Tag: Cam Ward

Georgia Tech humbled Miami (of course), but the Hurricanes’ playoff hopes aren’t ruined yet

Miami could only outrun ACC chaos for so long.

After so many comeback wins and (sometimes controversial) close calls for the Miami Hurricanes this season, it was only a matter of time before an opponent would get the best of the College Football Playoff contender. And, of course, it was Georgia Tech.

The Yellow Jackets dealt Miami its first loss of the season with a 28-23 victory on Saturday in a matchup where the Hurricanes were pretty much never in control. Now 5-5 in recent years against Georgia Tech, Miami’s perfect season is no more as it’s now on a two-game losing streak against the Yellow Jackets.

Entering Week 11 at the top of the ACC standings and No. 4 in the College Football Playoff rankings, Miami is now 5-1 in conference play and 9-1 overall. It’s headed for a bye week before closing out the regular season against Wake Forest and Syracuse.

But more importantly for the team and its fans, Miami’s shot to play in the ACC title game and make the 12-team playoff is still very much alive. Georgia Tech just made the path a bit harder and less forgiving.

The Hurricanes’ season isn’t over, especially with an expanded playoff field, and it’s hardly time to panic. The Canes just need to win out.

But Georgia Tech pulled off what so many other teams have tried but failed to do this year and, in the process, illuminated Miami’s flaws, particularly with an inconsistent offensive line. The Yellow Jackets defense stifled the Hurricanes, kept them from getting much moving on offense and came up big on fourth downs.

Now that Miami’s late-game comeback luck has run out, it must finally clean up what so many opponents continue to expose.

Heisman Trophy contender Cam Ward is playing a standout season with dominant stats and jaw-dropping plays that remind you he’s one of the best FBS quarterbacks this season. Through 10 games, he’s thrown for 3,494 yards and 32 touchdowns, and he entered Week 11 leading FBS quarterbacks in passing touchdowns.

He has moments where it looks like the Heisman is his, playing with coolness and poise that’s so casual it’s almost alarming. But he and the Hurricanes offensive line can be inconsistent too, and some of his stunning Heisman moments are the result of that.

It’s been noticeable all season. Sometimes, Ward has all the time in the world and takes it. Sometimes, he takes too long to get rid of the ball, and other times, the offensive line has him running for his life as it’s unable to stop a blitz.

Miamiā€™s final offensive play against Georgia Tech was a perfect storm of those pitfalls, as a three-man rush somehow still collapsed the Hurricanesā€™ pocket, leading to a strip-sack of Ward as he danced around just a bit too long.

Ward came into Saturday’s game tied for fourth in the ACC with 17 sacks, and he took three more against Georgia Tech, including that final dagger from the Yellow Jackets’ defense. Even in a commanding win over a bad Florida State team, he had a season-high four sacks.

He was sacked three times in comeback wins over Virginia Tech and Cal, but Miami was still able to narrowly survive with victories. But Georgia Tech ended up being the team to deal the previously undefeated playoff contender what felt like an overdue loss, securing it with a sack and turnover.

Ward scrambling was far from the Hurricanes’ only problem Saturday ā€” there were game and clock management issues and converting three of 10 third downs among the others ā€” it was just a big one that was bound to have a negative impact eventually.

If Miami wins out, it’ll still play in the ACC title game where the winner has an automatic bye week to start the College Football Playoff. If it doesn’t make the conference championship game, or it does but loses, the playoff could be unreachable.

The Hurricanesā€™ goals are still reachable, and they remain in control. Yet, itā€™s quite unsurprising Georgia Tech was the team to erase any wiggle room in their path to the playoff.

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Could Miami QB Cam Ward be an option for the Seahawks in 2025?

Could Miami QB Cam Ward be an option for the Seahawks in 2025?

The Seattle Seahawks are sitting a 4-5 and in last place in the NFC West. Their most recent game, a 26-20 defeat in overtime to the Los Angeles Rams, was a particularly brutal showing for quarterback Geno Smith. Despite three touchdown passes and over 300 yards through the air, Smith tossed three interceptions… two of which were in the red zone and in the fourth quarter.

