Game Day Notes: Miami Hurricanes vs. Louisville ... how to watch, start time, game notes & more

2/#2 Miami (5-0, 1-0 ACC) VS. Louisville (4-1, 1-1 ACC)

Date: Friday, October 17, 2025
Time: 7 p.m.
Location: Miami Gardens, Fla.
Stadium: Hard Rock Stadium (64,767)
Series History: Miami leads, 36-33
Miami / Miami Gardens: Miami leads, 12-4-1
Louisville: Miami leads, 6-2
Neutral Site: Louisville leads, 1-0
Last Meeting: Miami won, 52-45 (Oct. 19, 2024)
Television: ESPN
Talent: Dave Pasch (play by play), Dusty Dvoracek (color), Taylor McGregor (sideline)
Radio: 104.3 WQAM
Talent: Joe Zagacki, Don Bailey, Jr., Josh Darrow
Spanish Radio: Radio Libre 790 AM
Talent: Alfredo Alvarez, Joe Martinez

MIAMI GAME NOTES

QUICK HITS

• The Miami Hurricanes continue their fourth season under the direction of head coach Mario Cristobal on Fri., Oct 17 at Hard Rock Stadium against Louisville. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. on ESPN.

• Miami posted its first 10-win season since 2017 and only its second 10-win season in the last 20 years in 2024. The Hurricanes also finished the season undefeated at home for the first time since 2002 (6-0).

• Fresh off a bye week, the Hurricanes improved to 5-0 for the second straight season with a 28-22 win over Florida State last time out on Oct. 4. QB Carson Beck threw for four touchdowns in the road victory.

• The Hurricanes opened 2025 with a thrilling 27-24 win over #6/#6 Notre Dame in their season opener on Aug. 31. Miami has three ranked wins so far this season in games vs. Notre Dame, USF and FSU.

• Miami topped Louisville, 52-45, in last year’s head-to- head matchup in 2024 in Louisville, Kentucky.

STORYLINES

• #2/#2 Miami continues its fourth season under head coach Mario Cristobal with a matchup against Louisville at Hard Rock Stadium on Friday, Oct. 17. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. on ESPN, 104.3 WQAM, Radio Libre 790 AM and WVUM 90.5 FM.

• The Hurricanes entered the season ranked in the top 10 of both the Associated Press and Coaches Polls, checking in at No. 10 in both rankings, and rose to No. 5 in the AP and No. 7 in the Coaches Poll after a 27-24 win over Notre Dame in their opener. Following its Week 7 open date, UM remained at No. 2 in the AP top 25 – tied for its highest AP ranking since 2017.

• Among UM’s top newcomers is QB Carson Beck, who arrived from Georgia via transfer portal. Beck, who missed spring practices while recovering from UCL surgery, has a 29-3 (.906) record as a starting FBS quarterback, the best of any active player (minimum five games).

THE MATCHUP

• #2/#2 Miami continues the 2025 football season with its ACC home opener against Louisville at Hard Rock Stadium on Friday, Oct. 17. Kickoff is slated for 7 p.m. on ESPN, with radio broadcasts set for 104.3 WQAM, Radio Libre and WVUM 90.5 FM.

• The Hurricanes carry a 12-4-1 all-time series lead over Louisville into Friday’s matchup, including a 52-45 victory in the 2024 matchup between the two teams in a shootout on the road in Louisville. In games played in Miami or Miami Gardens, the Hurricanes are 6-1-1 – with their lone loss coming in the most recent head-to-head matchup vs. Louisville at Hard Rock Stadium in 2023 (38-31 loss), when the Cardinals were ranked ninth.

• Friday night’s game is a matchup for the “Schnellenberger Trophy,” which the Hurricanes are currently in possession of, having won the 2024 game in Louisville. The trophy, which features the actual western dress boots, now bronzed, worn by Coach Howard Schnellenberger when he led both programs to national prominence, was created prior to the 2023 matchup between the two programs.

• Schnellenberger was instrumental in elevating both the Miami and Louisville football programs to unprecedented heights. He was the Hurricanes’ head coach from 1979 to 1983 and in his final season led Miami to the first of its five national championships, upsetting top-ranked Nebraska in the Orange Bowl. Schnellenberger later became Louisville’s head coach, where he took over a moribund program in 1985 and in five years led the Cardinals to a 10-1-1 record and Fiesta Bowl triumph over nationally ranked Alabama.

