The rushing touchdown by Miami right tackle Francis Mauigoa was the talk of the postgame press conference after the Hurricanes' 38-10 win over Syracuse on Saturday. Mauigoa received a pass behind the line of scrimmage and ran it in from three yards out.
In the postgame press conference, Miami head coach Mario Cristobal joked that he followed through on his promise to get Mauigoa a touchdown during his Miami career. The touch was the first for Mauigoa in the 35th game of his Miami career, all starts.
The entire Miami offense, especially quarterback Carson Beck and the remainder of the Hurricanes' offensive line were ecstatic when Mauigoa scored the touchdown. Beck put his arms up to signal TD nearly immediately after he threw the ball to Mauigoa.
The Miami offensive line, particularly center James Brockermeyer provided a convoy for Mauigoa to the end zone. Apparently the last Miami lineman to score an offense TD was Sunny Odogwu versus Duke in 2015. Odogwu recovered a Miami fumble in the end zone for a TD.
"Cece, you know, and I promised him...during recruiting, so I'm done with my promise with him, so I can move on..."Miami head coach Mario Cristobal
Signing Mauigoa was a foundational player for Cristobal in the 2023 class. Mauigoa was the top signee in the 2023 Miami class. That was the first full class Miami signed under Cristobal. Miami hired Cristobal in December 2021.
"It's a play that we've been practicing for more than two, three years now...Finally, we got the opportunity to run. Before the play...we had another formation in....what are we doing? Just give me the ball. Finally, somebody called a timeout...We got out there, me and (Anez) Coop(er) yelling at coach. Coach, let's run it....Come on...it's fun...you know...I was a bit mad about it. It's good, touchdown...I was looking forward to running over somebody then (the) touchdown, actually."Miami right tackle Francis Mauigoa
Guard Anez Cooper has been starting on the right side with Mauigoa for three years and was a part of the first signing class under Cristobal in 2022. Cooper should be selected in the 2026 NFL Draft. Mauigoa is projected as a first-round pick.
Per Pro Football Focus via David Lake of Inside the U, Mauigoa allowed one pressure and no sacks with a 73.0 overall grade, 77.1 pass blocking grade and 60.9 rushing blocking grade with no penalties in 58 snaps. The Miami OL allowed three tackles for loss and two sacks.
Led by Cooper and Mauigoa, Miami is sixth nationally, allowing 3.33 TFLs and eighth with opponents averaging 0.89 sacks per game. Miami has been one of the best pass-blocking OL in huge part due to the leadership and stability provided by Cooper and Mauigoa throughout the course of their Miami careers.
Mauigoa is one of the greatest and well-liked offensive linemen in Miami history. Honors for Mauigoa during his Miami career have included 2024 Second-team All-ACC, 2023 Honorable Mention All-ACC and consensus 2023 Freshman All-America.