Miami Hurricanes stay unbeaten in their quest for an ACC Championship

No. 6 Miami Hurricanes improves to 8-0 following a 36-14 victory over the Florida State Seminoles in an ACC rivalry week matchup. 

Hurricanes quarterback Cam Ward, a Heisman Trophy candidate, threw for 208 passing yards and caught a receiving touchdown.

FSU fell to 1-7. A team that played great last season took a major nosedive this season. The Seminoles won’t go to any bowl games after the 2024 season.

Hurricanes sophomore running back Mark Fletcher Jr. scored the first touchdown. He played this game with a heavy heart.

Two days earlier, Fletcher Jr found out during the team’s practice on Thursday that his dad, Mark Fletcher Sr., had died. It’s been a rough week. When he scored the touchdown, he pointed to the sky. It was for his father. 

Damien Martinez was breaking tackles and scored an 18-rushing touchdown. He ran through contacts. Impeccable running game. Martinez finished the game with 148 yards and two touchdowns. It’s nice to see Martinez perform impressively. 

The Hurricanes did the most damage in the second and fourth quarters. 

As for the Hurricanes’ defense, they redeemed themselves in this game. They’ve allowed an average of 39 points in the last three games. They got to the quarterback three times and allowed a total of 248 yards. 

The Seminoles offense was lousy—no answer for the Hurricanes defense. The only touchdowns scored by the Seminoles were from running back Caziah Holmes and wide receiver Malik Benson. 

FSU tried to pressure Ward and force him to make a mistake, but the plan backfired. It’s not the result the Seminoles wanted, but there’s a silver lining about their performance on Saturday night.

FSU is the first and only team this season to hold Ward under 300 passing yards.

Miami’s next game will be at home against a talented Duke Blue Devils (6-2) team. Florida State will play the North Carolina Tar Heels at home. 

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