A LOOK BACK: UM DOMINATES NOLES ONCE AGAIN

• With a dominant 28-22 win over #18/#19 Florida State last time out in their ACC opener on Oct. 4, the Hurricanes captured their second straight state title, having completed a sweep of the four FBS programs in the Sunshine State on their schedule. UM was leading 28-3 in the fourth quarter before an unsuccessful FSU comeback effort.

• QB Carson Beck was magnificent in the victory, finishing with a season-high four touchdown passes and no picks in the romp. Beck, who was named ACC Quarterback of the Week and was selected to the Davey O’Brien “Great 8” for his performance, completed 20-of-27 passes (74.1%) for 241 yards in the win over the Seminoles.

• Among Beck’s favorite targets in the game, as he has been for most of the season, was freshman WR Malachi Toney, who hauled in a career-high seven passes. He had his first 100-yard game (107) and first multi-touchdown game (2) of his career in the win. WR CJ Daniels added five catches, 78 yards and two touchdowns of his own. OL James Brockermeyer was named ACC Offensive Lineman of the Week as the highest-graded UM lineman.

• Miami’s defense largely shut down the Seminoles, who entered the game as the consensus top offense in the country. 188 of the FSU yards came in the fourth quarter, when UM was already up four scores; among the Hurricanes’ top defensive performers was DB Jakobe Thomas, who was named FWAA National Defensive Player of the Week. Thomas, who was also named ACC Defensive Back of the Week, had five tackles, one sack and a pick.

• With the victory over the Seminoles, Miami improved to 5-0 for the second straight season and won in Tallahassee for the first time under head coach Mario Cristobal and for the first time overall since 2019.

MIAMI RANKED 2ND, HAVE THREE AP T-25 WINS

• Following their 5-0 start to the season, the Hurricanes were ranked as high as No. 2 in the Associated Press top 25 released on Oct. 5. Now ranked No. 2 in both polls, UM has been in the top 10 of both polls for all of 2025.

• Miami’s No. 2 ranking last week in the Associated Press top 25 released on Oct. 5 was tied for the highest of any Mario Cristobal-coached team in his career (earlier this year, UM also ranked No. 2); Cristobal’s previous high was No. 3 at Oregon, obtained during Week 4 of the 2021 season (#3/#3).

• With a No. 5 ranking in the Associated Press poll attained on Sept. 2, the Hurricanes made it back-to-back years to crack the top five of the AP for the first time since a six-season run from 2000-05. Miami was ranked No. 10 in both preseason polls.

• Miami’s resume is as impressive as any team’s in the country through the first seven weeks of the season. The Hurricanes have three AP ranked wins this year – more than any other team – having topped Notre Dame, USF and Florida State through their first three games, all of whom were ranked in the AP poll released on Oct. 5. Prior to 2025, Miami hadn’t had three wins over AP ranked teams in the same season since 2009.

• The Hurricanes opened the 2024 season at No. 19 in the poll and found their name in every top 25 ranking of the season. The Hurricanes reached as high as No. 4 (after improving to 9-0 to start the year) and ended No. 18 in the final poll, its highest final ranking since being ranked No. 13 to end 2017.

• Cristobal’s highest-ranked finish as a head coach came in the final 2019 polls, when Oregon was No. 5/5.

CARSON BECK SHINING IN CORAL GABLES AS QB 1

• For the second straight year, the Miami Hurricanes added one of the top quarterbacks in the country in the January transfer window, signing QB Carson Beck after an eye-popping career at Georgia, where he finished 24-3 as a starting quarterback with the Bulldogs. He threw for 7,912 yards, 58 touchdowns and 20 interceptions at UGA.

• In a win over No. 18/23 USF on Sept. 13, Beck threw for 340 yards and three touchdowns. The performance marked Beck’s 10th career 300-yard passing game – he is one of just four P-4 quarterbacks with 10-or-more 300- yard games, joining Josh Hoover of TCU (14), Tyler Van Dyke of SMU (11) and Chandler Morris of Virginia (10).

