Max Chadwick of Pro Football Focus asked, "Can Florida State get any pressure on Carson Beck?" in their preview ahead of the Miami game in Tallahassee on Saturday night. The other half of the PFF preview asked "Can Florida State’s creative run game work around Miami’s elite defensive front?"
Chadwick stated the biggest reason Miami is one of the top contenders to win the national championship is its dominance on the line of scrimmage. Miami is ninth with an 81. 0 PFF pass blocking grade, 75.1 run blocking grade and with a 75.1 overall offensive line blocking grade per Chadwick.
Miami is tied for second nationally with Clemson allowing 11 tackles for loss and 29th with opponents recording five sacks in the first three games. With Beck a traditional drop back passer keeping the pocket clean is critical for Miami being successful against Florida State.
Per Chadwick, Beck is 26th nationally with a 76.5 percent completion percentage from a clean pocket. Beck is eighth nationally, completing 73.2 percent of his passes overall and 28th with a 161.38 passer rating. Florida State has struggled to generate a pass rush in 2025.
Chadwick notes Florida State is 95th nationally with a 66.6 PFF pass rushing grade, and 84th with a 71.6 coverage grade. Florida State is tied for 60th nationally with 26.0 TFLs and 55th with 10.0 sacks. Chadwick opined, "If Florida State can’t put Beck under pressure, he could carve up that defense."
Miami is 33rd nationally, averaging 270.0 passing yards per game, 30th at 8.6 yards per attempt, seventh completing 73.0 percent of their pass attempts and 29th with a 158.59 passer rating. Beck and the Miami pass offense have been able to play complementary football with a good running game and defense.
Florida State is 40th nationally, allowing 184.5 passing yards per game, 34th with opponents completing 58.0 percent of their pass attempts, 37th permitting 6.2 yards per pass attempt and 33rd with a 113.87 opponent passer rating.
The Florida State pass defense has good but not great traditional statistics. The PFF grades illustrated the Florida State pass defense differently. Miami has dominated the line of scrimmage in 2025. If Miami dominates the line of scrimmage against FSU, the Hurricanes should emerge from Tallahassee with a win.