No. 7 Miami gets Florida A&M at home tonight in a game that looks much more like a dress rehearsal than a real test.
The Hurricanes are coming off a statement performance at Stanford, where Darian Mensah and Malachi Toney carved up the Cardinal. Florida A&M arrives at 1-1, dealing with a short week and the absence of starting quarterback Isaiah Knowles. That setup points to a lopsided night, and a few outcomes feel especially likely.
Malachi Toney, Darian Mensah and Mark Fletcher Jr. all have a chance to leave their fingerprints on the same blowout. Toney is fresh off a monster outing at Stanford, finishing with 234 receiving yards and three touchdowns on 12 catches. Florida A&M just gave up 479 yards to South Carolina State, and now it has to deal with a Miami offense that should create mismatches all over the field.
Mensah may not need heavy volume, but the expectation is that he throws for four or more touchdowns without an interception. Florida A&M’s pass defense simply does not look equipped for what Miami can bring.
Fletcher is also in line for a cleaner night than he had against Stanford, where he managed just 40 rushing yards on 13 carries. Once the game gets out of hand, Miami should be able to lean on the run, and Fletcher has a path to go over 100 yards.
The scoreboard could get ugly enough to put Miami right in range of the series benchmark of 70 points. The Hurricanes hit that number against Florida A&M in 2016, when they dropped a school-record 42 points in the third quarter. That game remains the peak of an 11-game Miami winning streak in the series, a run that has also included point totals of 63, 57, 56, 51, 49, 49 and 48.
This Miami team has more firepower than most of the ones that have rolled through this matchup, which is why a 70-point night is not out of the question.
Florida A&M also looks unlikely to find the end zone on offense. The Rattlers’ only touchdown against South Carolina State came on Justin Bostic’s 80-yard interception return.
They finished that game with minus-1 rushing yard and 161 total yards overall. Dustin Fletcher was efficient in relief, going 6 of 8 for 68 yards, but that came against a MEAC defense, not the kind of front Miami put on display while holding Stanford to two field goals.
The Hurricanes have also been stingy against FCS opponents in this spot, not allowing more than 14 points to one since beating Florida A&M 48-16 in 2009. The last two meetings ended 70-3 and 56-9, with the Rattlers settling for field goals and failing to score an offensive touchdown in 2024.
There’s another number to watch, too: sacks. Florida A&M gave up five last week, and Miami’s defensive line should be able to do even more damage. Five or more sacks for the Hurricanes feels well within reach tonight.
In Other News...
Miami Secondary Suddenly Faces A Bigger Xavier Lucas Concern
Miamis secondary had already been leaning on youth, and the home opener only sharpened that reality. Xavier Lucas, who started in Week 1, did not play against Florida A&M, and the program offered no injury details for the absence. With the Hurricanes dealing with multiple injuries and absences in the back end, underclassmen like Bryce Fitzgerald and freshman JJ Dunnigan have been pushed into bigger roles sooner than planned.
Mario Cristobal has pointed to the groups versatility as a way to absorb those hits, but the situation also underscores how quickly depth can be tested in the secondary. Miami has spent plenty of time talking about recruiting and development as the foundation for surviving stretches like this, and Lucas status adds another layer of concern for a defense already asking younger players to hold more responsibility. [Read more 🡒]
Miami Fans Still Havent Forgotten The One Florida A&M Shocker
Before Florida A&M and Miami met again in the late 2000s, the series had already built up a long memory for Hurricanes fans, and most of it was not especially kind to the underdog. The two programs first tangled in 1979 and then again over the years in matchups that usually followed the same familiar script: Miami controlling the game, leaning on its talent and depth, and coming away with another win. By the time the teams played through the 2009 meeting, the Hurricanes had turned the series into one of those old nonconference histories that can be retold almost by habit.
Still, the reason this one lingers is that not every chapter fit the pattern, and Miami followers have never entirely let go of the one result that broke through the routine. Even with the Hurricanes holding the clear edge across the series, the trip through those games from 1979 to 2009 shows why certain opponents stick in the memory longer than the record alone would suggest. For Miami, the larger story is dominance, but for fans, it is the shock that kept one Florida A&M afternoon from blending into the rest. [Read more 🡒]
Miami Secondary Injuries Just Forced A Defensive Shuffle Fans Need To Watch
Miami was forced to improvise in the secondary against Florida A&M, and the adjustment offered a clear look at how thin the Hurricanes have become at cornerback. Bryce Fitzgerald slid over from safety to cornerback, while true freshman JJ Dunnigan was pressed into a starting role at safety, a reminder that this defense is already having to lean on flexibility early in the season.
The injury list at cornerback is what created the shuffle in the first place, with OJ Frederique, Xavier Lucas and Ja'Boree Antoine all sidelined. Some of those players are expected back later in the season, but for now Miami has to keep finding workable combinations on the back end, and the way it handles that stretch will be worth monitoring once the schedule gets heavier. [Read more 🡒]