Miami Gardens, FL. – For the third consecutive season, the contest for the Boots was highly competitive.
The Louisville Cardinals produced four turnovers, including a decisive interception in the final seconds, to narrowly defeat the second-ranked Miami Hurricanes 24-21 on Friday night before an audience of 66,573 at Hard Rock Stadium.
The Cardinals improved their record to 5-1 overall and 2-1 in the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC), while Miami dropped to 5-1 overall and 1-1 in conference play. Louisville reclaimed the Schnellenberger Trophy, a pair of bronze boots honoring legendary coach Howard Schnellenberger, who served as head coach for both programs.
“They’re a lot of fun. Anytime you play these types of games, you put in a lot of work. I am not gonna lie. I was stressed out because I wanted to win bad and I wanted to have a plan that would work and give our players hope,” Cardinals head coach Jeff Brohm said. “It was a rough two weeks to try to get that done, but we put the work in, and you just got, you know, when you get to the field, you got to relax and roll out the dice and play ball, and I just think our players responded. These type of games, you just got to be aggressive. You can’t be conservative.”
This was Miami’s first home loss since their 2023 home finale against Louisville.
Miami Hurricanes Begin ACC Conference Play with Victory over Florida State
Louisville’s defense limited the Hurricanes to just 64 rushing yards and intercepted quarterback Carson Beck four times. Cardinals running back Isaac Brown rushed for 113 yards on 15 carries, and quarterback Miller Moss passed for 248 yards and two touchdowns—both to wide receiver Chris Bell, who totaled 136 yards on nine receptions.
Beck completed 25 of 35 pass attempts for 271 yards. Wide receiver Malachi Toney had an exceptional game with nine receptions for 135 yards and a 12-yard rushing touchdown. Fellow wideout CJ Daniels added seven catches for 74 yards.
“They did a good job lining up to stop the run and playing zone behind it with eyes on the ball. They made some really good plays, and I was probably a little too aggressive at times. That’s on me,” Hurricanes quarterback Carson Beck said. “We have to protect the ball better. It’s unacceptable, but credit to them, they played hard. A lot of those mistakes didn’t have to happen, and there’s a lot we can fix starting with me.”
Defensively, Miami was led by cornerback Keionte Scott, who recorded nine tackles, one sack, three tackles for loss, and a forced fumble. Linebackers Wesley Bissainthe and Mohamed Toure each had six tackles, while safety Zechariah Poyser contributed six tackles and a fumble recovery.
Louisville started the game strongly, moving the ball into Miami territory early. A 28-yard run by Brown set up a first-and-goal situation. Although the drive initially stalled, holder David Chapeau scrambled into the one-yard line, setting up a touchdown run by Moss to give Louisville an early 7-0 lead.
Following a defensive stand aided by a personal foul penalty, Louisville surged again, with Moss connecting with Bell for a 36-yard touchdown after crossing midfield, extending their lead to 14-0 within the first ten minutes.
Miami responded quickly with key plays by Beck to Daniels and Toney, driving inside Louisville’s six-yard line. Running back Mark Fletcher scored on a two-yard run, cutting the deficit to seven.
“Obviously disappointing evening and outcome. At the end of the day credit to them, certainly they played a good game, but we didn’t coach well enough we didn’t execute well enough, and certainly came up short — just not good enough,” Hurricanes head coach Mario Cristobal said. “A lot of different aspects, certainly ourselves with some penalties, but really again, our guys played with a great effort and all the way to the end. We gave ourselves a chance to tie it and win the game, but did not overcome all the issues that we caused ourselves, and again, it’s really good play by the opponent as well.”
The Hurricanes forced a punt early in the second quarter and advanced the ball into Louisville territory, but Beck was intercepted by linebacker Antonio Watts, halting the drive. Louisville then moved into Miami’s red zone, but the Miami defense held, and Carter Davis connected on a 27-yard field goal to narrow the gap to 14-10. The halftime score remained unchanged as Louisville managed only 71 yards in the second quarter after an initial burst of 121 yards in the first.
In the third quarter, Louisville extended its lead with a 61-yard reception by Toney, setting up a field goal by Carter Davis, making the score 17-13. Subsequently, Moss found Bell in the end zone for a 36-yard touchdown, increasing Louisville’s advantage to 24-13.
Miami fought back, with Toney scoring on a 12-yard rush and catching a successful two-point conversion pass from Beck, closing the gap to 24-21. However, Louisville regained possession and executed crucial stops, including a key tackle by Scott on Keyjuan Brown, preventing a first down late in the game.
The final minutes saw Miami drive into Louisville territory, but an interception by linebacker T.J. Capers ended their efforts, allowing Louisville to run out the clock.
Miami is scheduled to return home to Hard Rock Stadium on Saturday, October 25, to face Stanford. The game will kick off at 7 p.m. and will be broadcast on ESPN.
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