‘I didn’t know I caught it’: Thomas talks wild interception in Miami win over Syracuse
Jakobe Thomas knows his highlight play from the No. 18 Miami Hurricanes’ 38-10 win over the Syracuse Orange on Saturday will be a social media highlight as well.
“I’m going to get clowned,” the veteran safety said.
He’s OK with that. He can own it.
Especially considering the end result of the play was Thomas’ second interception of the season — even if it took him a few seconds to realize it was actually an interception.
“I didn’t know I caught it,” Thomas said postgame. “I thought the ball hit the ground.”
It’s an understandable thought with how the play unfolded.
Syracuse had second and 21 from its 14-yard line late in the third quarter. Thomas had logged a sack the play prior. Orange quarterback Rickie Collins dropped back and threw a deep pass intended for receiver Darius Johnson. The ball bounced off Johnson’s hands and into Thomas’ arms.
Thomas stood there afterward, thinking the play was dead.
Except... it wasn’t.
“I thought I heard the ref blow [the play] dead,” Thomas said, “and then [linebacker] Mo [Toure] was in my face screaming ‘Go!’ So I just decided to go.”
Thomas returned the ball 10 yards to the Syracuse 23-yard line. Miami scored a field goal four plays later to extend its lead to 31-3 at the end of the third quarter.
“An interception’s an interception,” Thomas said. “A return is a return.”
It was a highlight amid a slew of highlights for Thomas in particular — and the Hurricanes’ defense as a whole — on Saturday.
Thomas had two of Miami’s season-high-tying three turnovers against Syracuse, also recovering a fumble at the end of the first half to keep Miami’s 14-0 lead intact.
The Hurricanes set season-highs in sacks (seven) and tackles for loss (11). The seven sacks are the most by UM in a game since 2019, while the 11 tackles for loss are the most since 2023.
They held Syracuse to 285 yards overall.
Most importantly, they limited the Orange to just 10 points. The Hurricanes rank 10th nationally in scoring defense, holding opponents to an average of just 15 points per game.
“At the end of the day, if they don’t score, they don’t win,” edge rusher Akheem Mesidor said. “That’s the mindset.”
It’s something UM has prided itself on in its first season under new defensive coordinator Corey Hetherman. Thomas said there was a heightened sense of urgency entering the Syracuse game after giving up a season-high 26 points in an overtime loss to SMU the week prior.
That effort was on display Saturday.
“The guys top to bottom showed up to meetings this week,” Thomas said. “We had a lot of player-led meetings this week where we talked about communication and how we need to approach everything from now on. You guys know that we have a very exciting defense to watch. We just had to put it all together. Now we know what it takes. It’s a little late, but we know what it takes.”
This story was originally published November 8, 2025 at 8:28 PM.
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