• Beck currently ranks second among FBS players in career passing yards (9,125), second in career passing efficiency (158.02) and ninth in career total offense (9,388). He is considered a Heisman Trophy candidate.

• He was named to the Davey O’Brien “Great 8” after a four-touchdown win in UM’s road opener at Florida State. In Miami’s win vs. the Seminoles, Beck had his 15th career game with multiple passing touchdowns and zero interceptions. That is the second most among active FBS players behind Vanderbilt QB Diego Pavia (19).

• Beck went 22-for-24 (91.7) against Bethune-Cookman, marking the highest completion rate by any Miami signal caller (min. 20 attempts) over the last 30 seasons.

• He now owns a 29-3 record as a starting quarterback at the FBS level (.906), the best of any active player.

• Beck, who assumed starting responsibilities at Georgia in 2023 as a fourth-year redshirt sophomore, led the Bulldogs to a 13-1 record and a win in the 2023 Capital One Orange Bowl, finishing just shy of a College Football Playoff berth in the four-team field. He was a member of back-to-back national championship teams as a backup.

• In his second year as the team’s starting quarterback in 2024, Beck led Georgia to the College Football Playoff with an 11-2 record. Beck was hurt in the 2024 SEC Championship Game against Texas, which Georgia won, 22- 19. He finished 2024 with 3,485 yards, a 64.7% completion percentage, 28 touchdowns and 12 interceptions.

• Beck underwent surgery to repair the ulnar collateral ligament (UCL) in his right elbow after the SEC Championship Game. Though he did not throw during all of spring practice at Miami after enrolling in January while completing his rehab, he was cleared for full participation shortly thereafter and took part in all summer team activity.

HETHERMAN’S “E.S.V” DEFENSE WREAKING HAVOC

• Mario Cristobal announced the hiring of Minnesota Golden Gophers defensive coordinator Corey Hetherman to the same post in January 2025. Hetherman arrived in Coral Gables after a dominant lone season at Minnesota.

• Hetherman has made a flawless transition through the Hurricanes’ 5-0 start. Miami ranks No. 16 in total defense, allowing just 276.4 yards per game so far against Notre Dame, Bethune-Cookman, USF, Florida and FSU. Hetherman’s signature acronym, “E.S.V.” – has been on display. The acronym stands for Excitement, Swarm, Violence.

• Miami’s defense has forced three-and-outs on 25.53% of opposing drives through four games (non-FBS opponents not included), which makes UM one of only 33 teams to record a mark of 25%-or-better. In addition, UM is forcing a turnover (fumble, interception, turnover on downs) on 27.66% of drives – the 10th-best FBS mark.

• In a measurement of “defensive havoc” – which charts the percentage of plays where a defense forces an opposing offense into either a sack, tackle for loss, interception or a fumble that is recovered by the defense – the Hurricanes rank No. 27 in FBS, posting a percentage of 12.82%.

BAIN, MESIDOR COULD BE FBS’ TOP EDGE TANDEM

• Miami’s defensive end tandem of Rueben Bain, Jr., and Akheem Mesidor have been the top tandem in the country through the first seven weeks of the college football season by most metrics.

• Among 250 defensive ends across Power-4, Bain is the No. 1 overall edge player by Pro Football Focus (95.2), while Mesidor ranks ninth (90.8).

• In PFF’s “run defense” grades, Bain is first (92.1) while Mesidor is seventh (86.3). Bain is fifth by PFF in “pass rush” (92.5) while Mesidor is 19th (90.5). Bain is tied for eighth in pressures (29) while Mesidor is tied for 12th (24).

MIAMI STACKING IMPRESSIVE HOME WIN STREAK

• The Hurricanes have won 10 straight home games dating back to Sept. 7, 2024 – a stretch that encapsulated the entirety of 2024 and includes Miami’s 4-0 start to 2025.

• Miami’s 10-game home winning streak is tied for the fourth-longest active streak among FBS programs and is one of only six double-digit home winning streaks across the entirety of FBS.

• In the modern era of Miami Hurricanes Football (since 1979), Miami’s 10-game home winning streak is the third longest, trailing only two streaks: a 58-game stretch at the Orange Bowl that began on Oct. 12, 1985 and ended on Sept. 24, 1994 – the longest home winning streak in college football history – as well as a stretch of 26 straight games at “The OB” from Oct. 30, 1999 – Oct. 18, 2003.

