2 weeks Ago By Miami Herald
Florida State’s famed Appaloosa stallion didn’t make the trip south from Tallahassee for Saturday night’s game. The way this season has gone, a limping burro in a straw hat should represent the Seminoles. Folks up in heaven must be getting tired of two straight months of “Dadgumits” from a verklempt Bobby Bowden.
Not in 68 prior games in this rivalry with the Miami Hurricanes had the teams met with a six-victory disparity like UM’s 7-0 record vs. FSU’s 1-6 entering this meeting. Not since 1983 had the schools met with the Noles unranked and the Canes as high as No.
6 in the polls. So this was supposed to be the laugher. Right? It got there .
.. eventually.
After recent results fraught with last-second UM wins reliant on officiating decisions, plain luck or the miracle-making that had quarterback Cam Ward a darling in the Heisman trophy race, this was supposed to be a breather. A comfy win. A party for the home crowd.
Miami’s previous three victories had been heart-stoppers: 38-34 over Virginia Tech, 39-38 at Cal and 52-45 at Louisville. That left you to wonder how good the Hurricanes really were? A team that might easily be 4-3 instead? The resounding answer that might have come Saturday night didn’t for much of the game, at least not completely..
Miami would win, 36-14, a result owing to FSU’s offensive ineptitude more than to any dominance by the home team. It was 17-7 in the first half, which Miami led underwhelmingly, a half that kept the outmanned Seminoles hanging around. Canes scored on TD runs of 1-yard by Mark Fletcher and 18 by Damien Martinez to lead 14-0, then added a 20-yard field goal to close the half.
FSU countered with its own scoring run to cap a drive that featured a 42-yard run by a new quarterback, Luke Kromenhoek. Other than that one scramble, the Noles had only 65 yards’ total offense in the half. Miami would add 42- and 45-yard field goals in the second half as FSU’s defense kept the game reasonably close while also hurting the Heisman chance of Ward.
Finally UM broke it open a bit with 4:32 left on a trick play that found Ward on the receiving end of a 7-yard TD pass from receiver Elijah Arroyo, then end it with Martinez’s 12-yard scoring run. FSU scored a meaningless TD with 18 seconds left After seven straight games with at least 300 yards and three TD passes, Ward Saturday threw for only 208 yards on 22-for-35 passing, and without a TD throw. The Canes defense was great.
Most have been against FSU’s sad offense. But Miami’s explosive offense did not show as much, especially after that early 14-0 lead. If the Noles had an offense even average offense instead of one dreadfully bad, an upset might have been in play.
Entering the game, with UM favored by 23 points, it might have been reasonable for the sellout crowd of 66,200 to expect a Canes win along the lines of FSU’s 45-3 beatdown of Miami in 2022, the first of two UM losses to the Noles under coach Mario Cristobal. Instead, even now at 8-0, questions remain about the No. 6 Canes.
Not how good Miami is. Unbeaten is unbeaten. But whether Miami can make a claim of being .
Is this a team that can get to and then win the ACC Championship Game? Is this a team capable of not only being in the College Football Playoff but being a team to be feared in the CFP? Another home challenge to Miami’s imperfectly perfect record comes next week vs. a pretty good Duke team led by former Canes coach Manny Diaz. You know Diaz will want dearly to beat the team that fired him.
Just as FSU knows it could have made its season by upsetting UM Saturday -- and played like it, at least on defense. Cristobal, who knew it as a champion Canes player, called UM-FSU “an insanely awesome rivalry.” Said Ward: “I’m just excited to finally get to play one of these games.
What else could you ask for?” Embattled FSU coach Mike Norvell had said, “I’m not one of those coaches that say every game is the same. No. I love these games.
I love the fact we get to be a part of it. The tradition, the rivalry. You go back throughout all the years and no matter where you’re from, the country is going to still be watching what happens in this game.
” The victory makes Miami 4-0 this season against in-state competition this season; after earlier beating Florida, Florida A&M and South Florida. UM had not gone 4-0 against the state in a season since 2009. Miami and Florida State once defined collective greatness.
Twenty-one times in a 23-year span from 1984-2006, both were ranked when they played, often in the top 10.. This 69th all-time meeting found the Seminoles having an unexpectedly awful season.
We all know it This meeting found the Hurricanes having as great season, at least by record and ranking. But are these Canes a great team? The previous three games left doubts. Saturday night answered some, but not all.
.
