Notre Dame coach Marcus Freeman framed No. 10 Miami’s 27–24 win Sunday as a top-10 slugfest decided by the Hurricanes’ edge on defense and protection, calling Mario Cristobal’s team "a hell of a football team" and crediting Miami’s pass rush for tilting the final minutes.
"It was a top ten fight. Like, come down to a three-point game versus a hell of a football team," Freeman said in his opening statement after No. 6 Notre Dame fell at Hard Rock Stadium. Freeman’s most pointed praise centered on how Miami kept quarterback Carson Beck clean while squeezing freshman CJ Carr when it mattered.
"They were protecting. We’ve got to be better with our four-man rushes. If we need to blitz five, we will, but you’re not going to be really successful on defense if you can’t get pressure on the quarterback with four-man rushes. I felt like they did a good job protecting the quarterback. I think there was times where (Miami quarterback) [Carson] Beck had enough time to really figure out what coverage we were playing and put the ball where it needed to be put."Marcus Freeman
Beck went 20-for-31 for 205 yards and two touchdowns with no interceptions (84.9 QBR), and Miami allowed only one sack. The Hurricanes finished with three sacks and five tackles for loss, including 1.5 sacks from Akheem Mesidor and 0.5 from Rueben Bain Jr., who also snagged a fourth-quarter interception. Notre Dame was held to 94 rushing yards on 27 attempts (3.5 per carry), while Miami ran for 127 yards behind Mark Fletcher Jr. (66) and CharMar Brown (54, TD). Freeman repeatedly tipped his cap to Miami’s front.
"D-line, I want to be more dominant. My expectation for that unit is to dominate the game in the run and the pass, put pressure on the quarterback, and stop the run. And credit to Miami, we weren’t able to do that, but that’s my expectation for those guys."Marcus Freeman
He later acknowledged the Hurricanes’ late-game execution (Officially, kicker Carter Davis hit the winner from 47 yards with 1:04 left).
"We thought it was going to finish differently than it did. (Miami) did a good job on that last drive of getting in the field goal range and hit a 50-yarder, I think it was. Good job by them."Marcus Freeman
Freshman Malachi Toney led UM with six catches for 82 yards and a touchdown, and transfer CJ Daniels added five receptions for 46 yards and a score. After the go-ahead field goal, Miami’s defense authored the final scene with back-to-back sacks to end Notre Dame’s last possession. Even as he praised Miami, Freeman struck an accountable tone.
"It’s the first game of the year versus a heck of an opponent. We’ll take it — we’ll get back to work… and get ready for our next opponent."Marcus Freeman
Notre Dame is off next week, but after the bye week the Irish welcome in Texas A&M to South Bend. Miami will face Bethune-Cookman at home next Saturday.