• With a win on Sept. 6, UM started the season 2-0 at home for the 13th time in the last 14 seasons (since 2012). The Hurricanes have not lost a home opener since 2006, when they fell to Florida State 13-10 at the Orange Bowl on Sept. 4, 2006. Miami has won 19 straight home openers since – each one since 2007.

• In the modern era of Miami Hurricanes football (since 1979), UM has opened the season at home 20 times and is now 18-2 in those games. The Hurricanes are 35-12 in regular season openers dating to 1979.

TONEY COULD BE THE NATION’S TOP FRESHMAN

• WR Malachi Toney has been among Miami’s top playmakers in his true freshman season, emerging as a go-to target in the Hurricanes offense for QB Carson Beck and OC Shannon Dawson.

• Since at least 2008, no freshman (redshirt or otherwise) in all of FBS had ever led his team in the first two games of the season in both catches and yards until Toney did so for Miami against both Notre Dame (6 catches, 82 yards) and Bethune-Cookman (6 catches, 80 yards) in 2025. He leads Miami with 29 catches for 375 yards.

• Toney leads all true freshmen in catches (29) and yards (375), despite playing in only five games compared to the remainder of his peers in the top five, who have each played in six games. He is one of only three freshmen in the country to lead his team in catches and yards (Florida’s Vernell Brown III, Oregon’s Dakorien Moore).

• Toney became the only Hurricane in the last 30 seasons to have at least six catches, 80 receiving yards and a receiving touchdown in his college debut. He was named 247Sports National True Freshman of the Week.

• Toney, who turned 18 years old on September 17th (9/17/2007), reclassified from the Class of 2026 to the Class of 2025 at American Heritage. He helped lead the Patriots to a 12-2 record and a Class 4A state title, finishing as the leading receiver with 1,018 yards and 12 touchdowns. He played quarterback the final three games of the season in place of the injured starter, completing 36-of-45 passes for 510 yards and seven touchdowns.

FLETCHER ENJOYING IMPRESSIVE START TO 2025

• RB Mark Fletcher, Jr. has been a key member of UM’s offensive attack through its perfect 5-0 start to the year. Fletcher posted back-to-back games of 100-yards-or more with at least one touchdown vs. USF and Florida. The last UM RB to have back-to-back such games vs. FBS foes was Cam’Ron Harris from September 10-19, 2020.

• He delivered a dominant outing for the Hurricanes in their 49-12 win over No. 18/23 USF on Sept. 13, posting 120 rushing yards and two touchdowns on 16 carries. It was Fletcher’s second 100-yard, multi-touchdown game of his career against an AP ranked team – he also did it vs. Louisville in 2023. Since 2000, there have been only eight such performances by the Hurricanes – two from Fletcher, two from Tyrone Moss, two from Willis McGahee and one each from Clinton Portis and Frank Gore.

• Fletcher now has four career 100-yard games – his 100-yarder vs. USF was his first since 11/18/23 vs. Louisville.

MIAMI NOW HAS THREE RANKED WINS THIS YEAR

• The Hurricanes recorded a third ranked win when they topped #18/#19 Florida State on October 4; the last time Miami featured three ranked wins came in 2009 against No. 18 FSU, No. 14 Georgia Tech and No. 8 Oklahoma

• Prior to this year, where Miami has knocked off #6/6 Notre Dame and #18/#23 USF in addition to FSU, the last time Miami started a year with a 3-0 mark with at least two ranked wins in those first three games was the 1993 season. UM opened the year with wins over then-No. 20 Boston College, Virginia Tech and then-No. 13 Colorado.

FOLLOW THE BLUEPRINT: CANES ARE ON THE RISE

• Miami reached a number of notable milestones in 2024, its third season under Mario Cristobal. The Hurricanes managed only the second 10-win season in the last 20 years at Miami (2017), finished undefeated at home for the first time since 2002 and ended the season inside the Associated Press Top 20 at No. 18 – only its second finish that high since 2005. UM went from five wins (2022, 5-7) to seven (2023, 7-6) to 10 (2024, 10-3) under Cristobal.

