Hurricanes Storm Back To Turn Away Blue Devils
On a day where wide receiver Xavier Restrepo set the all-time leading yardage mark for the University of Miami, the Hurricanes turned back the Duke Blue Devils 53-31.
"Today was special," Miami coach Mario Cristobal said. "First, we got the W, and second, because Xavier became the all-time leading receiver in the history of the University of Miami. It's a monumental accomplishment. It's a credit to him and his family."
Cam Ward threw for 400 yards and five touchdowns to help lead the rout.
"It just shows the mindset of our offense," Ward said. "Everyone does their job. We want to be the best offense in the country, that's our goal and we take it on day at a time. We just have to work hard and be positive."
Miami had to battle back in the second half from a two-score deficit to cement the victory.
"We had to flat out execute better, but there is no one who flinched," Cristobal said. "In Chapter 9 we went 1-0 and now it is on to Chapter 10."
Cristobal said Ward and Restrepo are two Alpha dogs and neither one likes to be bested by the other.
"They will fight like an old couple. They want to be right all the time," Cristobal said. "We had a couple of drops we would love to have back and we will have to work on them."
Restrepo said setting the record has not really set in yet,
"I haven't really checked my phone yet, but honestly, I am just glad to be a Miami Hurricane," Restrepo said. "I have put in a lot of work to be in this position. The most important thing is we have to get back to Greentree and concentrate on being 1-0 every single week."
Restrepo could have transfered at the end of last season, like his former roommate Tyler Van Dyke. However, he thought about it and opted against it.
"Once you start something, you finish it. Leaving might be good for some people, but I trust in God and he blessed us with a great quarterback and I am really glad I stayed," Restrepo said.
Ward said after the game Miami has not played their best football yet.
"To me our best football is when we score touchdowns on every drive and don't turn the ball over," Ward said. "We are on the same page, but we are not quite there yet. We have more work to do and we will play better this year."
Duke quarterback Malik Murphy was 25-for-41 for 325 yards and three scores. He also threw three interceptions.
"Their receivers had some good snags out there that were very impressive," Cristobal said. "We played a lot of man coverage and it was just a matter of adjusting in the second half."
Miami improves to 9-0 on the season.
Xavier Restrepo MAKES MIAMI HURRICANES HISTORY!!! pic.twitter.com/dOIQbA2qi9
— NMD Grant (@NMDgrant) November 2, 2024
The game sullied the homecoming of sorts for former Miami coach Manny Diaz, the current coach of the Blue Devils. Diaz was Miami's defensive coordinator under Mark Richt and took over the top job when Richt retired. He was fired in December 2021.
Miami will face Georgia Tech next Saturday in Atlanta. The kickoff time is to be announced.
Fourth Quarter:
Mark Fletcher, Jr. put the game out of reach when he scored on a 1-yard run with 5:37 to play. With the Borregales extra point, Miami increases their lead to 53-31. Miami took over at the Duke 30 yard line after Jadais Richard picked off his first pass of the season.
The interception was the third of the game for the Hurricanes.
Ward threw his fifth touchdown to Restrepo, who broke the receptions and the yardage record with the 66-yard catch and run. Miami is comfortably in control with a 46-31 lead.
With the catch he breaks the record for total receiving yardage. Restrepo now has 2,573 yards passing Santana Moss, who had 2,547 yards. He also tied the team record for all-time pass receptions.
On the play, Ward also broke the record for most touchdowns on the season.
Ward threw his fourth touchdown of the day, this time to Jacolby George covering 49 yards. Miami leads 39-31.
George lined up with three other receivers on the right side of the formation. It looked like a "Hail Mary" formation. George ran a deep post and beat his man to the ball. There is 12:56 to play in regulation.
Duke is on the move once again. They have a first down at the Miami 19 to start the fourth quarter. The drive stalls at the nine-yard line and the Blue Devils attempt a 24-yard field goal, which cuts the lead to 32-31.
Third Quarter:
Murphy was then intercepted by freshman defensive back Romans Frederique who returned it 30 yards to the Duke 38 yard line, Miami is on the move.
