Miami Hurricanes clip Boston College Eagles in season finale

Miami, Florida – The Miami Hurricanes ended the season on a positive note via a commanding 45-20 victory over the Boston College Eagles. With the win, Miami finishes 2023 7-5 (3-5 ACC) ending a three-game losing skid. Tyler Van Dyke threw for 290 yards including two touchdowns and no interceptions. Henry Parrish Jr., meanwhile, hit the centennial mark with 111 rushing yards and two TDs.

HERE. WE. GO. #GoCanes pic.twitter.com/FaQ2OIXlC2

— Miami Hurricanes Football (@CanesFootball) November 24, 2023

Boston College got off to a fast start as Thomas Castellanos showed why he’s a dual threat rushing up the middle for 11 yards on the first play of the opening drive followed by a 40-yard deep ball to Dino Tomlin a few plays later. The Eagles soared into an early lead thanks to a one-yard score by running back Kye Robichaux.

The Hurricanes responded with a steady march consisting of 15 plays that included going for it on fourth and one culminating in Mark Fletcher Jr., inching his way into the endzone to tie it. Miami’s offense went on to have an effective first half scoring 21 points in the second quarter. Parrish scored twice including a 15-yard run for the go-ahead TD, a lead Miami never relinquished. Sandwiched in between was a 10-play effort that saw Van Dyke hitting all three of his wide receivers for big gains.

Talk to ‘em 2-1 🗣️🔥

📺: ABC #GoCanes pic.twitter.com/HBFalMCy8K

— Miami Hurricanes Football (@CanesFootball) November 24, 2023

First, it was Jacolby George getting fed with a 19-yarder then it was Xavier Restrepo for 24, and finally Colbie Young for the 10-yard touchdown. Each team put points on the board in the third with UM still ahead 35-14. Ajay Allen capped off the day with a 30-yard sprint to the endzone with over a minute left.

Restrepo is today’s top receiver making six catches on eight targets for 117 yards. George also finished with six receptions for 89 yards and a TD.

Jacolby George TOUCHDOWN! pic.twitter.com/FdhUGDE6Rt

— NMD Grant (@NMDgrant) November 24, 2023

Impressions

A dominant win

Marcellius Pulliam FIRST CAREER INT FOR THE CANES pic.twitter.com/vNWHnvgIUW

— NMD Grant (@NMDgrant) November 24, 2023

The Hurricanes were by far the better team on both sides of the ball. Offensively they led in every stat category. UM was thoroughly in control of the time of possession (35:25 21:44) outproducing the Eagles in total yardage (532-294). Rushing for 242 yards the Canes recorded 27 first downs, were six of 12 on third down, a perfect three-for-three on fourth down, and scored in six of seven trips to the red zone. On defense, the numbers are also impressive. Holding the Eagles to 20 points, Miami tallied three tackles for loss, three pass breakups, two sacks, and most importantly of all two takeaways. Kudos to Ahmad Moten and Marcellius Pulliam for their first-ever college career interceptions. Francisco Mauigoa and  Rueben Bain Jr. nabbed their final sacks of the year in another great showing.

Tyler Van Dyke rides off into the sunset(?)

Tyler Van served up a touchdown feast with 290 passing yards and 2 scores! 🙌@CanesFootball | @Tyler_Van_Dyke pic.twitter.com/d5TVjp9E4W

— ACC Digital Network (@theACCDN) November 24, 2023

We may have seen TVD’s last game in a Canes uniform. Noncommittal on both the upcoming bowl game and his future, this may have been his final hurrah. Completing 23 of 36 passes for 290 yards he avoided the dreaded INTs that have dogged him since week six. In the last two contests, he produced 617 yards and threw three TDs. Van Dyke concludes ’23 with a grand total of 2,413 yards, 17 touchdowns, and 12 interceptions with one extra rushing TD. After everything that happened, I’m glad Van Dyke at the very least finished the backend of the schedule with solid numbers. If this was his last, I wish him the very best going forward. If not, let’s see him succeed one more time and help win Miami a bowl game.

Reflection

And so it ends. What a season. Looking back I made my prediction of 8-4 with 9-3 being the best-case scenario and 7-5 the worst-case. The surprising part is, the Hurricanes were pretty close to 9-3, and if Van Dyke played the way he did in 2021 I’d dare say UM would be at the upper echelons of the Top 25 rankings. Being undefeated wouldn’t be a far-fetched notion either. The team’s greatest strength was its defense. They dominated against the rush and pressured QBs consistently. That doesn’t mean the offense was inferior, however. The WR Corps is among the best in the country, hamstrung by struggles at QB. The O-Line was superb most of the year too. The running game was terrific with firm foundations for the next couple of seasons. Andy Borregales was pretty much money game in and game out making those long kicks. Of all the losses, the one I’d want back is the embarrassing Georgia Tech defeat followed by Florida State. In spite of the 7-5 record fans should be very hopeful for 2024, presuming things are taken care of at quarterback and no other unforeseen complication arises.

Thank YOU Canes fans! 🙌 pic.twitter.com/2xH7X2IX3Z

— Miami Hurricanes Football (@CanesFootball) November 24, 2023