Devastating mistake costs Hurricanes first loss of season
MIAMI GARDENS — The Hurricanes chose to run the ball with just seconds left in Saturday’s game against Georgia Tech. The choice cost them a win.
Running back Don Chaney Jr. fumbled with 26 seconds left in the game, and the Yellow Jackets recovered the loose ball. They drove down the field and scored with two seconds remaining, stunning No. 17 Miami (4-1, 0-1 ACC) 23-20 at Hard Rock Stadium.
“The drive started, it was going to be at 1:57 and we ran about 1:27 off,” Miami coach Mario Cristobal said. “And then it was recalibrated. We should’ve taken a timeout right there at the end. Thought we’d get the first down, and we talked about two hands on the ball. But that’s not good enough. Just should’ve told him to take a knee. That’s it. Fumbled the ball at the 25, and they went 75 yards in two plays. So no excuse.
“We should’ve taken a knee.”
The decision to run the ball when Miami should have been able to take a knee to run the clock out surprised Georgia Tech coach Brent Key.
“Yeah, we kind of felt that he was going to take a knee at that point,” Key said. “He didn’t though.”
Even after the fumble, the Hurricanes still had a chance to hold on to win if they could keep the Yellow Jackets from scoring. But Georgia Tech quarterback Haynes King tossed the game-winning score to Christian Leary for a 44-yard touchdown, ending the game for all intents and purposes.
“There was no confusion,” Cristobal said. “We were moving the pile and we had a pretty good drive going … I’m not going to make an excuse for it and say we should’ve done this or that. That’s it. We should have done it. Sometimes, you get carried away where they just finish the game and run it, but I should’ve stepped in and said, ‘Hey, take a knee.’”
Although the defense is what caved at the end of the game, Miami’s offense, which entered the day ranked eighth in the nation in points per game, could not get in sync Saturday night.
The Hurricanes picked up steam late, and safety James Williams picked off a pass from King that set up Miami’s 39-yard, go-ahead field goal by Andy Borregales. But it would prove to not be enough.
Mistakes at crucial times doomed several of the Hurricanes’ offensive efforts throughout the game. An 18-yard touchdown run by Henry Parrish Jr. came back on a hold by right guard Anez Cooper in the first half, canceling out what would have been Miami’s first touchdown.
Two plays later, quarterback Tyler Van Dyke threw an interception — his second of the season and first since Week 1 — in the end zone to end UM’s most promising drive to that point.
Miami got the ball back with 1:22 left in the first half and drove down the field in time for Borregales to kick a 30-yard field goal to give the Hurricanes the only points of the first half. UM had 217 first-half yards but little to show for it.
“To be effective against what they were playing, you just have to be patient and methodical,” Cristobal said. “So, we were moving the ball, get to midfield and maybe a little beyond and just weren’t finishing drives. We had penalties that hurt us. We had an option route where we weren’t on the same page, miscommunication, and threw an interception. We had a penalty that nullified a touchdown in the red zone. We had some miscues in the first half. You have to give them credit too, you don’t want to sound arrogant about it. We didn’t play to our standard, which means we didn’t coach to our standard.”
The Hurricanes finally scored their first touchdown on a 22-yard touchdown pass from Van Dyke to freshman Riley Williams, which was the first of the young tight end’s career. But Van Dyke’s night got worse from there.
Georgia Tech got on the board on a 6-yard run by King. After that, Van Dyke threw two interceptions that set up the Yellow Jackets with excellent field position.
Georgia Tech started its drive after the second pick on the Miami 26. Four plays later, running back Jamal Haynes scored a 4-yard rushing touchdown. The Yellow Jackets turned Van Dyke’s third interception into a field goal, taking a 17-10 lead early in the fourth quarter.
“I can’t put us in those situations,” Van Dyke said. “Three interceptions, giving them those close fields and they were able to capitalize on them. I put us in those situations. I can’t force the ball, make dumb decisions. I’ve just got to be better.”
The Hurricanes’ defense was as sharp for much of the game, shutting out the Yellow Jackets until 3:19 left in the third quarter. UM surrendered only 61 yards in the first half, and linebacker Francisco Mauigoa picked off a pass from King. They could not keep Georgia Tech off the board on the short fields that resulted from Van Dyke’s interceptions.
Fortunately for Miami, Van Dyke recovered late to throw a deep pass to Colbie Young. The play was initially ruled a touchdown, but it was changed to a 57-yard catch after Young was ruled down at the 3-yard line. Parrish punched in a 3-yard touchdown on the next play to tie the game.
When the Yellow Jackets got the ball back, Miami’s defense stepped up again. King tossed the crucial interception to Williams, setting up the Hurricanes’ go-ahead field goal.
But the worst mistake of the night was still to come on Miami’s final offensive drive, costing the Hurricanes their first loss of the year.
Five takeaways
Offense has worst game of the Shannon Dawson Era
The Hurricanes moved the ball pretty effectively, but mistakes doomed them.
Although Miami racked up 447 yards of offense, penalties and turnovers sapped them of much of the momentum. The Yellow Jackets entered the game with one of the worst rush defenses in the nation, but Miami struggled to pound the ball on the ground. The Hurricanes ended the game with 166 rushing yards.
Tyler Van Dyke’s awful night
The Hurricanes’ veteran quarterback had four excellent games to start the season, but his performance Saturday nearly cost Miami the game.
Van Dyke finished the game 23 for 35 for 281 yards and a touchdown, but he threw three interceptions that led to 10 points.
“They had a new defensive coordinator, maybe a few looks different,” Van Dyke said. “It’s football — one high, two high, zone, man. It’s not too complicated. I just can’t force it into tight coverage. I’ve got to watch the film, get better.”
However, he recovered late in the game and threw a crucial deep pass to Young that got Miami back in the game.
Xavier Restrepo a bright spot
The Hurricanes’ veteran wide receiver was one of the few bright spots on UM’s struggling offense on Saturday.
Restrepo had a career-high 11 receptions and finished the game with a career-best 139 yards. It was his third 100-yard receiving game of the season.
Defense comes up big … until the end
Williams had the biggest play of the night, interception a fourth-quarter pass from King to set up Miami’s go-ahead field goal. But when not faced with short fields after turnovers, the Hurricanes’ defense performed well.
Miami held the Yellow Jackets to 176 total yards and allowed one touchdown on the drives that did not result from turnovers until the final drive of the game.
The Hurricanes could not stop the Yellow Jackets when it mattered most, though, and they fell at the end.
The injury bug gives and takes
Saturday night started optimistically for Miami. All-American safety Kamren Kinchens returned from a scary injury he suffered against Texas A&M. Tight end Elijah Arroyo dressed for the game for the first time this season, defensive Branson Deen returned to the UM defense and Parrish and center Matt Lee returned from minor injuries suffered in UM’s win over Temple.
But the Hurricanes did not get out of their first ACC game unscathed. Before the game, news broke that touted freshman backup offensive lineman Samson Okunlola suffered what could be a season-ending injury. Then the second five-star freshman lineman, Francis Mauigoa, suffered an injury in the third quarter, as did starting wide receiver Jacolby George, but both returned to the game.
Kinchens suffered an injury early in the fourth quarter but also returned. Young also suffered an injury in the fourth quarter and did not return.
