FSU football: A glance at the Miami Hurricanes by the numbers

FSU football will look to continue its winning ways when they host the rival the Miami Hurricanes on Saturday at 3:30 ET on ABC. The Noles enter the contest as -14.5 point betting favorites, with a points total of 50.5. Those odds imply a 32-18 win for the Noles.

The Hurricanes lost to NC State on the road Saturday night as six-point betting favorites, with the Miami offense failing to muster much of anything.

Were they looking ahead to the FSU game? Maybe, but their offense has struggled in conference play all season, failing to surpass 24 points in regulation in every ACC game.

Miami had to go into overtime in the two weeks prior to eek out wins over Clemson and Virginia.

Here’s how they stack up by the numbers:

• 32.1 ppg
• 20.0 ppg allowed
• 6.48 ypp
• 4.97 ypp allowed
• 5.16 ypc
• 2.80 ypc allowed
• 43.12 percent third downs converted
• 35.94 percent third downs converted allowed

-Offensive FEI(opponent adjusted with garbage time removed): No. 60 nationally

-Defensive FEI (opponent adjusted with garbage time removed): No. 25 nationally

Thoughts

Miami has a real dilemma offensively. Do they send a beat-up Tyler Van Dyke, who has played poorly in his last few games against arguably the best defense they’ve faced all season? If it’s not Van Dyke, it’s freshman Emory Williams, who’s never played in an environment on the road like Doak Campbell Stadium when it’s rocking.

FSU hasn’t allowed more than 24 points in a game this year, and arguably the best offense Miami will have faced all season aside from North Carolina. The two offenses ranked inside the top 20 have scored 30+ points against Miami.

I’m sure Miami will start the game amped up with emotion from the rivalry, and FSU will need to avoid them finding confidence early. If the Noles can get a lead early, I wouldn’t be surprised to see Miami begin to fold to some adversity.