Game Day Notes: Miami Hurricanes vs. Iowa State in Pop-Tarts Bowl … how to watch, start time, game notes & more

15/#16 Miami (10-2, 6-2 ACC) VS. 19/#18 Iowa State (10-3, 7-2 Big 12)

Date: Sat., Dec. 28, 2024
Time: 3:30 p.m. EDT
Location: Orlando, Fla.
Stadium: Camping World Stadium (60,219)
Television: ABC
Talent: Tom Hart, Jordan Rodgers, Cole Cubelic
Radio: 560 WQAM
Talent: Joe Zagacki, Don Bailey, Jr., Josh Darrow
Series History: first meeting between two teams

NOTES

QUICK HITS

• The Miami Hurricanes wrap up their third season under the direction of head coach Mario Cristobal on Sat., Dec. 28 in the Pop-Tarts Bowl vs. Iowa State. Kickoff is set for 3:30 p.m. on ABC from Orlando.

• Miami has posted its first 10-win season since 2017 and only its second 10-win season since joining the ACC in 2004. UM is looking for its first 11-win season since 2003, when the Hurricanes finished 11-2.

• QB Cam Ward, the 2024 Davey O’Brien Award winner and a Heisman Trophy finalist, was named ACC Player of the Year in early December. Ward posted the best single season by a quarterback in Miami history, setting the program’s single-season records for both yards (4,123) and TDs (36).

• Miami has an all-time record of 20-25 in bowl games, and is looking for its first win in a bowl game since topping West Virginia, 31-14, in the 2016 Russell Athletic Bowl – a game also played in Orlando.

STORYLINES

• Miami is looking to wrap up its impressive 2024 season in winning fashion when it travels to Orlando for the 2024 Pop-Tarts Bowl on Dec. 28. With a win over Iowa State, the Hurricanes will secure their first 11-win season since 2003 and their first bowl victory since 2016.

• The Hurricanes ended the season just outside of the College Football Playoff, finishing as the No. 13 team in the final rankings before the start of the playoff released on Sun., Dec. 8. Miami finished the season with a 10-2 record and a 6-2 mark in conference play.

• Among Miami’s top newcomers was Ward, who was named the winner of the Davey O’Brien Award honoring the nation’s top quarterback on Monday, Dec. 9. Selected to nearly every major award watch list, Ward became the first player in Miami Hurricanes history to be named ACC Player of the Year. He was also named a consensus first-team All-American quarterback. THE MATCHUP

• #15/#16 Miami wraps up 2024 – its third season under head coach Mario Cristobal – on Sat, Dec. 28 in the Pop- Tarts Bowl vs. #19/#18 Iowa State. Kickoff is set for 3:30 p.m. on ABC from Camping World Stadium in Orlando.

• Saturday’s game against the Cyclones represents the first-ever meeting between the two programs.

• Miami is looking to post 11 wins in a season for the first time since 2003, when the Hurricanes finished 11-2.

• Miami is playing in a bowl game for the 45th time in history and is 20-24 in 44 previous bowls. As a head coach, Cristobal has totaled a 3-3 bowl record, including a win at Oregon in the 2020 Rose Bowl.

MIAMI WRAPPING UP IMPRESSIVE 2024 SEASON

• Despite falling to Syracuse in its regular season finale on Nov. 30, the Miami Hurricanes posted their first 10-win season since 2017, finishing 10-2 overall and 6-2 in ACC play. Miami ended the year No. 13 in the CFP rankings.

• Under the direction of head coach Mario Cristobal, Miami moved from five wins in Year 1 (2022, 5-7) to seven wins in Year 2 (2023, 7-6) to 10 wins in Year 3 (2024), 10-2) to continue an impressive trajectory.

• The Hurricanes posted their first undefeated season at home since 2002 and first regular season undefeated home slate since 2017. Miami had the No. 1 offense in America by nearly every metric during the regular season.

• QB Cam Ward became Miami’s first Heisman Trophy finalist since 2002, and also won the Davey O’Brien Award as the nation’s top quarterback. Both Ward and WR Xavier Restrepo were consensus NCAA All-Americans.

• Ward also became the first Hurricane to win ACC Player of the Year; he was also named ACC Offensive POY.

• Miami was ranked as high as No. 4 during the regular season, and ended the year ranked No. 13 in the year-end College Football Playoff rankings. In the new 12-team format, Miami ended the season as the “second team out.”

HURRICANES END YEAR AT #13 IN CFP RANKINGS

• Following a loss to Syracuse in their regular season finale in November, the Hurricanes checked in at No. 13 in the final College Football Playoff rankings on Dec. 8, listed as the “second team out” of the final 12-team field.