Smith’s abysmal play was fuel to the fire for a lot of 12’s out there who haven’t been convinced he should be Seattle’s long term option at the position. And while there are those who still have faith in No. 7, the reality of age and money will eventually set in. Next season, Smith will be 35 years old and on the last year of his three-year contract. Translation: no matter what, his time in Seattle will come to a conclusion sooner than later, and the Seahawks need to be focusing on finding a successor.

Enter: Miami quarterback Cam Ward, who was previously a Washington State Cougar. The Miami standout has been nothing short of phenomenal this season. Ward has thrown for 3,146 yards and 29 touchdowns against only six interceptions as his Hurricanes are 9-0. Needless to say, Ward looks to be one of the top quarterbacks in the 2025 NFL draft.

Which begs the question: should he be someone the Seahawks should target? Or, I guess a better one is this: is he even a realistic option for Seattle?

Anything can change between now and the draft, but at this point he is surely going to be among the top players selected. PFF even has him mocked at No. 1 overall to the Carolina Panthers. At four wins, the Seahawks could very well already be out of the running for the top pick in the draft, or even a top three or four selection. If they are, it would take a monumental haul for the right to even get to such a position to draft him.

Additionally, while Seattle is at 4-5, they are hardly out of it this year. They still have both games against the Arizona Cardinals, as well as rematches with the Rams and 49ers. They are far from out of it this year, and it is not in John Schneider’s nature to tank.

As fun as Cam Ward in a Seahawks uniform may be, at this point, it does not seem like it is a realistic outcome for Seattle.

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Tom Brady perfectly illustrates the problem with playing a young QB too soon

Tom Brady talked about young quarterbacks coming into the NFL and why they struggle.

In Week Nine of the NFL season, we saw an amazing number of veteran quarterbacks starting for their teams. Guys like Joe Flacco, Kirk Cousins, Matthew Stafford and Geno Smith are all guys well past 30 who are bring called upon instead of a younger signal caller.

During the TV broadcast between the Detroit Lions and Green Bay Packers, color commentator and NFL legend Tom Brady offered up a great perspective on why teams are turning to veterans and young players aren’t able to get into or stay in starting lineups.

“They don’t play in college programs, they just play on college teams,” Brady said.

This was an excellent point by Brady that was probably missed by most. But the proliferation of the transfer portal and young quarterbacks moving between programs does nothing but stunt their development as quarterbacks. They might have all the physical tools in the world but there’s no consistency to their game and it shows when they are handed a far more complex NFL offense.

Looking at the 2025 NFL draft, we see some great examples of this. Miami’s Cam Ward has a crazy set of skills but has moved around. On the other side, players like Georgia’s Carson Beck has spent his entire career at Georgia. Most pundits have Ward ahead of Beck in terms of draft rankings but Beck might be able to come in and contribute at a higher level sooner in an NFL who doesn’t want to wait for players to develop.

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Miami erupts in second half to crush Duke

Miami surged in the second half to drop Duke

The undefeated season was in jeopardy. Miami trailed by 11 points in the second half of Saturday’s ACC game with Duke.

The Hurricanes roared through the Blue Devils in the final 25 minutes for 36 points en route to a 53-31 victory.

Duke took a 28-17 lead in the third quarter after it fell behind 14-0 early.

Cam Ward led the Hurricanes back. The Heisman contender was 25-of-41 for 400 passing yards with five touchdowns.

It could have been worse for Duke as Ward was left in the game late and had the Hurricanes inside the Duke 10 before he was sacked and fumbled.

Xavier Restrepo had eight catches for 146 yards and three touchdown receptions.

Miami improves to 9-0 overall and 5-0 in the ACC. Duke is 6-3 and 2-3.

The Hurricanes have road games at Georgia Tech and Syracuse left sandwiched by a home game with Wake Forest.