• The Hurricanes had 10 NFL Combine invites and its seven NFL Draft picks ranked sixth-most nationally. The Hurricanes had just one NFL Draft pick in the draft prior to Cristobal taking the helm, in 2022 – and it came in the seventh round (Jon Ford, Green Bay Packers).

• Miami won the unofficial “state championship” by beating Florida, FSU and USF in the same year last season.

• QB Cam Ward, the winner of the Davey O’Brien Award and Manning Award as the nation’s top quarterback, was selected with the No. 1 overall pick by the Tennessee Titans – it was the third No. 1 overall pick in program history.

BALLHAWK FITZGERALD LEADS FRESHMEN IN INTs

• DB Bryce Fitzgerald recorded an interception for the second straight game against USF on Sept.13, picking off Byrum Brown to end what was the nation’s longest passing streak without an interception (252 straight attempts).

• Fitzgerald is the only true freshman in the country with three interceptions; he added his third at Florida State.

• Fitzgerald, one of Miami’s top performers as a true freshman, had the first interception of his career against Bethune-Cookman on Sept. 6. Both interceptions showcased his elite instincts, which have been praised by staff and teammates. A four-star safety out of Christopher Columbus High School, Fitzgerald debuted vs. Notre Dame.

• For the fourth straight season, the Miami Hurricanes had a player record interceptions in back-to-back games. Fitzgerald, who managed the feat against both Bethune-Cookman (Sept. 6) and USF (Sept. 13), joined Mishael Powell, who did it in 2024, as well as Kam Kinchens, who managed the feat during both 2022 and 2023 seasons.

CANES LEAD THE NATION IN FG PCT. SINCE 2020

• The Hurricanes have been the most accurate field-goal kicking team in the country over the last six seasons. Miami has made 87.7 percent of its field goal attempts since 2020 (100/114), including a 5-for-5 start to 2025.

MESIDOR 2ND IN CAREER SACKS IN ALL OF FBS

• A key member of Miami’s defensive line who has been stellar through the first half of the season, veteran edge rusher Akheem Mesidor is second in all of FBS with 26.5 sacks over the course of his career. Mesidor, who grew up in Ottawa, Canada, spent much of his high school career traveling to the U.S. for recruiting camps and clinics.

• Now in his sixth year, Mesidor spent the first two seasons of his career (2020-21) at West Virginia before transferring to Miami. He is one of just six players with more than 20 career sacks at the FBS level, joining Trey Moore of Texas (28.5), Cashius Howell of Texas A&M (23.5), David Bailey of Texas Tech (23.0), Mikail Kamara of Indiana (22.5) and Ben Bell of Virginia Tech (20.5).

DANIELS HEADLINES NEW-LOOK WIDEOUT CORPS

• The Hurricanes lost their top-six pass-catchers by receptions from a season ago, when the Hurricanes had the No. 1 offense in the country. Miami’s three starting wide receivers were all making their debuts on Aug. 31 vs. Notre Dame: transfers CJ Daniels (LSU) and Keelan Marion (BYU) as well as true freshman Malachi Toney.

• The trio combined for 14 catches totaling 157 yards and two touchdowns in Miami’s 27-24 win. Toney was targeted 10 times – more than any other player – while both he and Daniels had touchdown catches.

• Daniels is one of only two active FBS players with 2,500 receiving yards (2,703) and 20 touchdowns (26) over their careers at the FBS level. The other is Arkansas State’s Corey Rucker (3,423, 25). Daniels’ eye-popping onehanded score vs. ND was named the Crunch Time Play of the Week by the Football Writers Association (FWAA).

• Daniels ranks third among all FBS players with 2,708 career receiving yards, trailing Rucker and Caullin Lacy of Louisville (3,000). Including Daniels, there are only five players in FBS who have 2,500-or-more receiving yards.

MIAMI HAS TRAILED FOR ONLY 9:12 THIS SEASON

• The Hurricanes have trailed for only 9:12 in 2025, all of which came in UM’s game against Florida State on Oct. 4. Other than Texas Tech, who has yet to trail this season, UM has trailed for the least amount of time of any team.

