No. 7 Miami Annihilates Stanford in Season Opener Even With Some Glaring Issues
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Even with the electric and career offensive starts between Darian Mensah and Malachi Toney, No. 7 Miami (1-0, 1-0 ACC) has plenty to clean up after defeating Stanford (1-1, 0-1 ACC) 45-6 in the Canes' season opener.
The Hurricanes' passing attack was as advertised, quickly starting with Toney starting his career night in the first half alone.
The superstar wide receiver scored the first two touchdowns of the season thanks to some outstanding route running, runs after the catch, and dashing his way towards the end zone.
Completely baffled why Stanford is still covering Toney in man coverage. He is putting up a highlight reel pic.twitter.com/PoUcxe2Izv
— Billy M (@BillyM_91) September 5, 2026
Before the second quarter had started, Toney already had five catches for 89 yards and a touchdown. He finished the half with 10 receptions, 182 yards, and two touchdowns. A career half for the Heisman front-running receiver.
Malachi Toney's 182 first-half receiving yards tonight is a Miami program record.
— Tim Reynolds (@ByTimReynolds) September 5, 2026
Toney would finish the night with three touchdowns on 12 catches for 234 yards, setting the single-game receiving yards record in his season debut.
Moreover, Mensah was also outstanding in his Hurricanes debut. It's easy to play great when you are throwing to Toney, but it was more than just that from Mensah.
The Duke transfer was electric, pushing the ball down the field and hitting seven different targets in the game. He finished throwing for five touchdowns: three to Toney, one to Daylyn Upshaw, and another to his fellow Duke transfer, Cooper Barkate. Add to that completing 27-of-30 passes for 401 yards.
Mensah himself finished with his career high in passing yards and touchdowns.
Even with the offensive positives, the Hurricanes' defense looked out of sync at times.
Granted, Miami's defense did hold the Cardinal to six points after they scored 37 the previous game. Cardinal QB Davis Warren played a solid game; however, several miscues took the team out in the first half. Moreover, he diced up the middle of the field against Miami. The Canes' linebacker group is the weakest position group on the roster and will have a lot to fix.
Cristobal knows has to get better even if it's the first game of the season.
Moreover, the Hurricanes lost star corner OJ Frederique Jr. in the first drive of the game with an apparent shoulder injury. That threw everyone around and allowed the secondary to be attacked.
"You know, these guys, I thought that Toure showed up; I thought Poyser showed up in a big-time way; the Corners showed up," Cristobal said on SportsCenter. "We got a little bit banged up there. Hopefully we'll be okay. Again, Bryce Fitzgerald will keep strong. The interior line, knock them back a bit. So again, it's again, it's. When again, you'll be able to see the rest of it, with lots of stuff to clean up."
Furthermore, Cristobal was critical of his offensive line and its struggles to start the game before five-star freshman Jackson Cantwell was shuffled in and out of left guard to get the run game going.
Miami's rushing attack scored a touchdown but did not set the tone, unlike the College Football Playoff run. They failed to reach 100 rushing yards before pulling their starters.
"We had a lot of muddy runs tonight," Cristobal said. "They crammed the box, they made that choice, which, again, opened up some stuff outside, but even when it's muddy, you gotta get those muddy, bloody yards, you know, and go forward. So you, part of the way of our guys, we had I believe a couple freshmen start out front or play up front. Just have to clean it up."
The Hurricanes will take the positives and negatives from this matchup and turn their attention to a Thursday night matchup against Florida A&M in their home opener on ESPN at 8:00 p.m. ET,
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Justice Sandle is a graduate of Mississippi State University earning a Bachelor of Arts and Science in Communications with a concentration in Print and Digital Journalism. During his time in Starkville, he spent a year as an intern working for Mississippi State On SI primarily covering basketball, football, baseball, and soccer while writing, recording, and creating multimedia stories during his tenor. Since graduating, he has assumed the role of lead staff writer for Miami Hurricanes On SI covering football, basketball, baseball, and all things Hurricanes related.
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