USA TODAY Sports college football expert picks don’t like Duke’s chances against Miami

USA TODAY Sports released its expert picks for Week 10 of the college football season on Thursday, and the panel doesn’t like Duke’s chances.

USA TODAY Sports released its expert picks for the Week 10 battle between Duke and No. 5 Miami on Thursday, and the six-voter panel doesn’t have high hopes for the Blue Devils.

All six voters picked the Hurricanes to remain undefeated, one of many unanimous selections among the ranked teams on the schedule.

The Hurricanes lead the FBS in total offense and scoring thanks to quarterback Cam Ward’s Heisman Trophy-caliber season with 2,746 passing yards and 27 total touchdowns.

Despite some questionable performances of late, such as letting Louisville score 45 points or letting California build a 35-10 lead, the Miami defense remains statistically impressive. The Hurricanes have 26 sacks as a team while allowing 298.9 yards per game, both tops among ACC teams, and their 6.0 yards allowed per pass attempt are second only to the Blue Devils in the conference.

However, those recent performances mean Miami has been on routine upset watch recently. The Hurricanes needed to overcome double-digit leads against the Golden Bears and Virginia Tech in the fourth quarter before beating the Cardinals by one score.

If not for a blocked field goal on the final play of regulation against SMU, the Blue Devils would roll into Coral Gables with a 7-1 record and a ranked victory.

Manny Diaz tries to beat his former program at noon Eastern time on Saturday.

Staff predictions for Week 10 matchup between Duke and Miami

Duke football is gearing up to take on the undefeated Miami Hurricanes on Saturday, check out our Duke Wire staff predictions for the game.

The most intimidating and consequential matchup on the Duke football schedule has arrived.

The Duke Blue Devils, fresh off a heartbreaking overtime loss to the SMU Mustangs, hit the road for a Saturday afternoon game against the Miami Hurricanes. Head coach [autotag]Manny Diaz[/autotag] came within a blocked kick on the final play of regulation from seven wins over his first eight games with the Blue Devils, and now he gets a chance at revenge against the program that fired him three years ago (although Diaz downplayed the idea of any remaining resentment during his Monday press conference).

While Duke’s defense leads the ACC in passing yards allowed, there hasn’t been a challenge like Miami yet because there isn’t a challenge like the Hurricanes to be found. Quarterback Cam Ward, a leading candidate for the Heisman Trophy, has thrown for 343.3 yards per game this season with 24 passing touchdowns, 3 rushing touchdowns, and five interceptions.

Do the Blue Devils have what it takes to slow down the superstar on his home turf? Here’s what our staff thinks.

Ryan Haley, Duke Wire staff editor

There’s clearly a path to getting ahead of schedule against the Hurricanes. Virginia Tech led the Hurricanes by 10 points with nine minutes to play. The California Golden Bears built a 35-10 lead deep into the second half. While Ward and his offense have crawled out of each hole, teams can only play with fire for so long.

However, the Hokies and Golden Bears are averaging 377.0 and 399.6 yards of offense against FBS opponents, respectively. The Blue Devils have only managed 334.0. Wide receiver Jordan Moore looks progressively healthier every week and the passing offense will get a major shot in the arm when he’s at full throttle, but we’re less than two weeks removed from Maalik Murphy throwing for 70 yards on 24 attempts against the Florida State Seminoles.

The Hurricanes, surprisingly, are second in the conference in yards allowed per pass attempt. While the optics of nearly beating SMU in regulation look great, six turnovers in a single game are a staggering and unrepeatable number even against Ward, who can occasionally struggle with ball security. I don’t think 21 points in regulation, even with two missed field goals, fully sold me on the problems being fixed.

Miami 38, Duke 17

Bryant Crews, Staff Writer

Duke fumbled an incredible opportunity last weekend to check even more boxes on an otherwise excellent season. The loss to SMU probably killed any fleeting hopes of making it to the ACC Championship game, and it also cost them a likely addition to the US LBM Coaches Poll.

