The weather forecast all week for the highly anticipated Sunshine State rivalry showdown between the Miami Hurricanes and the Florida Gators Saturday night at Hard Rock Stadium was for clear skies.
Unfortunately, once again, Mother Nature and the skies opened up for just about the first half of the game. It definitely affected things. Some of Miami quarterback Carson Beck’s passes as well as his receivers seemed to have been affected by the torrential downpour. But one thing that could not be stopped is the power of the Hurricanes trenches.
When Mario Cristobal took the job four years ago as coach, he envisioned this type of strength, power, and aggressiveness on the offensive and defensive lines. Nobody needs to pinch Cristobol. He is not dreaming. His plans have come to fruition. This type of assemblance of a team comes in handy for rainy nights like Saturday night.
The high-flying passing attack that was on display in games versus South Florida and Notre Dame was a bit off. So the ground and pound Bully Ball offensive attack came through. It’s said “styles make fights“ and with that being the case, the No. 2 Hurricanes issued a warning to all of college football in front of an ABC primetime audience: Knuck if you buck!?!?
According to Pro Football Focus, Miami made Florida have the worst pass blocking grade in the history by over 24 points. This comes not from a shabby team but from a Gators team that Pro Football Focus had with the third best pass blocking grade in the country. Miami defenders got a pressure on 79 percent of Florida’s drop backs with a 93 percent pass rush win rate. First-year Miami defensive coordinator Corey Heatherman has been quite the success. While the coordinator can take credit for the scheme, talent is also a crucial component. Defensive end Rubin Bain, Jr has a 29.9 percent pass rush win rate which is number one in the country. Akheem Mesidor has a 29.2 percent pass rush win rate, which is No. 2 in the country. When you combine all the freakish defensive stats, you wind up with statistics like:
*Miami allowed the Gators only 32 yards of total offense at the half and 141 yards for the game
*DJ Lagway completed 12 passes for a total of 81 yards
*The Gators were 0 for 13 on third down conversions.
*Florida only had 7seven first downs.
This is the same Florida team that threw for 286 yards versus LSU the week prior and limited the Tigers to only 10 first downs for the entire game. Juxtapose that with the Hurricanes seven first downs in the first quarter and 21 for the game.
One thing that may be overlooked in the victory by fans (but not by coaches) is the halftime adjustments Florida made. The Gators figured something out on their first drive of the second half, which led to a successful 80 yard touchdown drive with several big running plays. The hurricanes have two weeks to improve and prepare for a surgeon Florida State University team that seems to have bounced back from their putrid to win 2024 season. The Seminoles play University of Virginia Friday night in Charlottesville. The ESPN broadcast team that seem to thoroughly enjoy their college football game day experience on the Coral Gables campus at the University Of miami seem to hint that if Florida State wins this Friday night game day could be headed to Tallahassee for the latest Sunshine State showdown. The Hurricanes have already beaten three of the states football programs, October 4 win and Tallahassee would secure back to back state championships.