The Miami Hurricanes will try to rebound from their loss at Notre Dame last week when they host Duke on Saturday. Miami dropped from first in the College Football Playoff rankings last week to seventh on Tuesday. The game against Duke begins a three-game Miami Hurricanes home stand to end the regular season. Miami hosts Virginia Tech on November 21 and Boston College on November 28 to conclude the 2026 regular season.
Miami Hurricanes Try to Rebound
Duke travels to Miami with seven wins and two losses overall and four victories and two defeats in the ACC. The Blue Devils are still in the running to earn an ACC Championship Game berth. Miami leads the ACC at 6-0 and is 8-1 overall. Wake Forest is second in the ACC with a 5-1 conference record, and the Demon Deacons control their own destiny to make the Championship Game.
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Louisville and SMU are a half-game ahead of Duke at 5-2. The Cardinals beat the Mustangs 41-31 on September 19 to control the tiebreaker. Miami needs to win two out of its last three games to clinch an ACC Championship Game berth. The winner of the ACC Championship Game earns an automatic berth into the College Football Playoff.
The key to Miami beating Duke will likely be controlling Blue Devils’ running back, Nate Sheppard. Sheppard is second nationally, averaging 132.11 rushing yards per game and fourth with 17 touchdowns. Sheppard is also second nationally, averaging 166.1 total yards per game, and leads the nation with 21 TDs.
Miami Run Defense Against Duke
Miami is first nationally, allowing 64.33 rushing yards per game and 25.89 carries per contest, and fourth, permitting 2.46 yards per carry. Florida State was the only team that ran successfully against Miami. The Seminoles had 34 carries for 138 yards and one TD against the Hurricanes. Miami held Notre Dame to 93 yards on 29 carries in a 31-24 loss last week.
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Sheppard was held to 231 yards on 62 carries with three TDs in losses at Georgia Tech and to North Carolina and a win at Virginia in October. Duke still kept Sheppard involved with 20 receptions for 200 yards in those three games. Virginia was the only team to hold Sheppard under 100 total yards in 2026. Sheppard had 15 carries for 55 yards and a TD and two receptions for 11 yards against Virginia.
Photo courtesy: Jaylynn Nash-Imagn Images
Miami Hurricanes Pass Defense Against Duke
Miami has struggled defending the pass throughout the 2026 season. The Hurricanes are 127th nationally, allowing 259.3 passing yards per game, 100th permitting 16 TDs through the air, 93rd with a 138.35 passer rating against, 99th with opponents completing 63.8 percent of their pass attempts, and tied for 106th with four interceptions.
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Miami’s task defensively will be to make Duke one-dimensional offensively. Miami’s defense against Duke’s offense features strength-against-strength and weakness-against-weakness. Duke is 133rd nationally, averaging 186.6 passing yards per game. Sheppard leads Duke with 32 receptions and four TD catches and is third with 306 receiving yards.
Miami Offense Against Duke Defense
Miami is first nationally, averaging 45.0 points per game against a Duke defense that is fifth, allowing 13.0 per contest. The biggest story of the game is Miami quarterback Darian Mensah and wide receiver Cooper Barkate playing against Duke. Barkate and Mensah led Duke to the 2025 ACC Championship. With Malachi Toney out, Barkate became Mensah’s top receiver against Notre Dame.
Duke has one of the top defenses nationally. The Blue Devils are 11th nationally, holding opponents to 282.1 total yards per game. Playing at Notre Dame last week against a tough defense should help Miami as the Hurricanes return home to host Duke.
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Miami Hurricanes Pass Offense Against Duke Defense
Miami is fourth nationally, averaging 325.3 passing yards per game. Mensah leads the nation with a 76.8 completion percentage and a 190.83 passer rating, while ranking seventh, posting 299.3 passing YPG, second with 28 TD passes, third at 9.8 yards per attempt, 12th with a 0.7 interception percentage and tied for fourth in TD-to-interception ratio.
Barkate had his best game for Miami with season highs of nine receptions and two TD catches for 75 yards against Notre Dame. Tight end Elija Lofton set career highs with seven receptions and 113 yards and a TD against Notre Dame. With Miami star WR Malachi Toney expected to remain out through the end of the regular season, expect Barkate and Lofton to continue being the top targets of Mensah.
Duke is tied for 29th with Georgia, allowing 186.6 passing YPG. The Blue Devils are 39th nationally with a 122.36 passer rating against, 62nd with opponents completing 60.8 percent of their pass attempts, and seventh allowing seven TDs. Illinois, with 271 passing yards, was the only opponent to throw for over 220 against Duke in 2026.
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Miami Hurricanes Rushing Offense Against Duke Defense
Miami is 29th, averaging 191.22 rushing YPF, and 16th with 5.33 YPC. Notre Dame held Miami to 101 rushing yards on 28 carries while keeping the Hurricanes out of the end zone. Duke is 12th, allowing 95.56 rushing YPG, 15th, permitting 3.01 YPC, and 13th, with opponents scoring six TDs on the ground. Miami has to be the more physical team against Duke.
Running backs Mark Fletcher Jr. and Javion Mallory need to be effective against Duke. Fletcher Jr. averages 4.8 YPC and Mallory 6.88. Establishing the run against Duke will be critical for Miami to open up the offense. Fletcher Jr. had 13 carries for 57 yards against Notre Dame. Miami needs more from Mallory after he had three carries for 14 yards against Notre Dame.
Main Image: Trevor Ruszkowski-Imagn Images
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Disclaimer : This story is auto aggregated by a computer programme and has not been created or edited by DOWNTHENEWS. Publisher: Sports.yahoo.com
