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Florida State rally comes up short, as No. 3 Miami holds on for 28-22 win

On3 imageby: Ira Schoffel10/05/25iraschoffel
On3 image
Florida State quarterback Tommy Castellanos is tackled by Miami during the first half Saturday. (Tallahassee Democrat/Imagn Images)

The big question facing the Florida State football team heading into Saturday night’s showdown with No. 3 Miami was whether the Seminoles could slow down the Hurricanes’ powerful running game.

Instead, it was two big passes from quarterback Carson Beck that gave UM a two-score advantage at halftime, and the Hurricanes cruised from there before holding on for a 28-22 victory before a sold-out crowd at Doak Campbell Stadium.

With the win, Miami improves to 5-0 on the season and 1-0 in the ACC. No. 18/19 Florida State falls to 3-2 and 0-2.

Trailing 28-3 in the second half, Florida State tried to mount a rally in the fourth quarter with a pair of touchdown drives (and two-point conversions) and a field goal, but the Seminoles were unable to convert any of their three onside kick attempts.

After FSU scored first to open the game, Beck’s first big throw was a 47-yarder to wide receiver CJ Daniels down to the Florida State 19-yard line. The Hurricanes would cap off that drive with a 5-yard pass from Beck to tight end Alex Bauman to take a 7-3 lead late in the first quarter.

Miami’s next drive consisted of just one play — a 44-yard pass from Beck to freshman receiver Malachi Toney. The Hurricanes had got the ball on Florida State’s side of the field after Tommy Castellanos’ fourth-and-8 pass from the Miami 41-yard line was picked off and returned 43 yards.

That score gave the Hurricanes a 14-3 advantage they would take into the second half, and things only got worse for Florida State in the third quarter.

Beck hit Toney for a 40-yard touchdown pass on Miami’s first possession of the second half, and he capped off the Hurricanes’ next drive with a 24-yard touchdown throw to Daniels. That score gave the Hurricanes a 28-3 lead in the third quarter, and they still had well under 100 yards rushing.

Beck finished his night with 241 yards on 20-of-27 passing with four touchdowns and no interceptions. In his two career games against Florida State — Saturday night and the Orange Bowl following the 2024 season, when he was at Georgia — Beck has thrown for 454 yards and six TDs with no INTs.

Florida State chipped into the 25-point deficit early in the fourth quarter when Castellanos scrambled and found Lawayne McCoy in the end zone for a 3-yard score. The Seminoles added a two-point conversion on a Micahi Danzy carry.

FSU then capped off a 96-yard touchdown drive with a 6-yard TD pass from Castellanos to tight end Randy Pittman, and McCoy caught the two-point conversion to make it 28-19. The Seminoles added a field goal in the final minute to make it 28-22.

Castellanos finished the game with 272 yards on 25-of-45 passing with two touchdowns and two interceptions. Duce Robinson led the Seminoles with six catches for 87 yards.

Thanks to its fourth-quarter rally, Florida State actually finished with 404 yards of total offense, compared to 338 for the Hurricanes. Miami finished with 97 yards rushing on 32 carries.

Florida State returns to action Saturday against Pitt at noon at Doak Campbell Stadium.

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