Miami Hurricanes survive against Virginia behind big night from Mike Harley
D’Eriq King threw a 43-yard touchdown pass to Mike Harley on the second play of the game and the Miami Hurricanes survived Virginia and a rainstorm to win 19-14 and improve to 5-1 this season.
After scoring a touchdown on the second play of the game the Miami Hurricanes offense struggled but did enough to earn a 19-14 victory over Virginia on Saturday night. Miami is 5-1 with the win heading into the bye week. D’Eriq King led Miami on a two-play 75-yard drive on the opening series of the game.
King had a 32-yard completion to Will Mallory on the first play of the game. Mike Harley caught a 43-yard touchdown on the next play and Miami led 7-0 28 seconds into the game. Virginia answered with an 11 play 64-yard drive in 4:26 that concluded with a two-yard TD pass from Brennan Armstong to Tony Poljan.
Less than five minutes into the game the score was tied at six and seemed like the game was going to be high scoring. The game remained scoreless until Jose Borregales kicked a 32-yard field goal with 1:02 remaining in the first half. Miami entered halftime with a 10-7 lead. Miami never trailed against Virginia.
Borregales added a field goal in the third quarter to extend the lead to 13-7. The third TD of the game did not come until Don Chaney Jr. scored on a one-yard run with 12:04 remaining to give Miami a 19-7 lead. King was sacked on the PAT attempting to extend the score to 14 points.
Virginia got back in the game with an11 play 64-yard drive in 4:26 to cut the lead to 19-14 with 5:26 remaining. Armstrong connected with Reshaun Henry on a 35-yard TD pass on a miscommunication in coverage from Al Blades. Miami answered the Virginia score with an eight-play 29-yard drive in 5:04.
That gave Virginia the ball back with 23 seconds remaining. Virginia ran three plays for 14 yards before Miami recovered a fumble with two seconds remaining before taking a knee and running the clock out. Harley was the story of the night. Harley set career highs with 10 receptions for 170 yards and the early TD.
Next. Miami loses Amari Carter to targeting again. dark
The game was a tight defensive struggle for the third year in a row between Miami and Virginia. The Hurricanes upset a ranked Virginia team 17-9 at Hard Rock Stadium last season. The Cavaliers upset Miami 16-13 in Charlottesville in 2018. Miami is off next week before road games at North Carolina State and Virginia Tech.