No. 3 Miami heads into Saturday night’s primetime meeting with Florida State carrying the kind of defensive resume that can make a rivalry game look routine.
The Hurricanes are 5-0 overall and 3-0 in the ACC, and their offense has been rolling behind Heisman candidates Darian Mensah and Malachi Toney. But if Miami wants another comfortable result at Hard Rock Stadium, the job starts on the other side of the ball.
For Corey Hetherman’s defense, the assignment is straightforward: slow down Florida State’s ground game.
That’s the engine for the Seminoles. They want to run the football, lean on it, and use it to stay in the game.
“Yeah, I think offensively they are very talented,” Hetherman said. “I think the running back, the backfield in general, I think is a very good backfield.”
Florida State’s most consistent threat is sophomore Ousmane Kromah, who has topped 80 rushing yards in every game this season. Through six contests, he has piled up 565 yards on 100 carries, averaging 5.65 yards per attempt with five touchdowns. Hetherman made clear how much respect Miami has for him.
“I think he's like fourth in the country in creating missed tackles; he's tough to tackle,” Hetherman said of the Seminoles star running back.
“I think he's a complete back, and I think he's a very big challenge for us this week. And we got to treat it all week.
We got to tackle in practice. We got to get after it.”
Florida State also gets production on the ground from quarterback Ashton Daniels, whose legs add another layer to the offense. Daniels has 323 rushing yards and a conference-leading 10 rushing touchdowns.
Ashton Daniels just set the Florida State record with 5 rushing TDs 🔥17 CAR, 136 RUSH YDS, 5 RUSH TDS, 12/19, 183 YDS, 1 INT vs VirginiaScores of 4, 3, 6, 81 and 1 yards. Also the ACC record for a QB in a conference game. pic.twitter.com/FsaG6WMqc8
Altogether, Florida State is averaging about 187 rushing yards per game and sits near the top of the ACC in rushing offense. PFF has the Seminoles graded as the 13th-highest rushing attack in the country.
Miami’s response has been even more impressive. The Hurricanes have allowed just 213 rushing yards through five games, a microscopic 42.6 per game and only 1.84 per carry. No opponent has reached 80 rushing yards against them.
Miami has allowed 213 rushing yards in 5 games. That's 42.6 a game and 1.84 a carry, and nobody has gotten to 80. FSU is going to try to run it Saturday anyway. pic.twitter.com/D6bONPgSLT
That run defense has shown up everywhere. Central Michigan managed only 21 rushing yards, Wake Forest was held to 22, and Clemson spent most of Miami’s latest trip to Death Valley stuck well below one yard per carry until the game’s closing stretch.
Hetherman has built that unit around physical play, setting the edge, staying disciplined, and swarming to the ball. Those traits will be tested again by a Florida State offense that wants to create manageable downs, keep Daniels out of long-yardage situations, and avoid exposing its passing game.
If Miami’s front seven - including Marquise Lightfoot, Armondo Blount, Justin Scott, and a linebacker group that has graded well against the run - can force negative plays and erase explosive runs, Florida State will have trouble staying balanced. That would put more pressure on an inconsistent passing attack and an offensive line that has its own issues.
Hetherman said the rivalry still carries the weight you’d expect.
Canes DC Corey Hetherman, on the Miami-Florida State rivalry: “It’s one of the greatest rivalries in sports…we’ve got to show up…this is one of those games where everyone knows each other…”
For Miami, though, the defensive formula is simple. Win early on the ground, make Florida State play behind schedule, and let the rest of the defense take over. If the Hurricanes hold up the way they have all season, Saturday night could turn into another long one for the Seminoles.
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Rynn Mack and Dylan Day have emerged as new contributors, giving Miami more options as it prepares for the next stretch of games. With Xavier Lucas and Damari Brown back in the mix, the Hurricanes are expecting to lean into more varied defensive packages, a sign that this group may look a little different than it did a few weeks ago. [Read more 🡒]