• Mario Cristobal’s highest-ranked team as head coach came on Nov. 3, when UM was ranked No. 4 in both major polls (Associated Press, LBM Coaches Poll).

• Following a 56-9 win over Florida A&M on Sept. 7, Miami cracked the AP top 10 for the first time since Dec. 6, 2020 (No. 9). Following Miami’s win over FSU on Oct. 26, UM cracked the AP top 5 for the first time since 2017.

• Bolstered by the addition of several impressive newcomers and anchored by a talented group of returning veterans, the Hurricanes were ranked in the top 25 of both preseason polls – checking in at No. 19 in both polls.

• Miami spent four weeks in the top 25 of 2022 (preseason, Sept. 6, Sept. 11, Sept. 18 polls) and also cracked the top 25 rankings of both polls for four weeks in 2023 (Sept. 10, Sept. 17, Sept. 24, Oct. 1). It was in the rankings of both polls for the entirety of the 2024 season heading into its bowl matchup with Iowa State on Dec. 28.

RECORD 17 CANES EARN ALL-ACC RECOGNITION

• Seventeen Miami Hurricanes were recognized with end-of-season distinction from the Atlantic Coast Conference; Miami’s 17 selections best the previous program record of 16, which was set during the 2017 season.

• QB Cam Ward, WR Xavier Restrepo, DT Simeon Barrow Jr. and PK Andres Borregales headlined the Miami student-athletes represented, as the quartet earned All-ACC First Team plaudits.

• TE Elijah Arroyo, OT Francis Mauigoa, LB Francisco Mauigoa and S Mishael Powell comprised the Hurricanes’ second-team honorees. Restrepo and Borregales collected First Team All-ACC accolades for the second straight year, while Francisco Mauigoa took home second-team praise in back-to-back seasons.

• RB Damien Martinez, WR Jacolby George, OT Jalen Rivers, OG Anez Cooper, C Zach Carpenter, DE Tyler Baron, DE Rueben Bain Jr., DT Akheem Mesidor and CB OJ Frederique Jr. were All-ACC Honorable Mention.

MIAMI HEADS BACK TO CAMPING WORLD STADIUM

• The Hurricanes have played in “The City Beautiful” Orlando multiple times for bowl games, including most recently, the 2020 Cheez-It Bowl. The Hurricanes also played in the 2009 Champs Sports Bowl, the 2013 Russell Athletic Bowl and the 2016 Russell Athletic Bowl in the same stadium; Miami is 1-3 in bowl games in Orlando.

EXCEPT FOR ONE: WARD A 2024 HEISMAN FINALIST

• Miami added one of the top quarterbacks in the country in the January transfer window, signing QB Cam Ward after two dominant years at Washington State. Ward, who began his career at FCS program Incarnate Word in 2020, started all 25 games of his Washington State career across 2022 and 2023. He finished his time at Wazzu with 6,963 passing yards and 48 passing touchdowns compared to 16 interceptions, and also added 13 rushing touchdowns in two years with WSU. He was one of four finalists to attend New York’s Heisman Trophy ceremony.

• Ward won the 2024 Davey O’Brien Award and also became the first Miami Hurricane to ever win ACC Player of the Year honors. A consensus NCAA All-America, Ward additionally took home ACC Offensive Player of the Year.

• At the FBS level, Ward has 21 career performances of 300-or-more passing yards (including seven straight to start this season, the first UM quarterback to ever have seven consecutive 300-yard games). At the end of the 2024 regular season, 21 games of 300-or-more pass yards was the fourth-most among active FBS players.

• Ward (36) has more touchdown passes than any quarterback in Miami in a single season, surpassing Steve Walsh’s previous UM standard of 29, set in 1988. A fifth-year senior, Ward (17,994) ended the regular season in third place on the NCAA’s all-time, all-division passing list, trailing only Case Keenum (19,217) and Dillon Gabriel.

• Ward’s 1,035 yards through the air in his first three games were the second-most in program history over a three game start to the season, trailing only Craig Erickson’s 1,126 in 1990. He passed Gino Torretta’s 1991 start (989) with 346 in a 62-0 win over Ball State. Ward exited the first four games early with UM sporting substantial leads.

• In his first start as a Hurricane, Ward threw for 385 yards, three touchdowns and one interception on 26-for-35 passing in a road win over Florida. The 385 yards were the most by a Hurricane quarterback in the first start of his Miami career in the modern era of Hurricanes Football (since 1979). He added 33 rushing yards on three carries.

• He was the first Miami quarterback to throw for 300 yards and three touchdowns in a season opener since Ken Dorsey did so at Penn State in 2001. Ward was named ACC Quarterback of the Week and Maxwell Award National Player of the Week for his performance against the Gators. He was also named Davey O’Brien Quarterback of the Week, a member of the Davey O’Brien Award “Great Eight” and a Manning Award Star of the Week.

