It wasn’t pretty for the first 27 minutes of game time, but the Miami Hurricanes finally woke up and put it to their 2024 nemesis in emphatic fashion, flexing with a 38-10 win over the Syracuse Orange
on Saturday afternoon at Hard Rock Stadium.
Carson Beck was 18/24 passing for 247 yards and a score. Girard Pringle, Jr. led all ballcarriers with 55 yards on 7 carries and a score. Keelan Marion had 3 catches for 116 yards and a score.
Man, this game was ugly for almost all of the first half, particularly on offense for Miami. Both Syracuse and Miami punted four times each – with Syracuse going three-and-out on two of them – to carry a sluggish, scoreless affair late into the second half.
But finally, Miami broke through with a 5-play, 90-yard drive right under the two-minute timeout to open the scoring. And whoa nelly, what a play it was. Malachi Toney took a pitch in motion, and Beck dropped back. The former QB Toney then threw it back to Beck with a convoy, and he went 14 yards for an easy walk-in touchdown.
A few plays later, Cuse QB Rickie Collins didn’t see CB Keionte Scott drop back in the middle in zone, and he picked off a pass and took it back to the house for a 14-0 lead. Syracuse responded with a quick drive to get into the red zone, but Akheem Mesidor ripped the ball loose and Miami recovered to thwart a last second score.
Syracuse opened up the second half with their best drive of the game against the starters, going 55 yards in 8 plays for a field goal. From there, Miami FINALLY put their foot on Syracuse’s throat. Beck threaded the needle between two defenders to Marion on a slant, who broke free for a 61-yard touchdown and a 21-3 lead. After a Cuse punt, Miami put the dagger on a 9-play, 83-yard drive that lasted almost 5 minutes. Miami drew the defense to the wide side with presnap motion, and Pringle took it to the short side, fought off a tackle, and scored from 19 yards out for a backbreaking 28-3 lead.
The Canes would tack on one more touchdown with an unforgettable play. At the Cuse 3, Beck threw a long lateral to OT Francis Mauigoa with a convoy of blockers, and he got across the goal line for a 38-3 lead and a wild celebration. Unfortunately (for those who took Miami -28.5; including me in my picks piece), the backups allowed Syracuse to connect on a 17-yard touchdown pass from backup QB Joseph Filardi with seconds left to bust the spread and create the final margin.
Not pretty at the start, but good enough when all is said and done. Now, Miami needs to figure out how to play a full four quarters, something that continues to elude them in 2025.
