Miami Defeats Virginia, 14-12, in Overtime Thriller

Miami squeaks by Virginia thanks to a strong defensive performance.

Both defenses came to play, but the Hurricanes produced just enough on offense to edge out a 14-12 victory against Virginia in a quadruple-overtime thriller.

Redshirt freshman quarterback Jake Garcia started his first career game for Miami (4-4 overall and 2-2 in the Atlantic Coast Conference) after it was announced that starter Tyler Van Dyke would not play as a result of the shoulder injury he suffered against Duke in Week 8.

While Garcia did not have a break-out performance, he played mistake-free football. The Whittier, California native completed 15 of his 29 passes for 125 yards.

With Garcia's modest passing numbers, Miami's offense was not able to put together a scoring drive until its last possession of the half, as the Hurricanes went on a six-play, 35-yard drive that was capped off by a 38-yard field goal by kicker Andres Borregales.

This was the first scoring drive by either team. Each squad punted the ball five teams in the first half.

Virginia (3-5, 1-4 ACC) finally found some form of offensive rhythm on its first drive of the second half. Quarterback Brennan Armstrong connected with receivers on passes of 30 and 47 yards to set up kicker Will Bettridge's 27-yard field goal to tie the game at 3-3.

Both offenses continued to stall throughout the second half until Armstrong led Virginia on a 10-play, 59-yard drive ended by a 24-yard field goal by Bettridge. This gave the Cavailers its first lead of the afternoon with 12:11 remaining in the fourth quarter.

Despite the lack of scoring, Armstrong had one of his better performances of the season, completing 60% of his passes for 208 yards, along with rushing for an additional 67 yards on the ground.

Borregales, just like in the first half, connected on a short field goal on Miami's last second-half possession to tie the game, 6-6, and force overtime.

Miami's offense only managed a yard in its first possession of overtime, but Borregales gave the Hurricanes a 9-6 lead on a 42-yard field goal. Bettridge answered, knocking down a 41-yard field goal to extend the game into a second overtime. 

The freshman knocked down another 41-yard field goal in the second overtime to give the Cavaliers another lead. Borregales' 37-yard field goal on the following possession sent the game to a triple overtime.

In the fourth overtime, Garcia scrambled and dived for the right pylon, scoring the two-point conversion, giving Miami its second road win of the season.

Running back Mike Hollins led all pass-catchers in receiving yards, as he rumbled for a gain of 64 yards on a pass to the flat from Armstrong. The junior also rushed for 16 yards on a pair of carries.

Ole Miss transfer Henry Parrish Jr. was one of the few notable offensive players for Miami. The South Florida native rushed for 113 yards on his 24 attempts. Quarterback Jacurri Brown continued to play a role in short-yardage situations. He scampered for 28 yards on five attempts.

Sophomore Colbie Young led all Hurricanes' receivers with five catches for 46 yards. This was the third consecutive game that the JUCO transfer led Miami in both categories. Tight end Will Mallory followed with three receptions for 22 yards.

The Hurricanes' defense totaled 11 tackles for loss, with sophomore Leonard Taylor III leading in this department with four. The defensive lineman had a season-high six tackles against the Cavaliers. 

Virginia will play Virginia Tech next Saturday, while Miami return home to a matchup against rival Florida State.

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