2024 Miami Football Early Opponent Preview, Game 1: Florida
The excitement was hard to contain for the state of Florida and its football fans when the announcement was made that Miami and Florida will be a home and home football series for the 2024-25 seasons. That announcement was in 2019 and now the first game of the series is only less than three months away.
For the Hurricanes, the previous years have not been their, however, the acquisitions from the portal and recruiting over the off-season have changed the outlook of what can be for this team. This is also a make-or-break year for head coach Mario Cristobal, who is entering his third year with the program with a 12-13 record over his first two seasons.
Eyes will be on the head coach, but a major storyline going into this season for the world of college sports revolves around Gators head coach Billy Napier and the program being sued over NIL compensation from the now Georiga Bulldog quarterback Jaden Rashada. Moreover, the coach has been on the hot seat for quite some time, and with the amount of pressure surrounding him, this game against the Hurricanes could be the beginning of the end of his time in Florida.
The last time the University of Miami and Florida played against each other in football, there was no sign of a pandemic and there were still five major conferences. This was August 24, 2019 when the Gators won 24-20 against the Hurricanes. Now with the season opener under 100 days away, here is a look at the 2024 Florida Gators.
Offense
The 2023 Florida Gators averaged 408 yards a game with the help of the dynamic duo of Montrell Johnson Jr. and Trevor Etienne leading the rushing attack. Even with the explosiveness of each player, the team would still struggle because of the lack of a consistent offensive line and inconsistency within the receiving core outside of sophomore Eugene Wilson III and Ricky Pearsall who was just drafted with the 31st in the first round of the 2024 NFL Draft to the San Francisco 49ers.
Etienne has now transferred to the Georgia Bulldogs and now all that is left is Johnson and a few portal moves. Even behind a weak offensive line, he still rushed for over 800 yards and accumulated over 1000 scrimmage yards during the season. He finished the season with six touchdowns and will be an important part of the offense out of the backfield as well as being a pass catcher.
One of if not the only positive from the offense came from senior quarterback Graham Mertz. Not much was expected of him when he got the call to start but he exceeded expectations once he stepped foot on the field.
When he had time in the pocket to operate, he was able to sling the ball and finished last season nearing 3000 passing yards with 20 touchdowns and only three interceptions. What was more impressive was his completion percentage at 72.9 percent, which was top five in the country, with a passer rating of 157.8.
The issue came with third and long situations and the inability to convert because of the offensive line. The Gators had a third down percentage of 36.6 and playing behind those numbers tended to be the team's downfall in a multitude of games. He will still have Wilson as his receiver one on the season and as long as he has time to get him the ball it could be an interesting game.
Defense
Two historically bad seasons from the defense of the Florida Gators and some would say the only way is up for the program. Having a top-five recruiting class with many of the best defensive prospects in the nation could change that around for the SEC team, but many preseason rankings have not budged with the Gators near the bottom of many defensive projections. The team allowed 6.7 yards a play and statistically, this was one of the worst in the nation.
They do have several players returning as their All-SEC Freshmen T.J. Searcy, Kelby Collins, and Jordan Castell are returning for this season lead the team on defense. They were in all accounts the best players on the side of the ball for the Gators even with the team playing the way they were. As they return, they will have more eyes on them and as well as having more time to grow and develop now they have had a year of SEC football under them.
A key player that has several eyes on him is Colorado transfer cornerback Cormani McClain. With him leaving and having a back-and-forth online on X (formerly known as Twitter) between The Buffaloes head coach Deion Sanders and son/quarterback Shedeur Sanders, that could bring some drama into the locker room and add additional pressure on him and the program. The secondary was one of the worst in the country and the Gators attacked the portal heavily to aid those issues.
Schedule
Since this is the opening game of the season, it will be hard to judge what will actually happen for each program. There is a lot of outside noise surrounding the Gators while for the Hurricanes, there is a lot of positivity coming from the team and how they plan on getting coach Cristobal his best season at Miami.
While this is an ACC vs. SEC game, this being the first game for each program could answer a lot of questions. Many teams in each conference will have tune-up games before facing conference opponents later in their schedules but for these teams, this is one of the most important games on their schedule. This is the first road game for the University of Miami and they will be playing in one of the loudest environments in college football at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium.
They do return home after the season opener and will have an lighter schedule for some time where they can work on things that did go right or wrong against the Gators.
Outlook
For each coach, who could both be on the hot seat, this is one of the most important games in their careers. For coach Cristobal, he is 74-73 for his coaching career and this roster might be his most talented yet. This team could be one of the best in the ACC and with a win, the playoffs will be on the mind of the Hurricanes as that is one of the many goals for the team this season.
For both teams, this will be a test to see how they will hold up in each respective conference. The ACC has been under a close watch when it comes to football after the snub of Florida State in the 2023 College Football Playoffs. Some have called it the weakest conference for football but a win for the Hurricane, while against one of the lower-tier teams in the SEC, could spark the start of a great season.
With the addition of Cameron Ward at the quarterback position as well as Damien Martinez in the running back slot, the offense of the Canes could have a chance to flex their ability on a weaker SEC defense. This could also be a chance for Florida quarterback Mertz to show improvement after a great season against a rotating defense for the Hurricanes.
The Game
Date: August 31
Time: 3:30 p.m. ET
TV: ABC
Location: Ben Hill Griffin Stadium
Series: Miami leads 29-27
Last Meeting: The Florida Gators defeated the Miami Hurricane 24-20 on August 24, 2019. DeeJay Dallas ran for 94 yards and a touchdown for the Hurricanes while the defense of the Gators led the team to a victory with 9.5 sacks on the day.
Miami Hurricanes 2024 Football Schedule
August 31 at Florida
September 7 Florida A&M
September 14 Ball State
September 21 at USF
September 27 Virginia Tech
October 5 at California
October 12 Bye Week
October 19 at Louisville
October 26 Florida State
November 2 Duke
November 9 at Georgia Tech
November 16 Bye Week
November 23 Wake Forest
November 30 at Syracuse
