Miami waited nearly eight years to knock off a top-10 opponent. Fittingly, the drought ended against the same team they last stunned.
Carter Davis drilled a 47-yard field goal with 1:04 remaining, and the 10th-ranked Hurricanes held off No. 6 Notre Dame 27-24 on Sunday night in a season-opening thriller. Miami last beat a top-10 opponent in 2016 — also Notre Dame — and repeated the feat under the lights at Notre Dame Stadium.
Quarterback Carson Beck, making his first start for the Hurricanes after transferring from Georgia, threw for 205 yards and two touchdowns. CJ Daniels hauled in one of them with a spectacular one-handed grab just before halftime, and Rueben Bain’s interception on a wild thrice-deflected ball in the fourth quarter helped swing momentum late.
“This was a statement,” Beck said. “We knew it would come down to the wire. And Carter [Davis] came through.”
Miami outgained Notre Dame 324-314, using methodical, clock-chewing possessions to control the flow. After deferring the coin toss, the Hurricanes executed a 75-yard touchdown drive to close the first half, capped by Daniels’ highlight-reel catch with 12 seconds left for a 14-7 lead.
They opened the second half with another 75-yard march, this one capped by Marty Brown’s 5-yard scoring run. In effect, Miami had the ball for nearly an hour of real time across those two drives, putting Notre Dame in a 21-7 hole.
Malachi Toney also caught a touchdown for the Hurricanes, while Davis — a transfer from Florida Atlantic — delivered the game-winner.
Freshman quarterback CJ Carr showed poise in his first career start, finishing 19 of 30 for 221 yards, two touchdown passes and one interception. He also ran for a score with 3:21 left, tying the game 24-24 after rallying the Irish from down two scores.
Carr’s first collegiate touchdown pass came on a scramble drill in the first quarter, as he zigged and zagged before finding Micah Gilbert to tie the game 7-7. His second went to Jordan Faison as part of Notre Dame’s comeback.
But with the game on the line, Miami’s defense slammed the door. After Davis’ go-ahead kick, Bain and Akheem Mesidor registered sacks on consecutive plays to bury Notre Dame’s final drive.
The loss continues Notre Dame’s misery in Miami matchups on the road: the Irish have now dropped seven straight visits to the Hurricanes dating back to 1977.
Notre Dame also became the latest high-profile casualty of Week 1, joining No. 1 Texas (lost to No. 3 Ohio State), No. 4 Clemson (lost to No. 9 LSU), and No. 8 Alabama (lost to Florida State) as preseason top-8 teams to fall.
For Miami, it was a signature win in coach Mario Cristobal’s third year — and another sign the Hurricanes are ready to compete with the sport’s elite. Beck became the seventh straight Miami quarterback to win in his debut start, following a lineage that includes D’Eriq King, Tyler Van Dyke and most recently Cam Ward.
“This was about toughness,” Cristobal said. “We finished a game against a great team, on the road, and our guys earned every bit of it.”
Notre Dame: Hosts Texas A&M on Sept. 13th. Miami: Hosts Bethune-Cookman on Saturday.