Duke played outstanding defense (yet again) and forced SMU to make some big mistakes. Couple that with SMU’s blunders, and Duke had six turnovers and didn’t score on any of them. Before we proceed with the rest of this prediction, Jonathan Brewer’s job should be in question come December.

Duke will have to turn the page, prepare to make a trip to Miami, and take on a top-10 Miami team that looks destined for an ACC Championship game behind potential Heisman winner Cam Ward’s arm. He’s been surgical all season long, and he’s far and away the best quarterback Duke will see this year.

The Hurricanes have some terrific skill position talent, and their defense has multiple guys who will be playing on Sunday next year and in the future. It’s the best Miami team in quite some time, and Duke will not have the horses to win. The defense will be enough to give Miami fits for a half, but Duke’s lack of punch offensively will doom them in the second half.

Miami 34, Duke 16

Josiah Caswell, Staff Writer

This weekend, Duke will face the toughest team they’ve faced all year and the toughest they’ll face for the entire season as a whole. Miami has been a force this year, holding one of the best offenses in the nation led by Cam Ward.

The Blue Devils’ secondary and defense as a whole will need to play their best football. Simply put, Chandler Rivers and company will have their hands full.

The thing is, the Canes’ defense isn’t unstoppable. Whether it be through the air or on the ground, Miami’s defense has been susceptible to big plays. If Duke wants to win, they’ll need to avoid the Canes’ strong pass rush and string together big plays. If they can do it, it could be a four-quarter fight. If not? It could get ugly.

Miami 41, Duke 20

Duke’s pass defense, the best in the ACC, set to face high-flying Miami Hurricanes

With Miami and Duke set to face off this week, the game will feature the ACC’s best passing offense against the top pass defense.

The Miami Hurricanes (8-0, 4-0) will host the Duke Blue Devils (6-2, 2-2) in Week 10 of the college football season. While it will be a big-time ACC matchup for the records alone, it will also be a showdown between the best Power Four passing offense and top ACC pass defense.

The Hurricanes average 366.8 passing yards per game, second only to North Texas among FBS teams, and lead the country with 560.8 total yards per game. On Duke’s side of things, the Blue Devils have allowed just 166.6 passing yards per game, good enough for 13th in the nation and first in the ACC.

The Miami offense has averaged 46.8 points per game, also the top mark in the nation. Additionally, the Hurricanes are led by Heisman Trophy candidate Cam Ward at quarterback. Through eight games this season, Ward has thrown for 2,746 yards and 24 touchdowns with five interceptions. He also has 186 yards and three touchdowns on the ground on just 42 carries.

The Blue Devils defense, on the other hand, has allowed just 18.6 points per game, tied with the Alabama Crimson Tide for 20th in the FBS. Additionally, Duke’s 5.44 yards allowed per pass attempt are the fifth-fewest in the nation and more than 0.5 yards better than any other ACC team.

The most notable Duke star has been cornerback [autotag]Chandler Rivers[/autotag]. Through eight games, he’s recorded 27 tackles, three tackles for loss, two interceptions, five pass deflections, and one defensive touchdown. Each of his picks came in the last two weeks, earning ACC Defensive Back of the Week honors after he returned one for a touchdown against the Florida State Seminoles before making the Pro Football Focus ACC Team of the Week for his performance against SMU.

Manny Diaz says the Duke defense needs to ‘defend two plays’ against Miami QB Cam Ward

Manny Diaz talked about the challenge Miami quarterback Cam Ward presents on Monday, saying he essentially makes defenses stop two plays.

Miami quarterback Cam Ward wouldn’t lead the Power Four in passing yards and touchdowns through Week 9 if he were easy for defenses to slow down.

The former Washington State quarterback has averaged 343.1 passing yards per game across the Hurricanes’ undefeated start, finding the end zone 24 times against just five interceptions to position himself as a favorite for the Heisman Trophy. He helped erase a 10-point Virginia Tech lead in Week 5 before leading Miami back from a 35-10 hole against California seven days later.

