No. 5 Miami heads into Friday night with another ACC road test waiting in Winston-Salem, and the matchup brings a little more than the usual early-season buzz. The Hurricanes are 2-0 after rolling past Stanford 45-6 and hammering Florida A&M 77-7 in the opener, while Wake Forest has matched that start with wins over Akron, 38-16, and Purdue, 38-36 in double overtime.
Kickoff is set for 7:30 p.m. ET at Allegacy Federal Credit Union Stadium.
ESPN will carry the game, with streaming available through the ESPN app, FuboTV and other ESPN carriers. Miami radio is on 104.3 WQAM, while Wake Forest radio is on 98.1 WBRF.
ESPN’s broadcast team will feature Mike Monaco on play-by-play, Jordan Rodgers as the analyst and Dana Boyle on the sideline. It’s the same crew that handled Miami’s season opener at Stanford.
The betting market has Miami installed as a sizable road favorite, with consensus lines on Tuesday ranging from Miami -20.5 to -21.5. The moneyline sits between -1350 and -1800, and the total is listed from 55.5 to 56.5 points.
Weather shouldn’t be much of a factor. Friday in Winston-Salem is expected to be warm and dry, with afternoon temperatures in the low 90s and little storm risk near kickoff. By 7:30 p.m., conditions should settle into the upper 70s with light wind.
Miami also brings a strong edge in the series history. The Hurricanes lead 9-3 overall, have won eight straight and beat Wake Forest 42-14 at Hard Rock Stadium in November 2024. Miami is also 3-0 all-time in Winston-Salem.
The injury picture remains worth watching for the Hurricanes, especially in the secondary. Junior cornerback OJ Frederique Jr. suffered a significant left shoulder injury on the second snap of the Stanford game and remains out.
Sophomore defensive back Ja'Boree Antoine was ruled out before the Stanford game and is expected back in the second half of the season. Starting cornerback Xavier Lucas did not play against Florida A&M and is expected to miss about a month.
Tight end Luka Gilbert is out for the season.
That makes Miami’s defensive backfield one of the key pressure points in this game. The Hurricanes have lost multiple talented DBs and will lean on a younger group for now, with Damari Brown, Bryce Fitzgerald, Ethan O'Connor and freshman JJ Dunnigan taking on bigger roles. Wake Forest will look to test that unit.
On the other side, Miami’s offense has the kind of firepower that can dictate how this game unfolds. The Hurricanes have enough in the backfield to control the pace, with Javian Mallory, Mark Fletcher Jr., CharMar Brown and Girard Pringle Jr. all part of the rotation.
The passing game has also already made its case through two weeks. For Wake Forest to stay in it, the Demon Deacons will need either a huge night from their offense or a defense capable of slowing down Darian Mensah and company.
And Miami has to avoid treating this like last week’s mismatch. Florida A&M was overwhelmed in a 77-7 loss, but Wake Forest looks more capable of making this interesting. The Hurricanes haven’t been seriously tested yet, and this one could ask a different kind of question.
The Miami players to keep an eye on are easy to spot. Darian Mensah has thrown for 653 yards and eight touchdowns while completing 91.1% of his passes through two games.
Malachi Toney has 16 catches for 330 yards and four touchdowns. Javian Mallory has added 173 rushing yards and two scores, and Mark Fletcher Jr. has 145 yards and two touchdowns on 20 carries.
In Other News...
Miami Heads Into Wake Forest With A Depth Problem Fans Feared
Miamis trip to Wake Forest comes with the kind of early-week availability report that can change the tone of a game before kickoff. The ACCs first report listed four Hurricanes as out because of injuries: cornerbacks OJ Frederique Jr. and Xavier Lucas, defensive back JaBoree Antoine and tight end Luka Gilbert. For Mario Cristobal, the good news is that he has already laid out the injury details and recovery timelines, giving Miami at least some clarity as it tries to sort through a thinner-than-ideal roster.
The bigger issue is how those absences shape the matchup against a Wake Forest offense expected to have Gio Lopez available. Lopez is listed as probable and expected to start, which puts the spotlight on a Miami defense already dealing with missing bodies in the secondary, along with a tight end spot that now has to be reworked as well. It is the sort of depth test no team wants this late in the season, especially on the road, and it leaves the Hurricanes needing answers in areas that were supposed to be settled. [Read more 🡒]
Kirk Herbstreit Said What Miami Fans Were Already Thinking
Kirk Herbstreit was quick to weigh in when Miami's new apparel deal came together, and his reaction on social media only echoed what plenty of Hurricanes fans had been saying for a while. After years of hearing complaints about the Adidas look, the switch to Nike felt like a clean break, and the ESPN analyst made it clear he was happy to see the program move in that direction.
Herbstreit has not been shy about his dislike for Miami's old uniforms, so his enthusiasm for the new gear fit neatly with the broader buzz around the move. As one of the most visible voices in college football coverage and a staple on College GameDay, his public praise gave the deal a little extra shine, even if Miami supporters were already celebrating the change on their own. [Read more 🡒]
Miami Secondary Crisis Is Putting One Freshman Under A Harsh Spotlight
With injuries thinning the cornerback room, Miami has been forced to shuffle its secondary and lean on a pair of young defenders in unfamiliar spots. Sophomore Bryce Fitzgerald has moved outside, while freshman JJ Dunnigan has stepped into the safety rotation and made his first career start, a notable responsibility for a player who arrived with plenty of recruiting hype but still had to prove he could handle the speed and complexity of the college game.
Dunnigans early run has drawn attention inside the program because he has looked comfortable across multiple roles, not just as a one-position stopgap. Coaches have pointed to his grasp of defensive concepts and his physical play as reasons he can be trusted in the back end, and that kind of versatility matters even more when the Hurricanes are piecing together a secondary under pressure. The bigger question now is how far Miami can keep stretching that flexibility before the depth chart settles again. [Read more 🡒]