Snap counts, grades and more fallout from UM’s win against Notre Dame
Miami Hurricanes nuggets, snap counts and Pro Football Focus grades, by position, following UM’s riveting 27-24 win against Notre Dame on Sunday night:
QUARTERBACK
Pro Football Focus graded Carson Beck fourth best among all Hurricanes who played on offense on Sunday, behind receiver Malachi Toney, right tackle Francis Mauigoa and receiver CJ Daniels.
On passes thrown at least 20 air yards, Beck completed 2 for 6 for 48 yards, two touchdowns and no interceptions.
Since the start of last season, Beck has thrown 13 TDs on passes thrown at least 20 air yards (which is top 10 in the country during that time span), compared with just one interception.
Last season, Beck completed 37 percent of those passes, which ranked 61st among those who attempted at least 20 of them. His 37 percent on deep throws (27 for 73) was behind former UM QB Cam Ward’s 45.3 percent (34 for 75) and 60 other QBs.
Beck completed 33 percent of those attempts on Sunday, but both completions went for touchdowns.
RUNNING BACK
The Canes gave 33 offensive snaps to Mark Fletcher Jr., 27 to CharMar Brown and 10 to Jordan Lyle, who left with an injury but was cleared to return (per WQAM-560).
Among 23 players who appeared on offense for UM on Sunday, PFF ranked Fletcher 8th, Lyle 10th and Brown 17th.
WIDE RECEIVER
In a deep and talented room, UM gave 58 (of a possible 70) offensive snaps to Daniels (who made a leaping 20-yard TD catch just before halftime), 55 to Keelan Marion, 49 to Toney (who caught a touchdown in his first college game), 13 to Joshua Moore, 9 to Jojo Trader, 8 to Ray Ray Joseph and 2 to Tony Johnson.
Ny Carr, Chance Robinson and Daylyn Upshaw did not play any snaps on offense.
PFF rated the freshman Toney first among all players on offense, Daniels third and Marion 22nd of 23, ahead of only the freshman Moore.
OFFENSIVE LINE
Tackles Markel Bell and Mauigoa played all 70 snaps, as did center James Brockermeyer and right guard Anez Cooper. At left guard, Michael McCoy played 40 snaps, Samson Okunlola played 26 and Ryan Rodriguez played four.
Okunlola played five additional snaps as a sixth offensive lineman.
PFF rated Mauigoa second among all Canes who played on offense, Brockermeyer fifth, Cooper sixth and McCoy seventh.
PFF blamed Mauigoa for Notre Dame’s one sack; he and Bell permitted two pressures.
Okunlola and McCoy didn’t yield a pressure.
PFF rated Mauogia, Cooper and McCoy as UM’s top run blockers Sunday.
TIGHT END
Elija Lofton played 43 of 70 snaps, and PFF rated him 18th of 23 players who appeared in the game.
New backup Alex Bauman, the Tulane transfer, played 38 snaps and PFF rated him 20th.
Freshmen Brock Schott and Luka Gilbert did not play any snaps on offense.
DEFENSIVE LINE
At defensive end, Rueben Bain and Akheem Mesidor each played 48 of 60 defensive snaps, while Armondo Blount logged 26, Marquise Lightfoot 11 and Malik Bryant 10.
PFF rated Bain and Mesidor UM’s top two players on defense on Sunday. Bain also was rated UM’s best run defender in the game.
At defensive tackle, David Blay Jr. played 40 defensive snaps, Ahmed Moten 37 and Justin Scott 20. Defensive ends also took some of the snaps inside.
PFF rated Scott sixth, Moten ninth and Blay 17th of the 22 players who appeared on defense.
Among those who didn’t get defensive snaps: ballyhooed freshman edge player Hayden Lowe, well-regarded second-year edge player Booker Pickett and freshman defensive tackle Donta Simpson.
LINEBACKER
New inside linebacker Mohamed Toure, the Rutgers transfer, played 41 of 60 defensive snaps; PFF rated him UM’s 22nd and worst defender on Sunday. In Toure’s defense, PFF rated him UM’s second-best run defender on Sunday.
But Toure’s coverage bust led to Eli Raridon’s 65-yard reception that set up Notre Dame’s tying touchdown late. Overall, he permitted four of six passes in his coverage area to be caught for 87 yards.
Among the other linebackers, Wesley Bissainthe played 43 snaps, Raul Aguirre 23 and Chase Smith 5. North Carolina State transfer Kamal Bonner and veteran Jaylin Alderman didn’t play any defensive snaps.
PFF rated Bissainthe sixth and Aguirre 10th among the 22 defenders who played.
SAFETY
Zechariah Poyser played 56 of 60 snaps while Jakobe Thomas logged 50.
PFF rated Thomas 14th and Poyser 20th among UM’s 22 defenders.
Thomas is considered a strong run defender, and PFF rated him Miami’s fifth-best run defender Sunday.
Dylan Day played five defensive snaps, while freshman Bryce Fitzgerald played nine and Isaiah Taylor one.
Markeith Williams did not play a defensive snap.
CORNERBACK
Here’s how UM allocated snaps in a deep room: Slot cornerback Keionte Scott played 59 of a possible 60 defensive snaps, Xavier Lucas 38, OJ Frederique 34, Ethan O’Connor 31 and Damari Brown 25.
Charles Brantley, the Michigan State transfer, did not play on defense.
PFF rated Brown third among UM’s 22 defenders, while Scott was eighth, Frederique 15th, Lucas 16th and O’Connor 19th.
Scott was fabulous; he was rated UM’s third-best run defender and allowed only one of six passes in his coverage area to be caught, for 12 yards.
Lucas permitted all three passes in his coverage area to be caught for 36 yards.
PFF blamed O’Connor and Toure for allowing touchdown catches, though ABC’s Greg McElroy faulted the safety Thomas for the first of CJ Carr’s two TD passes.
Here’s my piece with 20 things learned during the game.
Here is Miami Herald UM beat writer Jordan McPherson’s Monday story on the aftermath of the win.
This story was originally published September 1, 2025 at 12:53 PM.
