Turnover Trouble: Miami’s five first-half giveaways too much to overcome in loss to Virginia Tech

Playing from behind is hard enough. But climbing out of a four-touchdown hole seems impossible when everything that could go wrong does, in fact, go wrong.

A first half marred by five turnovers haunted the Miami Hurricanes (2-3, 0-2 ACC) in their conference matchup against Virginia Tech (3-2, 1-2 ACC) on Saturday.

Perhaps the bye week was to blame for Miami’s horrendous start to the game, but the Hurricanes limped to the locker room at halftime facing a 28-7 deficit with only a last-second hail mary to build on for the next two quarters.

Miami’s clean second half -- UM didn’t turn the ball over during that span -- wasn’t enough to completely make up for the damage already done, despite a fourth-quarter rally. The Hurricanes fell 42-35 to Virginia Tech, and they remain winless in ACC play.

UM quarterback Jarren Williams hadn’t thrown an interception ahead of Saturday’s game. He’d completed 117 straight passes in 2019 but threw three picks on his first three drives against the Hokies.

A short pass from Williams intended for receiver Mike Harley was deflected and fell into the open hands of nearby corner back Jermaine Waller on Miami’s opening drive. Waller picked off Williams twice on Saturday.

Virginia Tech capitalized on the field position it was gifted, scoring a touchdown on a 12-yard run by quarterback Hendon Hooker.

On Miami’s second drive, Williams was looking for receiver Dee Wiggins on a deep post and under threw him, allowing cornerback Caleb Farley to snag it in the endzone.

After forcing a Virginia Tech punt on the following drive, Miami put the ball back into the hands of its freshman quarterback, who’d entered the game completing over 60 percent of his passes in each the first four games of the season. But he turned the ball over once more.

That time he was looking for receiver Brian Hightower, and Waller took advantage of another under throw.

The Hokies again capitalized on the Hurricanes’ mistake, and they took just two plays to do it. Following a three-yard rush by running back Keshawn King, Hooker found tight end Dalton Keene in the endzone for a 20-yard touchdown.

Miami hadn’t given up the ball much entering Saturday’s game. Its only turnovers were a lost fumble in the season opener against Florida and a lost fumble against Central Michigan. That mark was tied for third-least in the nation.

Williams was replaced by redshirt-sophomore quarterback N’Kosi Perry after going 4 of 7 with 47 yards and three interceptions before the end of the first quarter.

Perry completed over half of his passes and surpassed a career high in passing. But he was affected by the first-quarter turnover bug before he could throw his first pass of the game.

Perry handed the ball off to Harley on a jet sweep, and Harley fumbled. It was first down. It was the Hurricanes’ fourth drive of the game, and it was their fourth turnover.

The Hokies recovered it and scored again on their next drive, taking a 21-0 lead with 54 seconds left in the first quarter.

Perry threw an interception a couple drives later. He was picked off by Farley, who recorded his second pick of the day.

Unable to find a rhythm amid the turnovers, UM managed just one trip to the redzone in the first half, which ended in a turnover on downs after it had the ball at the four-yard line.

The game wasn’t decided until the fourth quarter. Perry threw three touchdown passes in the second half, and running back DeeJay Dallas had a 62-yard touchdown run late in the fourth. But in playing from so far behind for the entire game, Miami ultimately had too much ground to make up.

This story was originally published October 5, 2019 at 10:07 PM.