MIAMI GARDENS — The Hurricanes were dominating the rival Gators for the first half. Then Florida landed a big counter-punch and fought its way back into the game.
But Miami had the knockout blow.
Although UF made it a one-score game in the second half, the No. 4 Hurricanes (4-0) ran the ball down Florida’s (1-3) throat when it mattered most, closing out a key fourth-quarter drive with a leaping touchdown by running back Marty Brown to beat the Gators 26-7 at Hard Rock Stadium on Saturday.
The game started perfectly for the Hurricanes. Miami forced a three-and-out on Florida’s opening offensive drive, getting two tackles for loss and a sack. The Hurricanes followed it up with a methodical drive that concluded with Brown punching in a score from 2 yards out.
Miami’s second drive — after another UF three-and-out — looked promising, but a Florida sack and UM penalties cost the Hurricanes a chance at the end zone. They had to settle for a 53-yard field goal by Carter Davis, pushing their lead to 10-0.
The Hurricanes’ offense slowed in the second quarter, as quarterback Carson Beck started the game 5 for his first 13 passes. Florida could not take advantage of Miami’s scuffling offense, punting on its first six drives of the night.
Miami added a late first-half field goal to go ahead 13-0 and took that lead into halftime.
The Hurricanes’ offense sputtered for most of the second half — with no help from the referees. Brown appeared to have his second touchdown of the game when he broke through the pile on a fourth-and-short attempt, but the officials called the touchdown back, saying his forward progress was stopped. Miami wound up punting to end the drive.
The Gators had their first good drive of the game after the punt, driving down the field on an 80-yard drive that concluded with a 7-yard touchdown run by UF’s Jadan Baugh.
On Miami’s first play after the touchdown, former UM commit Cormani McClain, now a Gators cornerback, picked off a pass from Beck. Fortunately for the Hurricanes, Miami got a fourth-down stop by a matter of inches on the subsequent drive.
The Hurricanes’ defense kept coming up big, getting a three-and-out on the Gators’ next drive. When Miami got the ball back, the offense finally woke up and scored the game-sealing touchdown on a 1-yard run by Brown.
Five takeaways
1. Miami defense dominates
The Hurricanes throttled the Gators’ offense on Saturday. Florida managed just 32 first-half yards, and only 4 of those came on the ground.
Miami forced Florida to punt on each drive in the first half, keeping the Gators from getting any kind of offensive momentum. Only one UF drive ended with points.
The Gators performed better on offense in the second half, but it resulted in only one score as the Hurricanes stepped up and got key stops. Miami held Florida to just 141 yards of total offense — by far the Gators’ lowest total since Billy Napier took over as UF’s coach.
2. Beck’s struggles limit offense
Beck struggled mightily in his fourth game with the Hurricanes. The veteran signal-caller finished the game completing 17 of 30 passes for 160 yards.
After Florida scored its first touchdown of the game, he threw an interception that nearly swung the momentum completely in UF’s direction.
3. Running backs carry the offense
While Beck struggled, Miami’s running backs carried the team.
Fletcher led the Hurricanes with 116 rushing yards with a touchdown, and Brown notched 74 of his own. Brown, the North Dakota State transfer, scored Miami’s first two touchdowns of the night. Brown was also UM’s leading receiver, racking up 53 yards on four catches.
4. Pressure on Lagway
The Hurricanes had touted Gators quarterback DJ Lagway in distress all night.
Miami finished the game with four sacks and had frequent pressure on the sophomore quarterback. Lagway went 11 for 20 for just 59 yards in the loss.
5. Snap infraction issues
Miami had issues on the offensive line throughout the first half. Center James Brockermeyer was charged with three snap infraction penalties in the game.
The penalties did not ultimately keep Miami from winning, but it did slow down the Hurricanes’ first-half drives.
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