“HURRICANE BAIN” IS POWER 4’S TOP-GRADED DL

• One of the top performers in the nation in his first two years at Miami was DL Rueben Bain, Jr., who enjoyed a dominant rookie campaign that resulted in ACC Defensive Rookie of the Year honors in 2023. That year, the 6-foot-3, 275-pound defensive lineman tallied 44 tackles, 12.5 tackles for loss and 7.5 sacks over 13 games, earning Freshman All-American honors. He was also selected to the All-ACC Third Team.

• The standout junior has twice been named ACC Defensive Lineman of the Week this year; Bain, mentioned by many analysts as a Heisman Trophy candidate, was recognized following standout performances against both Notre Dame (Aug. 31) and Florida (Sept. 20).

• Through seven weeks, Bain is graded as the No. 1 defensive edge by Pro Football Focus at the Power-4 level. He has a 95.2 defensive grade overall and 92.1 run defense grade (also No. 1 in Power-4).

• Bain, who has 21.5 career TFLs, ranks No. 21 nationally among active players in TFL per game (0.80). He has been projected as a top-10 overall pick by multiple prognosticators in advance of the 2026 NFL Draft.

• Bain’s uncle, Tolbert Bain, lettered for the Hurricanes from 1984-1987. His older brother, Reggie, is an offensive line graduate assistant. The rising sophomore was named to the preseason watch lists for the Bednarik and Lombardi Awards.

B2B FL STATE CHAMPS… IN RESOUNDING FASHION

• The Hurricanes earned their second straight unofficial state championship when they topped Florida State on Oct. 4, picking up wins over the Seminoles, Florida and USF in the same season for the second straight year. Miami is 6-0 against those three programs with added wins over Florida A&M (2024) and Bethune-Cookman (2025). Against in-state opponents the last two years, the combined scorelines are 331-99 with an 8-0 record.

• Over the same stretch, Miami also has a +1784 yardage differential against its Sunshine State opponents.

BECK RISES TO THE OCCASION AGAINST TOP FOES

• QB Carson Beck has 12 wins against teams ranked in the Associated Press Top 25, double the next highest total (Noah Fifita, Arizona – 6). He is 12-3 against AP Top 25 teams (.800), including 3-0 at Miami (1.000).

CANES ARE DOMINATING NON-CONFERENCE PLAY

• Miami has won 12 straight regular season games against non-conference opponents, finishing 4-0 in each of the last three seasons (2023, 2024, 2025). That is its longest streak since a 15-game run between 2000 and 2003.

MIAMI ‘D’ PUT UP HISTORIC GAME VS. GATORS

• Miami’s defense held Florida to under 100 yards on the ground (80) and air (61) while also not allowing a third down conversion (0/13). The only other ACC team in the past 30 years with that kind of defensive outing was Boston College versus Howard in 2015.

BROWN WAS ONE OF JUST 30 IN 1,100/15 CLUB

• Despite having two running backs – Mark Fletcher, Jr. and Jordan Lyle – that will play massive roles for Miami’s offense in 2025, Mario Cristobal went out and added one of the best players at the FCS level to the roster this offseason – former North Dakota State running back CharMar “Marty” Brown (pronounced like Shemar).

• Brown was one of 30 DI (FBS/FCS) players last season to record at least 1,100 rushing yards and 15 rushing touchdowns last season, and is the only active underclassman among that group. He is a redshirt sophomore.

• Brown, the Jerry Rice Award winner as the top freshman player in Football Championship Division last season, was a member of the Stats Perform, FCS Football Central and Phil Steele FCS Freshman All-America teams. Brown won Missouri Valley Football Conference Newcomer of the Year and Freshman of the Year honors, becoming just the third Bison player and sixth in league history to sweep both awards.

• The Omaha, Neb., native led all FCS freshmen in rushing attempts (244), yards (1,181) and touchdowns (15) and became the first Bison tailback in seven years to eclipse the 1,000-yard mark. He is a 5-11, 220-pound back.

BECK IN ELITE COMPANY W/LATEST 300/3+1 GAME

• QB Carson Beck became the fourth Hurricanes quarterback in the last decade to throw for 300 yards (340) and at least three touchdowns (3) and run for a score in the same game when he did so in Miami’s victory over USF, joining Cam Ward (2024), Malik Rosier (2017) and Brad Kaaya (2016).

• Ward, the No. 1 overall pick in the 2025 NFL Draft, had two such performances during his lone season at Miami.