’s always worked best for us. It keeps you from tripping over yourself sometimes and now, we’re done at home. We certainly appreciate everyone that’s come out this year. You always want to be perfect at home. We were close but didn’t get all the way there. But we really appreciate the support because these fans made a big difference. When you go on the road, you’ve got to pack all that stuff. You’ve got to pack your energy. You’ve got to pack your toughness, your physicality, your resilience, your brotherhood, all that stuff because it’s different when you go on the road. … We’re going to jump all over this film tonight and get to work on Virginia Tech in the morning. They have a really good team of really talented players. Remember the game here last year, how close that was? Go out there and improve all week long and put together our best effort next Saturday.”
– Head coach Mario Cristobal, on how the Hurricanes take the energy and performance from their last two home games on the road with them for the final two games of the regular season
Up Next
Miami’s slate of regular-season home games has come to an end, but their stretch of crucial matchups against ACC opponents has not.
The Hurricanes are set to travel to Blacksburg on Saturday to face a Virginia Tech team that has struggled this year.
The program made a midseason coaching change, firing Brent Pry in September after the Hokies’ 0-3 start. Since, Virginia Tech has posted a 3-4 record and has lost two straight, including a 34-14 loss at Florida State this past Saturday.
The Seminoles outscored the Hokies 24-7 in the second half to put the game away.
Miami and Virginia Tech have a long history dating back to their days in the Big East and have met 41 times with Miami holding a 26-15 lead in the all-time series.
Last year, the Hurricanes rallied from a 10-point deficit to beat Virginia Tech, 38-34. It was Miami’s fourth straight win over Virginia Tech.