Damien Martinez and Mark Fletcher then worked the ball to the Duke 20 yard line. Ward then found Restrepo who caught the ball at the 2-yard line. Tight Elijah Lofton then ran up the middle for the Miami touchdown.
The Hurricanes took the lead back at 32-28. Miami goes 38 yards in seven plays. The drive took 3:16 off the clock.
Miami strikes back on a 3-yard touchdown pass from Ward to Xavier Restrepo. Ward then ran in the two-point conversion to bring Miami within three points. Miami took 2:40 off the clock to go 69 yards. Duke leads 28-25 with 7:16 to play in the third quarter.
Murphy hit Jordan Moore with a 6-yard touchdown pass to extend Duke's lead to 28-17. Once again the Hurricanes defense lost track of the upback running a simple wheel route to the opposite side of the field. Moore walked in untouched.
Second Quarter:
Halftime: Duke 21, Miami 7.
Duke takes the lead at 21-17 on a 6-yard touchdown pass from Malik Murphy to Peyton Jones. Miami was penalized 40 yards on the drive. Duke used seven plays to go 75 yards aided by the Miami fouls.
Andy Borregales kicked a 29-yard field goal to give Miami a 17-14 lead with 4:51 to go in the first half. Miami got as far as the 9-yard line, but Ward got sacked on third down to kill the drive.
Duke ties the game on a 27-yard pass from Malik Murphy to Sahmir Hagans. The Blue Devils went 77 yards in eight plays. The touchdown came on a 3rd and 5. Score tied at 14.
First Quarter:
Duke scored on a 8-yard run by Peyton Jones. Duke went 83 yards in four plays to cut the Miami lead to 14-7.
The Hurricanes complete a 23-yard pass to Isaiah Horton to attain a first down at the 3-yard line. Two plays later Ward found Cam McCormick running a short slant in the end zone and the Hurricanes went up 14-0. It was McCormick's third score of the season.
The Hurricanes punt on their second drive and the ball is downed at the Blue Devils 3-yard line. Duke takes over from there.
On the first play, Malik Murphy's pass is intercepted by Meesh Powell. Miami takes over on the Duke 45-yard line.
Miami takes an early 7-0 lead on a pass from Cam Ward to Xavier Restrepo. It was a 34 yard pass to the right corner of the end zone. Miami went 77 yards in eight plays to take the lead on the opening drive.
Ward rolled to his right, was under heavy pressure and found Restrepo who slipped behind the secondary, all alone for the score.
Pregame:
The skies are cloudy and there is a chance of rain. It has rained off and on all morning, so this could be a wet one. The temperature is 76 degrees with humidity at 97 percent.
The Huricanes are wearing their green tops with their green pants. Duke is in white tops and white pants.
Duke wins the coin toss and defers to the second half.
The Game
Date: November 2
Time: Noon ET
TV: ABC/ESPN+
Location: Hard Rock Stadium
Series: Miami leads 15-5 against Duke
Last Matchup: In the team's last matchup in 2022, the Hurricanes turned the ball over eight times, which led to the Blue Devils defeating Miami 45-21 at Hard Rock Stadium. Duke also rushed for 214 yards, led by quarterback Riley Leonard, who had 72 yards on the ground for three touchdowns.
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Scott Salomon joined On SI in April 2024 covering breaking news and analysis for the Miami Dolphins site, and has since contributed to the Miami Heat, Back in the Day NBA, Miami Hurricanes and San Antonio Spurs sites. Scott is based in South Florida and has been covering the local and national sports scene for 35 years. He's covered and has been credentialed for the Super Bowl, the NFL Combine, various Orange Bowls and college football championship games. Scott was also credentialed for the NBA All-Star game and covered the Miami Heat during their first six seasons for USA TODAY. Scott is a graduate of the University of Miami School of Communication and the St. Thomas University School of Law. Scott has two sons and his hobbies include watching sports on television and binge watching shows on various streaming services.