Miami punts the Panthers, wraps up 10-win season with 38-7 win

The Miami Hurricanes made a final statement to the College Football Selection committee, and they did it with a megaphone next to their ears. The Canes crushed the Pitt Panthers on Saturday at the stadium formerly known as Heinz Field 38-7.

Carson Beck had a nice game, going 23/29 for 267 yards with 3 touchdowns and a pick. Girard Pringle, Jr. was effective with limited touches, leading Miami with 82 rushing yards on 10 carries. Malachi Toney was a flat-out dude today, with 13 catches for 126 yards and a touchdown to go with a passing touchdown.

The first quarter started emphatically on the defensive end, as they forced a three-and-out after sacking Mason Heintschel. After a pair of punts, Miami tacked on a 29-yard field goal for an early lead.

That’s when Pitt did their only work on offense for the entire game. The Panthers embarked on a 13-play, 75-yard drive that took up over 5 minutes. They finished it with a 6-yard touchdown pass to TE Justin Holmes for a 7-3 lead early in the second quarter.

And that’s where Miami absolutely locked in on both sides of the ball from there on out. Aside from the drive at the end of the first half, Miami scored a touchdown on their next four drives and turned a deficit into a 31-7 lead by the end of the first quarter. ‘

Toney gave the Canes the lead for good on the next drive at 10-7 after taking the ball, sliding to the right, and hitting Elija Arroyo in the end zone after the latter released late. After Pitt missed a field goal, Toney pulled in a 22-yard touchdown from Beck to push the lead to 17-7 late in the second quarter, where it would be at the half.

The Canes finished up the 8-minute swing to perfection early in the second half by taking the opening drive for a score and a 24-7 lead after Mark Fletcher, Jr. bowled his way across the goal line from 4 yards out. Then, after a Pitt three-and-out, Beck found Marty Brown on a wide-open swing pass for a 9-yard score and 31-7 lead.

The Canes added 7 more points in the game’s final seconds, and it’s thanks to Pitt’s Pat Narduzzi getting cute with under 2 minutes left. Miami appeared content to run the ball and run out the clock, but the Panthers’ head coach couldn’t let the blowout go.

So, Cristobal let Beck air one out, and CJ Daniels made an incredible one-handed catch for the final 38-7 score.

It was as good of a performance as any Canes fan could hope for. And now, all that’s left is to see where the chips fall around the country.