Ahead of his team’s trip to Coral Gables, Duke football coach [autotag]Manny Diaz[/autotag] talked about what makes Ward such a nightmare for opposing teams during his Monday press conference.

“You’ve got to defend two plays,” Diaz said. “The first thing, he’s got great anticipation, very quick release, very accurate, and then he’s a hard guy to get on the ground. He runs around and can make plays scrambling to throw and scrambling to run.”

While Ward doesn’t rip off 40-yard scrambles with the ease of 2023 Heisman winner Jayden Daniels, he’s still more than capable as a runner. He’s amassed 186 rushing yards and three touchdowns on the ground this season.

More than anything else, Diaz highlighted how Ward makes Miami a particularly dangerous team on third down. The Hurricanes have converted 59.8% of those plays into first downs so far in 2024. The Army Black Knights, who sit second among FBS offenses in third-down conversion rate, are only moving the chains on 54.7% of their tries.

“Any quarterback like that at any level puts a high amount of stress on the defense,” Diaz said. “I’m sure everyone has gone into the game saying ‘Hey, we’ve got to try to contain this guy,’ and they’re 0-for-8 in trying to execute that, so how you want to do it and actually being able to pull it off are two different things.”

The elite Duke defense gets its shot at Ward at noon Eastern time this Saturday on ABC.

Miami QB Cam Ward padded his Heisman resume with a slick touchdown catch

Cam Ward can do it all!

Cam Ward’s Heisman Trophy resume was already looking pretty strong before Saturday’s Miami-Florida State game, as he entered Week 9 leading all FBS quarterbacks with 2,538 total passing yards and 24 passing touchdowns.

The Miami Hurricanes passer is usually poised in the pocket and when it falls apart, and he can improvise sometimes with his legs too.

Well, Saturday in No. 6 Miami’s convincing 36-14 win over Florida State to move to 8-0 on the season, Ward showed he’s a quarterback of many talents when he caught his first college career receiving touchdown.

On second-and-goal on Florida State’s seven-yard line late in the fourth quarter, Miami went for a trick play that worked beautifully. Ward took the snap and tossed the ball to running back Damien Martinez, who quickly flicked it to tight end Elijah Arroyo. As Ward headed toward the end zone, Arroyo threw the ball back to his quarterback, and Ward waltzed across the goal line.

Although the two-point conversion attempt failed, the touchdown gave the Hurricanes a 23-7 lead on their way to victory.

Ward finished the game completing 22-of-35 passes for 208 yards, and surprisingly, his only touchdown was his seven-yard catch. It feels like he’s just showing off at this point, but we love it.

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NFL mock draft from Sports Illustrated has a QB not named Shedeur Sanders to the Panthers

Shedeur wasn’t the top QB off the board here.

Obviously, the buzziest name in the 2025 NFL Draft is Shedeur Sanders, the Colorado QB who is Deion’s son and who could go as the top quarterback off the board.

Our 2025 mock from Christian Dā€™Andrea had Sanders to the Carolina Panthers. But in the latest mock draft from Sports Illustrated, it’s Miami’s Cam Ward who is the top QB, with him going No. 2 to the Panthers. Sanders goes No. 3 in this scenario to the Cleveland Browns, which we’ve seen before.

So what’s the deal with Ward here? It’s a sign that the Panthers have given up on Bryce Young. Here’s more from SI’s Daniel Flick:

The Panthers benched 2023 No. 1 pick Bryce Young after just two games, and veteran backup Andy Dalton is 1ā€“4 in his five starts. Carolinaā€™s offense is No. 28 in the NFL in passing and, if it continues down the path of giving up on Young, will need a new long-term answer under center. Enter Ward, who leads college football in passing yards (2,538) and touchdowns (24) while completing 68.7% of his passes.

Be sure to check out the latest 2025 NFL mock draft from our Christian Dā€™Andrea!

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