The Miami Hurricanes bounced back in their second-to-last regular season game following another heartbreaking loss against the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets to defeat an overmatched Wake Forest Demon Deacon team, 42-14, on Saturday.
Although the final score indicates that the 'Canes dominated the 4-7 squad, that was far from the actual case as Miami actually led just 20-14 for much of the second half before rallying off 22 unanswered points in the final eight minutes of the game.
It was par the course for a 10-1 squad that has squeaked by more often it has overmatched opponents despite its superior record and No. 8 ranking in the nation. Although that lack of consistency eventually caught up to the Hurricanes in their second consecutive heartbreaking loss to Georgia Tech a couple weeks prior, it still leaves Miami in prime position to play in just their second ACC Title Game since joining the conference in 2004.
It's simple -- as long as the Hurricanes beat the 8-3 Syracuse Orange at the Carrier Dome next week, they're in. If they lose, the Clemson Tigers would be in instead of them.
Defeating the Orange and the Mustangs also ensures that the 'Canes get a top-four seed in the College Football Playoff as the ACC Champions. That also means an automatic first-round bye, which would go a long way for Miami squad that is far from a dominant one.
"The most challenging game, for us as a team this year would have to be against Georgia Tech -- not just due to the loss -- but because the stuff that we've been lacking week after week finally got exposed," quarterback Cam Ward admitted after the win over Wake Forest. "Losses expose everything."
The Hurricanes may be the least impressive team top 10 team in the country. We all know their faults, whether it's their lackluster defense -- they were the key in this game and only gave up one defensive touchdown -- or inability to dominate overmatched opponents. The latter was on clear display in this game against a team they were favored by 23.5 points against and a Wake Forest defense that ranked third-to-last in the country in passing yards per game and 116th with 34.7 points allowed per contest.
Miami came in ranked No. 1 in the country with 43.8 points per game with one of the primary Heisman Trophy favorites in Ward and still struggled to score, going the first 22 minutes of the second half without a single point. Before the 7:58 mark of the fourth quarter, Miami had scored just 13 points on offense, with one of their touchdowns coming courtesy of a 76-yard interception return by defensive back Mishael Powell.
"The story of the game was the defense, without a doubt after that first series with the busted coverage," said head coach Mario Cristobal after the game. "That's what Miami Hurricane defense should look like. Offensively, we had our struggles. The defense, we leaned on them and they came through in a big-time way even when they were on short fields. I haven't seen a defensive performance like that from anywhere in a long time. They certainly deserve all of the credit of the game."
Stout defensive performance against the No. 70-ranked offense in the country aside, there's no sugarcoating this, the 'Canes need to win in their regular season finale in a game against a solid ACC foe in eight-win Syracuse. After that, they need to defeat the No. 13-ranked Mustangs in the conference title game. There's no argument for why Miami shouldn't win in the weakest conference among the Power Four.
Following the win over Wake Forest, the 22-year-old senior Ward -- who played in his final home game -- said all of the right things in downplaying the significance and pressure of playing Syracuse on the road with an ACC Title bid on the line. He pointed towards the improvement and success of the program compared to last season, which finished with just a 7-6 record.
"We still have nothing to lose," says Ward. "Miami was a mid team last year, we're doing better than they were last year. We have nothing to lose, that's how we play the game. It's good to control your destiny for another week, we know it doesn't mean anything unless we win."
When asked if he feels Miami is a "championship" team following a less-than-impressive win over a mediocre opponent, Ward -- who is usually blunt in his analysis and comments -- says the team has the "pieces" in order to be that caliber of a squad.
"I think we have the pieces to be a championship-caliber team," says Ward. "But we're getting better every week in having the mindset of a championship team. That's the next step and we're almost there. Next week might be the week where we're able to put all three phases together. It should be the week. It's the last game of the regular season. We have to put everything on the line. Next week is going to be a big game for us."
As much as Ward is downplaying the pressure of winning next week and winning in the ACC Title game, it's much needed for a program that was previously known as a college football powerhouse that has simply been mediocre over the past 20 years. Since joining a conference they were expected to dominate in 2004, Miami has one ACC Title Game appearance, zero conference titles and has just three total bowl wins, with just one coming since the 2007 season.
When factoring in that Ward will be gone after this season and that Miami could very well return to the mediocre level they've been at over the past couple of decades, that adds even more pressure to winning their final regular season game along with the ACC Championship.
If the 'Canes win against Syracuse, they face an SMU squad that has been impressive and undefeated in conference play. However, it's still a program that's in the midst of its first season in the ACC after making the transition from a non-power conference in the American Athletic Conference.
While it won't be easy considering SMU entered their own second-to-last regular season game with the sixth-best offensive unit (39.9 points per game) in the country, Miami needs to finish the job in order to call the 2024 season a successful one.