Coming off a narrow victory against Georgia Tech last Saturday, the Miami Hurricanes are hoping to extend their winning streak this weekend when they take on the Florida State University Seminoles at Doak Campbell Stadium at 3:30 p.m.
The Seminoles (3-6, 2-4 ACC) are fresh off a loss to No. 21 NC State, who the Canes beat earlier this season. That being said, quarterback Jordan Travis and running back Jashaun Corbin could pose a threat for the Miami defense. Corbin is fifth in the ACC in rushing yards per game, and Miami is currently ranked sixth in the ACC in rushing yards allowed per game, although they have improved defensively.
After beating Georgia Tech to cap off homecoming week, the Hurricanes (5-4, 3-2 ACC) surpassed the .500 threshold in both their overall and conference records for the first time this season. En route to Miami’s three-game winning streak, quarterback Tyler Van Dyke has thrown over 325 yards in three straight games, and has an average completion rate of 63.6% this season.
Another key player in Miami’s offense is redshirt junior Charleston Rambo. The wide receiver has 23 receptions for 438 yards and three touchdowns in Miami’s past three wins. Running back Jaylan Knighton helped the Miami offense tremendously after coming off his four-game suspension earlier this season. The freshman has 584 total yards with seven touchdowns in his last four games.
With several pieces beginning to click for head coach Manny Diaz’s team, the Hurricanes have one goal in mind heading into Saturday.
“When it’s Florida State week, we don’t talk about anything but beating Florida State,” Diaz said in his weekly press conference.
Not only would beating FSU for the fifth straight season keep the rivalry in Miami’s hands, but there are also ACC championship implications with a win for the Canes. In the ACC Coastal division, the Canes trail Virginia (6-3, 4-2 ACC) and Pitt (8-2, 5-1 ACC).
Should the Canes win the rest of their games, they need Virginia and Pitt to lose only once more to an ACC opponent this season. After outlasting North Carolina in an overtime thriller Thursday night and escaping with a 30-23 victory, Pitt’s remaining schedule sees them play Virginia on Nov. 20 and Syracuse on Nov. 20. For Virginia, their schedule consists of a non-conference game versus No. 7 Notre Dame on Friday, their game versus Pitt, and a game against Virginia Tech to end the regular season.
Because the two leaders in the Coastal division play each other, Miami needs the winner of that game to lose another game to break the tie. If this happens, and Miami wins out the final three games of the season against Florida State, Duke and Virginia Tech, the Canes could see themselves propelled to ACC championship contention.
But before any of that can happen, Miami needs to get through Florida State. After last year’s 42-point route over FSU, the 60-year-old rivalry will come to a head as the Seminoles look for vengeance and the Canes look to keep their postseason hopes alive.
