Quarterback Cam Ward made his way toward the Miami tunnel as Hurricanes fans, decked out in green and orange, shouted to catch his attention.
Coach Mario Cristobal stopped Ward and guided him toward a large group of supporters who had been cheering behind their bench throughout the game, encouraging him to wave and give high-fives.
It was easy to see why the Hurricanes lingered on the field after the game, and why Cristobal wanted his players to acknowledge the fans. This victory carried extra significance—it was on the road, against an in-state rival, in a stadium where Miami hadn’t won in 22 years.
Ward was unquestionably the standout player in Miami’s decisive 41-17 win over Florida on Saturday, proving that the hype around the Hurricanes over the last nine months was justified. By the third quarter, “Let’s Go Canes” chants were echoing through the Swamp.
“Some advice to the fans: If you’re going to be loud, you have to be loud when we’re huddling. Can’t just be loud once we break the huddle. By that time, there’s no point. We hear the play. We communicated already. But it was a good atmosphere to play in. And I’m just excited now we were able to get a victory.” – Miami QB Cam Ward
At the start of the day, over 90,000 fans packed the stadium, but Ward silenced them with his agility, intelligence, and pinpoint accuracy. He threw for 385 yards—the most ever in a debut for the program—along with three touchdowns and one interception.
After the game, clearly annoyed that much of the pregame narrative focused on the idea that the Canes had never faced such a loud environment before, Ward had a pointed message for Gator fans.
“I played at USC,” said Ward, who transferred to Miami from Washington State. “USC wasn’t packed, but it was louder than this. I played in Oregon, it was louder than this. The Pac-12 gets misspoken for. Some advice to the fans: If you’re going to be loud, you have to be loud when we’re huddling. Can’t just be loud once we break the huddle. By that time, there’s no point. We hear the play. We communicated already. But it was a good atmosphere to play in. And I’m just excited now we were able to get a victory.”
Ward’s impact was undeniable. His unexpected arrival from the transfer portal in January, after initially declaring for the NFL draft, sparked optimism that the Hurricanes could finally have a breakout season in Cristobal’s third year. Miami also added key talent from the portal, including Damien Martinez, Tyler Baron, and Meesh Powell, but Ward stole the spotlight with his exceptional spring performance.
Now that the games count, he showed exactly why.
“Yeah, he’s not bad,” Cristobal said with a smile during his postgame news conference. “All the stuff that you guys were probably wondering during camp: ‘Man, they talk a lot about Cam Ward. Is he really that good?’ He’s just scratching the surface. Really accurate, improvised, extended plays. Every team has a spark plug. Every game has a spark plug. He was the guy today.”
Ward delivered plenty of highlight-worthy moments, but his standout play came in the third quarter. Forced to scramble left after being flushed from the pocket, he spotted Jacolby George in the back of the end zone. Ward unleashed a precise throw, and George made a brilliant 23-yard touchdown catch, carefully keeping his feet in bounds.
“He’s one of the best receivers in the scramble drill, and when you have a receiving corps like that, you have a tight end court like us, it’s hard to play man and play zone, because at some point someone is going to break on the defense,” Ward said. “We really didn’t get a chance to get in our bag like that as an offense [like] we really wanted to. Routine plays win games, and that’s something that we did.”
Was that touchdown pass to George really just an ordinary play?
“I’ve made plays like that before, so it’s a routine play to me,” Ward said. “Great catch by him. He was able to have good spatial awareness at the back of the end zone.”
This marked the fifth time in Ward’s career that he has thrown for 350 yards while completing at least 70% of his passes. According to ESPN Stats & Information, only two FBS quarterbacks—Michael Penix Jr. and Bo Nix—have more games with those stats since 2022.
Florida seldom got pressure on him, managing only nine pressures on 38 dropbacks. The game had a distinct feel, thanks not only to Ward’s performance but also to the physical and commanding play from the offensive line.
Cristobal, a former offensive lineman, has worked hard to build the Hurricanes in the trenches and said, “We’re playing Miami football now.” Of course, Miami fans have been filled with hope before following a big nonconference win that could potentially help springboard a championship season. Even last year, Miami beat Texas A&M in Week 2 on the way to a 4-0 start. But a botched kneel down against Georgia Tech sent the Hurricanes reeling, and they ended up 7-6.
Cristobal wasn’t ready to make any bold declarations after Saturday’s victory, but he certainly understood its significance. Now, Miami must use this win as a foundation to build upon.
“We’ve been working our butts off,” Cristobal said. “Getting a convincing win like that is great, but the most important thing that we talked about was for the first time in a long time, Miami’s had a chance to play a big-time game to start the season, and now we got to show we can handle that success and go get better. Today was a really, really big step.”
Or as Powell said, “This is just one game. We plan to go 16 more.”