Saturday's showdown between No. 1 Miami and Pittsburgh was not a normal occurrence, even though the two schools have a long-running history across multiple conferences. No, Saturday marked the first time since 2002 that Miami played a game as the No. 1 team in the AP Top 25 poll. For 24 years, Miami has been working to get back to the position it held near the end of its magical run through the early 2000s, and Saturday was the first time the Hurricanes could put their newly-minted No. 1 status to the test.
Tensions have been tight, too, with No. 1 losing in back-to-back weeks. First, Texas lost to Oklahoma, then Georgia lost to Auburn, and now it's opened the door for the Hurricanes, who survived an upset scare against rival Florida State last week, to move up into the top spot. But the way Miami performed in a 29-point rout of the Panthers quickly put to bed the idea that No. 1 would be changing hands again after Week 8.
The Hurricanes were up 17-0 early and leading 31-7 at halftime, dropping three touchdowns after halftime for extra aesthetics on the 52-23 win. Miami's best players lived up to their billing, with Darian Mensah throwing for 387 yards on 31-of-37 passing with four touchdowns and Malachi Toney serving as the receiver for 16 catches on 17 targets for 194 yards and three of those scores. If Miami's ascent to No. 1 brought more attention, there wasn't much from Saturday's win that suggested the Hurricanes are anything but.
It's yet another marker of success for Mario Cristobal, leading his alma mater back to the ranks of national title contenders that he experienced as a player. Fans yearned for years for "The U" to be "back," but too often over the last 20 years, talented teams fell short. The kind of success the Hurricanes are enjoying now feels sustainable in a way we haven't seen since they were the No. 1 team in the AP Top 25 poll.
And while 2002 was the most recent time Miami was No. 1, Saturday was also special because it was a day Miami chose to honor the 2001 national championship team. Mensah and Toney spoke after the game about what it meant to have the program's legends around this year's team, with Mensah pointing out that it was not only "motivating" but also a great opportunity to soak up their football knowledge. Toney mentioned connecting with Andre Johnson and Ed Reed, providing plenty of fun for those seeking even more threads to the last time Miami ran college football.
Speaking of threads, the nostalgia hit even harder when Miami wore throwback uniforms honoring the 2001 national champions. The orange throwback uniforms over white pants with a white helmet were described by the school as a "legendary look," and it helped that the team put together a final score that would have fit right in with the dominant wins of that title team. "They inspired so many future Hurricanes that end up coming here to the University of Miami.
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