CORAL GABLES, Fla. – This week, the Hurricanes find themselves in an unfamiliar spot.

After coming up just short in an emotionally charged, hard-fought loss at Notre Dame, Miami will take the field on Saturday against ACC rival Duke looking to bounce back.

That’s something the seventh-ranked Hurricanes haven’t yet had to do this year after opening the season with eight straight wins. But as disappointing as it was to leave South Bend with a loss, Miami’s players and coaches turned their focus quickly.

For them, Saturday’s conference matchup with the Blue Devils isn’t just an opportunity to come home to Hard Rock Stadium and get back on track after their tough night at Notre Dame.

It’s an opportunity to compete against another quality opponent.

“I think in the locker room quickly on Saturday, the focus was turned,” Miami head coach Mario Cristobal said. “I think the maturity of some of our guys that have been through it, understand that. I think there’s a recognition that the level of play in the ACC has been really, really high and there’s a lot of really good football teams. And we have some seniors that have been through some of the ups and downs throughout ACC conference play. So, the attitude was awesome. The approach was direct and the leadership, I think, did a really, really good job with it. So, we trust it.”

Said senior running back Mark Fletcher Jr., one of those locker room leaders, “We’ve got to take that as a man. Each and every single one of us has to take that loss as a man, look in the mirror and then fix things that we need to get fixed, immediately. There’s no time to be down-energy. Ramp it back up. [Be] ready to go 1-0 this week for a great Duke team.”

There’s no doubt the Blue Devils (7-2,4-2 ACC) have Miami’s attention.

Duke is the reigning ACC champion and has won three straight after a pair of early-October losses to Georgia Tech and rival North Carolina.

The Blue Devils have outscored their last two opponents – Boston College and NC State – 88-5 and running back Nate Sheppard has established himself as one of the top backs in the nation.

Last week against NC State, Sheppard – a Maxwell Award finalist – rushed for 217 yards and three touchdowns on just 18 carries. Against Boston College the week before that, he rushed for a school-record five touchdowns.

On the season, Sheppard has rushed for 1,189 yards – tops in the ACC and second in the nation behind only Boise State’s Dylan Riley.

And while Miami (8-1, 6-0) has the nation’s top run defense and holds opponents to an average of just 64.3 rushing yards per game, the Hurricanes know containing Sheppard will be a test.

“When he makes contact with a defender, he likes to drop his pad level and just play low and stay low, and it helps him stay up,” said linebacker Mohamed Toure, who leads the Hurricanes with 56 tackles on the year. “He’s good catching the ball out the backfield, too. They like to give him the ball out of the backfield as well. He’s not just good at running the ball. He’s good at catching the ball, getting the ball in the open field. He’s great in the open field. He’s great between the tackles. It’s definitely going to be a challenge for us, but like I said, we’re looking forward to it.”

And how does one try to contain a running back that skilled?

Toure was blunt.

“Swarm,” he said. “Just keep swarming him like a pack of piranhas.”

While Miami’s defense will work on containing Sheppard, the Hurricanes will counter with an offense that has been one of the nation’s best all season long.

Miami enters its showdown against Duke averaging 516.6 yards per game, a number that ranks fifth among FBS programs. Its average of 45 points per game leads the nation.

Hurricanes quarterback Darian Mensah – a Duke transfer – has completed 76.8 percent of his passes. That leads the nation. His 2,694 yards on the season rank eighth nationally and last week against Notre Dame, he engineered a furious second-half rally that nearly had Miami overcome a 21-point third-quarter deficit.

But Mensah and the Hurricanes will have to try to replicate that second-half effort without one of their top playmakers with wide receiver Malachi Toney out for a second week because of an injury.

In South Bend, receiver Cooper Barkate (10 catches, 92 yards) and tight end Elija Lofton (seven catches, 113 yards) stepped up to help keep the offense moving and they – along with several other pass catchers – will have to step up again against a Blue Devils defense that is holding opponents to 186.6 passing yards per game.

“I knew he was going to step up. He’s one of my most comfortable and go-to targets and he understands how I wanted to run certain things,” Mensah said of Barkate, who also joined the Hurricanes this offseason after playing at Duke last year. “So, it didn’t surprise me. But I’ve seen him grow up a lot. I think that being here at practice, going against our DBs every day has definitely helped him grow as a receiver.”

Said Cristobal of Lofton, “He had a great summer, was healthy so he improved everything. … A guy that, again, can run the entire route tree as well, can play in the backfield, on the line of scrimmage, detached; really smart, tremendous feel for the game, physical, tough. You saw his balance and body control and his ability to make the contested catch. So, just really, again, a lot like Cooper, really excited and proud of him and the way he stepped up on Saturday.”

For the Hurricanes, Saturday’s return to conference play is another opportunity to move closer to their ultimate goal, and to bounce back after a tough night at Notre Dame.

And that has been the focus over the last week – finding ways to move forward, and get better, despite some unexpected challenges and adversity.

“I wish we would’ve won that game. We didn’t. We move forward and try to be 1-0 against Duke,” center Ryan Rodriguez said. “Duke’s a great opponent and if you don’t take them seriously and you don’t move on, move forward, you will get punched in the face.”

Added Fletcher, “That’s what our motto is, just focusing on 1-0 each and every week. … That’s what we continue to focus on, no matter who’s out there.”