• He passed for 2,260 yards and an FCS-leading 24 touchdowns against four interceptions with two rushing touchdowns in six games during the shortened 2020–21 FCS season, which was played in spring 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. He won the Jerry Rice Award as the most outstanding freshman in Division I FCS.

• Ward was named the ACC Preseason Player of the Year in a poll of conference media at the league’s annual “ACC Kickoff” event in Charlotte. Before transferring to Washington State, Ward was named Southland Conference Offensive Player of the Year in his final year at UIW (2021), totaling 4,648 passing yards and 47 touchdowns.

• A native of West Columbia, Texas – with a population of 3,700 – Ward was a “zero star” recruit out of high school. Though he starred in high school, he threw for only 1,070 yards as a junior and had 12 passing attempts per game as a senior due to the program’s focus on running the football.

UM ON HUNT FOR 1ST 11-WIN SEASON SINCE 2003

• With a 42-14 victory over Wake Forest on Nov. 23, the Hurricanes made it 10 wins for only the second time since 2003 and first time since 2017. The Canes have not won 11 games since 2003, when they finished 11-2 overall.

OFFENSE RANKS #1 IN EXPLOSIVES, 500+ GAMES

• At the conclusion of the regular season, Miami was ranked No. 1 in plays of 10-or-more yards (237) and No. 1 in plays of 20-or-more yards (91). Of the 91 plays of 20-or-more yards, 72 are passing – the most in FBS. Of the 199 plays of 10-or-more yards, 171 are passing – second-most in FBS. UM had only 48 passing plays of 20-or-more and 129 of 10-or-more yards in 2023. Miami was No. 1 in FBS in games of 500-or-more yards (10) this season.

HURRICANES ARE FBS’ BEST 4TH-QUARTER TEAM

• Miami is ranked No. 2 in FBS in scoring differential in second halves; UM’s +14.00 scoring difference is ahead of Ohio State (+12.92), Notre Dame (+12.17) and Penn State (+10.23) and trails only Indiana (+14.08).

• Miami’s +9.58 scoring differential in the fourth quarter this season stands as the best mark in the nation.

UM GOES “THREE-AND-OUT” LESS THAN ANY TEAM

• Against FBS competition, Miami’s offense has gone three-and-out on just 5.51% of drives this season, which ranks as the best mark in the country. Only one other team in the nation has a three-and-out percentage of less than 10% on offense – No. 1 Miami (5.51%) and No. 2 LSU (9.09%). The Hurricanes average 3.14 points per possession – the best in FBS – and averaged 1.60 plays per point – the third-most efficient in the nation behind Indiana (1.52) and Notre Dame (1.58). The Hurricanes punted on only 18.9% of possessions – the lowest mark in FBS.

UM ONE OF JUST SEVEN IN TOP-25 OF TOTAL O+D

• Miami ranks in the top 25 of both total offense (#1) and total defense (#24) at the conclusion of the regular season – five of the other seven schools to qualify for the list were CFP teams, and the other was Ole Miss.

O-LINE NAMED JOE MOORE AWARD HONOR ROLL

• The Hurricanes’ offensive line was one of 22 groups named to the midseason honor roll for the Joe Moore Award honoring the nation’s top unit. Despite missing two players who started the opener for a stretch of five games, the Hurricanes made the cut for the second straight year. Mario Cristobal’s OL won the award at Alabama in 2015. CONTROLLING THE CLOCK: CANES TOP 10 IN FBS

• While Miami’s offense has been among the most prolific in the country through the regular season, the Hurricanes have also methodically controlled the clock this year. UM ranks No. 9 in FBS in time of possession.

WARD, X NAMED CONSENSUS ALL-AMERICANS

• The Hurricanes had two players earn consensus All-America recognition in QB Cam Ward and WR Xavier Restrepo; it marked the first time Miami had two first-team All-Americans in the same season since 2020, when both Jaelan Phillips and Jose Borregales were both recognized. A semifinalist for the Biletnikoff Award, Restrepo set new school records for career receptions (200) and career receiving yards (2,844) in a standout career at Miami.

MIAMI AMONG MOST EFFICIENT SCORING TEAMS

• Even as the nation’s most prolific offense, the Hurricanes have managed an impressive level of efficiency. Against FBS Competition:

• The Hurricanes score points on 58.27% of their offensive possessions – the best-mark in the nation. Miami scores touchdowns on 46.46% of possessions, which also represents the best mark in all of FBS.

• Miami’s 5.51% three-and-out percentage on offense is by far the best such mark in the nation.

• The Hurricanes’ 18.90% punt percentage on all offensive drives is the lowest such mark in the nation.

• The Hurricanes’ 3.14 points-per-possession average is the best mark in the country.