Cavaliers come up short at Miami in OT, 29-26

jerryratcliffe.com

Posted on Sunday, Oct. 29, 2023, 12:00 am

Follow Jerry Ratcliffe on Twitter

Advertising inquiries: Connect with us

Email Jerry Ratcliffe: jratcliffe7000@gmail.com

 

By Scott Ratcliffe

Photo: UVA Athletics

Virginia fought hard until the final whistle, but ultimately came up short at Miami, 29-26, in overtime Saturday at Hard Rock Stadium.

The Cavaliers (2-6, 1-3 ACC) got the ball first in the extra session, but couldn’t get much going and had to settle for a Will Bettridge field goal, his fourth of the day. The South Florida native’s kick gave UVA a 26-23 advantage, but it turned out to be short-lived.

The Hurricanes (6-2, 2-2) turned to their running game, handing the ball off to Mark Fletcher Jr. on all three snaps in OT, and the freshman delivered, eventually scoring the game-winning touchdown from 11 yards out.

The Hoos went ahead by three, 23-20, on a Bettridge 32-yarder with 4:20 left in regulation, but the Canes knotted the score back up on a field goal of their own with 1:23 to go, a 48-yarder by Andres Borregales.

Tony Muskett and the Virginia offense worked quickly and got the ball near midfield in the waning seconds, but a Miami sack on third down forced a Cavalier punt with 35 ticks showing, and the home team took a knee and decided to take their chances in the extra period.

Once again, UVA had itself in a position to win in crunch time, but couldn’t finish. The Wahoos have held the lead or have been tied in the fourth quarter in four of their six defeats this season.

The Hoos got on the board first on a 2-yard Mike Hollins touchdown run in the opening quarter, and jumped out to a 10-0 lead midway through the second quarter on Bettridge’s first field goal.

The Hurricanes answered on the ensuing possession, as Borregales nailed a 47-yard attempt with just over four minutes until halftime. Virginia, which won the coin flip and deferred to the second half, had an opportunity to pad its lead in the closing minutes of the second quarter, but lost yardage on each of the final three plays of the half.

The Hoos went three-and-out to open the third quarter, and Miami tied it up at 10-apiece on an Ajay Allen TD run with 10:44 on the clock. Allen hurled over Cavalier safety Jonas Sanker on his way to the end zone.

On the next play from scrimmage, Muskett was picked off by Kamren Kinchens, who took it to the house and gave the Canes their first lead of the game, 17-10, just seven seconds later.

UVA got inside the Miami 10-yard line on the ensuing possession, but couldn’t convert on a third-down try and Bettridge came on for a 23-yard boot to cut the deficit to 17-13 with 3:58 left in the third.

After a Kam Robinson interception three plays later, the first of his collegiate career, the Hoos put together a 6-play scoring drive capped by Hollins’ second touchdown run of the evening, as he made contact with the pylon in the corner of the end zone as he was diving out of bounds. It was Hollins’ fifth TD in his last seven quarters, and it put the Cavaliers back in front, 20-17, with 22 seconds left in the period.

The two teams traded punts to begin the final stanza, and then Borregales knocked one in from 50 yards out to even the score back up at 20-20 with 9:26 remaining in regulation, setting up the exciting, back-and-forth conclusion.

The Hoos went for 377 total yards on the day, holding Miami to just 276. Virginia also had a sizable advantage in the time-of-possession category (34:36 to 25:24), but ultimately failed to extend the winning streak to three games.

Muskett was 24 for 38 for 239 yards and an interception, and picked up a net of 6 yards on 13 carries. Malik Washington led all receivers with 152 yards on 12 catches, while Perris Jones led the ground attack with 58 yards on 9 attempts.

Team Notes

Courtesy UVA Media Relations

  • Virginia dropped to 8-13 all-time against Miami. The Hurricanes have won eight of the 11 regular season meetings against UVA in Miami.
  • Virginia rushed for 138 yards, only the second team this season (North Carolina – 238) to eclipse the 100-yard rushing mark against Miami. The Hurricanes came into the game allowing 79.6 rush yards per game, the fewest of any ACC team.
  • Miami totaled 276 yards of total offense, their lowest output of the 2023 season.
  • Saturday marked the 13th overtime game in UVA history and the second-straight against Miami. UVA is 4-9 all-time in overtime games and 0-3 in overtime games against the Hurricanes (2022 – 12-14; 2008 – 17-24).
  • Virginia was not penalized in the game, the first time UVA went without committing a penalty since 2016 against Richmond.
  • The last three matchups against Miami have been decided by three or less points.
  • Saturday marked the fifth game this season UVA held a double-digit lead and drops to 1-4 in those contests. The Cavaliers were up 10-0 with 8:46 remaining in the second quarter.
  • Four of Virginia’s six losses this season have come by three or less points.
  • UVA scored a touchdown on its opening drive for the third time in the last four weeks. The 12-play (season-high), 75-yard (T-season-high) drive took 4:27.

Player Notes

  • Malik Washington matched his career-high with 12 catches and totaled 152 receiving yards in the contest. He extended his consecutive games with a reception streak to 33.
  • Washington has recorded 100 or more yards in a game in six of the eight games this season. He tied Germane Crowell (6 in 1997) and Dontayvion Wicks (6 in 2021) for the most 100-yard games in a season in UVA history.
  • Washington has put together three-straight 100-yard games (112 vs. W&M; 115 vs. North Carolina; 152 vs. Miami) for the second-time this season. He’s the only player ever at UVA to have three-straight 100-yard games twice in one season.
  • Malik Washington’s 64-yard catch and run in the second quarter tied a career-long reception and was the second-longest play from scrimmage this season for Virginia. Washington had a 64-yard reception against Rutgers last season while playing for Northwestern.
  • Mike Hollins rushed for two touchdowns, his third multi-touchdown game of the season. His seven rushing touchdowns this season are the most by a Cavalier since Brennan Armstrong’s nine in 2021 and the most by a UVA running back since Wayne Taulapapa rushed for 12 in 2019.
  • True freshman Kam Robinson co-led the Cavaliers with nine tackles (seven solo) and was credited with his first career interception. The turnover led to UVA’s second touchdown of the game and put UVA up 20-17. A linebacker has recorded three of UVA’s six interceptions this season.
  • Kicker Will Bettridge made all four of his field goal tries (22, 23, 32 & 35). He has made 12-straight field goals. The four field goals matched a career-high established against Miami last year.
  • Tony Muskett surpassed the 1,000-yard  passing mark for the season and finished 24-for-38 with and 239 yards. He has 1,020 yards passing in five starts this season. Muskett has 21 200-yard passing efforts in his career, including four-straight for UVA this season.
  • Sam Westfall was credited with his first career interception, picking off Tyler Van Dyke to stall a first quarter Miami drive. It was Westfall’s 33rd career collegiate game.
  • Defensive back Caleb Hardy and right tackle Blake Steen both made their first career starts in the contest. Hardy is UVA’s sixth true freshman to start a game this season.

UP NEXT

The Hoos return to Scott Stadium next Saturday to face Georgia Tech (2 p.m., The CW Network).