No. 5 Miami doesn’t have much time to admire its 2–0 start. A week after beating then–No. 6 Notre Dame 27–24 and throttling Bethune-Cookman 45–3, the Hurricanes welcome a surging USF team that has opened with consecutive wins over ranked opponents. Kickoff is set for Saturday, Sept. 13 at 4:30 p.m. ET at Hard Rock Stadium.
Miami Hurricanes (2-0)
Miami’s opener checked every box. Carson Beck completed 20 of 31 passes for 205 yards and two touchdowns with no interceptions, and Malachi Toney led the team with six receptions for 82 yards and a score. Miami finished with 324 total yards to Notre Dame’s 314 and held the ball for 33:57, while the Fighting Irish managed 26:03. The Hurricanes also won the turnover battle plus-two, committing zero giveaways while forcing an interception and recovering a fumble. Carter Davis hit the go-ahead 47-yard field goal with 1:04 remaining, and Miami’s defense closed it out. It was a win — coupled with Clemson's Week 1 loss to LSU — that put Miami at the center of national attention.
Against Bethune-Cookman, Beck completed his first 15 passes to break a Miami single-game record and finished 22 of 24 for 264 yards and two touchdowns. Mark Fletcher Jr. added two rushing scores, and Miami reached the end zone on its first five drives. The Hurricanes outgained the Wildcats 543–147, averaged 8.4 yards per play and went a perfect 5-for-5 in the red zone. It went about as what you would expect for an FBS-FCS matchup.
USF Bulls (2-0)
USF goes into Week 3 with real momentum. In Week 1, the Bulls dismantled then–No. 25 Boise State 34–7 as quarterback Byrum Brown ran for two touchdowns and the special teams unit hit a 45-yard touchdown on a fake punt to Keshaun Singleton. The victory was USF’s first win over a Top-25 opponent since 2016.
Week 1 was a great win, but the Bulls really gained attention for what happened in Saturday's matchup against Florida. USF defeated No. 13 Florida 18–16 on a 20-yard walk-off field goal by Nico Gramatica after an eight-play, 87-yard drive. Brown completed 23 of 36 passes for 263 yards and one touchdown and added 66 rushing yards, while Singleton’s 66-yard touchdown reception flipped the game late in the third quarter. The Bulls outgained Florida 391–355, committed zero turnovers to Florida’s one and were aided by 11 Gator penalties for 103 yards.
Miami Hurricanes vs USF Bulls
The matchup will be a battle to crown the early-season best team in Florida. Miami’s defense was a nice surprise against Notre Dame as they held them to 93 rushing yards on 3.3 yards per carry and have allowed only three offensive points across the last six quarters. USF, meanwhile, has produced 52 unanswered minutes without allowing a touchdown across parts of two wins over ranked teams and have consecutive games with either a special-teams score or a game-ending kick. Not to mention the safety in the Bulls game against the Gators.
This game projects to be a ranked matchup as Miami is in the top 5 and the Bulls received votes in the AP Poll last week. A lot of people will be taking the Bulls to continue their hot streak, so it will be interesting to see if they can keep the momentum going against the best team they have played so far this year.