Undefeated Miami Hurricanes not overlooking one-win FSU as rivalry renews Saturday
Mario Cristobal took a moment — that’s all he could allow himself to take — to reflect on what Saturday was going to mean to him.
It’s the Miami Hurricanes vs. the Florida State Seminoles rivalry, with kickoff scheduled for 7 p.m. Saturday from Hard Rock Stadium and the game televised on ESPN.
It will be Cristobal’s 13th time being involved in the game as a member of the Hurricanes. He went 3-1 as a player from 1989 to 1992, 2-4 as an assistant coach (1998-2000 as a GA, 2004-2005 as tight ends coach, 2006 as offensive line coach) and is 0-2 so far as a head coach.
The matchup might not have much luster on paper given where both teams stand — the Hurricanes are a perfect 7-0 and are ranked No. 6 in the country, while FSU is 1-6 and spiraling downward — but that takes little away from what the series means to both schools.
“When the schedule came out as a player, you always made sure that day was circled,” Cristobal said Monday during his weekly news conference. “The caliber of player that you’re going to be playing against, the familiarity of some of the guys on the other team, you knew what that game was going to be about, right? Everybody was going to be strapping on ice bags and eating Advil to get over the the physicality of the game, but so many unbelievable memories. And honestly, this is the most I thought this last 30 seconds have been the most I thought about — and the most I will — just because of the job at hand.”
That job at hand is making sure his Hurricanes, a three-touchdown favorite entering the game, don’t get complacent just because of what the Seminoles have done — or, rather, haven’t done — this season.
FSU is a shell of itself from a season ago when it won its first 13 games en route to the ACC Championship but a College Football Playoff snub.
The Seminoles’ offense has been one of the worst in college football, averaging 276 yards per game (132nd of 134 Football Bowl Subdivision teams, ahead of only Kennessaw State and Kent State) and 15 points per game (tied with Kennessaw State for 132nd, ahead of only Houston). They are the only FBS team to have not scored more than 21 points in a game this season.
FSU has a minus-10 turnover margin, having forced three while giving up 10. That’s tied for the second worst nationally, ahead of only the minus-14 rating of Southern Mississippi.
But it’s rivalry week, and FSU is desperate for a win. Theoretically, anything is possible.
Plus, considering the fact that all three of Miami’s conference wins so far this season against Virginia Tech, California and Louisville have been one-score games, the Hurricanes aren’t taking anything for granted even though they have one of the most prolific offenses in college football led by Heisman Trophy contender Cam Ward.
“As a player, we never looked at the record of anyone we’re playing against,” Cristobal said. “Whatever the record of any team is in this rivalry, you’re going to get the best version of them and they’re going to get the best version of you. And that’s what makes this game so incredibly intense.”
Added fifth-year senior wide receiver Xavier Restrepo: “We have tons of respect for those guys, defending ACC champions, a really, really talented football team. ... We have to be as prepared as we can be.”
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