When North Carolina turned the game into a shootout, Miami’s offense answered every time. Former Hurricanes wide receiver Ahmmon Richards watched it twice and came away with the same conclusion: there wasn’t much to nitpick.
His grade for the unit was simple: A+.
Richards liked the way the offense handled a road game against a coach known for defense, especially once the points started flying. He started with the work up front, where the line kept Darian Mensah clean and gave the whole operation room to breathe.
SJ Alofaituli drew particular praise. Richards said he’s been one of the players they’ve challenged on the show, but Saturday looked like a different version than the one from Week 1. He pointed to better pad level, better feet, and better hands.
"Now I feel like they're playing better as an overall unit."
Samson Okunlola and Matthew McCoy also earned strong marks, with Richards calling it their best game of the year.
Mensah’s poise was another big part of the story. When UNC grabbed the lead, Richards noticed how calm he looked - almost smiling, in a way that said the offense believed it could keep trading blows all night. UNC did speed him up a few times, but Mensah still did what the offense needed, including using his legs late.
Richards also said he had warned before the game that UNC’s corners tend to sit on routes and watch the backfield. Miami eventually took advantage of that right before halftime with a double move for the explosive play it needed. Daylyn Upshaw also came through with two catches that didn’t scream highlight reel, but mattered plenty: one to move the chains and another to set up a manageable third down.
He gave Shannon Dawson credit for having answers ready for whatever the defensive-minded staff threw at Miami.
The ground game had its own surge. Mark Fletcher Jr. showed more bounce than Richards has seen lately, running through contact and chopping his feet instead of going down. Javian Mallory helped close things out late, and Israel Briggs was there cleaning things up.
Then there was Elija Lofton, who Richards has repeatedly described as maybe the best pure football player on the team. He pushed back on the idea that a player has to be a first-round tight end to earn that kind of label. His version is more practical: a guy who can do a little bit of everything and do it with force and instinct.
"Just give him the ball, and he is able to make plays down the field," Ahmmon said.
Lofton can line up at fullback or tight end, go in motion, catch a screen, and turn into a running back once the ball is in his hands. Richards said defenders have seen the Clemson tape and are now trying to side-tackle him instead of meeting him square. His late catch, Richards said, was the play that took the air out of UNC’s momentum.
Richards also spent time on Malachi Toney, and he didn’t hold back. He went back to Toney’s first game against Notre Dame, saying he had never watched him in high school but saw enough live from a suite to know the record was in trouble.
He put Toney in the company of Michael Irvin, Andre Johnson, Santana Moss, and compared his style to Antonio Brown: a smaller receiver who can line up outside and simply win. He pointed to Toney’s first touchdown, an over-the-shoulder grab with a defender on him, two feet down, fingertips secure, and possession maintained through the fall he knew was coming.
"He just does it, and it looks so easy," Ahmmon said.
The red-zone work impressed him even more. Richards broke down those plays as play-action RPOs, where a receiver who rushes the route can run himself out of the window or out of bounds.
Toney doesn’t do that. He lets the quarterback buy the extra time, manipulates the defensive back, and breaks when the ball is ready.
Richards said his fade and slant look identical off the line.
He pointed to the Florida State game, where Toney ran the slant and then the fade, and said UNC saw the opposite.
"If I have you in reaction mode, I won," Ahmmon said. "Because now I'm getting to my spot before you can ever get there."
Richards’ final point was about Toney’s competitiveness. Too many players flash early and fade. Toney, in his view, stays locked in no matter the stage.
Notre Dame is next, and Richards made clear that challenge will be bigger. But for now, he sees an offense that has answered every question thrown at it.
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Against North Carolina, Toney kept producing even while drawing heavy double teams, finishing with seven catches for 75 yards and a touchdown. His season total has pushed him into record territory for Miami, and with more games still ahead, the only question now is how much more he can add to a season that already belongs alongside some of the biggest names in Hurricanes history. [Read more 🡒]