Miami Hurricanes get contributions from all over on defense in win over FAMU

On a night in which No. 12 Miami dominated Florida A&M in every facet, the Hurricanes’ defense was especially outstanding, particularly the defensive line.

And no one wreaked more havoc than defensive end Tyler Baron.

Baron led the team with three sacks — he’s the eighth ‘Canes player in the past 20 years to get three in a game — and 3.5 tackles for a loss in addition to a team-high tying five tackles overall in the 56-9 triumph Saturday night at Hard Rock Stadium.

“He’s built like an avatar,” Miami coach Mario Cristobal said.

Baron laughed.

“I think that’s a compliment,” he said. “I’m not sure.”

“He’s explosive. Just has one of the most natural feels for the game of anyone I’ve ever seen,” Cristobal added of Baron. “He understands leverage angles. He’s really smart. He’s locked in. He’s in tune with what’s going on. He’s always trying to figure out how to get better. He works hard. He’s tough. He checks all the boxes.

“And now he’s full throttle. He’s showing everybody what he’s about. That guy is another hungry, driven dude.”

Miami’s defense didn’t allow a touchdown Saturday, held FAMU to 190 yards (an average of 3.6 yards per play) and forced three turnovers — interceptions by Wesley Bissainthe, Adarius Hayes and Bobby Pruitt. It was the first career pick for all three linebackers.

“Wesley is off to a great start,” Cristobal said. “He had a great camp and surely the best is yet to come for him.”

The ‘Canes also racked up 10 tackles for loss and five sacks.

“[The defensive line] seemed to get relentless pressure on the quarterback and do a good job stopping the run,” Cristobal said.

At the center of that was Baron. The 6-foot-5, 260-pound redshirt junior, who had two tackles for loss and a sack against Florida in the season opener, has made an instant impact since transferring from Tennessee. Two games into the 2024 season, he’s well on his way to surpassing his totals for tackles for loss (10.5) and sacks (six) from last season.

“I’ve tried to take very opportunity. Not waste any time,” Baron said.

He added, “I just want to be the best version of me, maximize this year and be the best teammate I can be. I feel like I’ve done it a little bit, but I definitely think there is a lot of room to grow for me.”

Baron had never gotten three sacks in a game in 49 career games before Saturday, so “it was a big night for me.” At the same time, he was already looking forward to Miami’s next game, against Ball State.

Saturday’s game provided the ‘Canes a chance to give playing time to many young players on the defense, something that’s “really imperative,” Baron said.

“The biggest thing is giving them the confidence to believe in themselves so later in the season when we do need them, they will be ready to have a big impact,” he said.

Florida A&M’s best chance at a touchdown came late in the first quarter when quarterback Daniel Richardson threw a 10-yard completion to Koby Gross to Miami’s 4-yard line. A roughing the passer penalty at the end of the play gave the Rattlers first-and-goal from the 2.

The ‘Canes stuffed three consecutive runs by the Rattlers and forced a field goal.

“The [first-team defense], I don’t know what they held them to, but I believe it was in the 20s [in terms of yards],” Cristobal said. “Early, we pulled them out and got some reserves in. [The reserves] started bending a little bit, so we had to put them back in.

“But then when the reserves started playing well, we let them roll.”