Miami 52, Pittsburgh 23: Mensah and Toney put it away before halftime
Darian Mensah threw four touchdowns, three to Malachi Toney, as No. 1 Miami beat Pittsburgh 52-23, covered and went over.
No. 1 Miami settled this one in the last five minutes of the first half. Leading 17-7, the Hurricanes scored twice inside the final 1:50 of the second quarter to go into the break up 31-7. Pittsburgh never got closer than 24 points again.
The engine was Darian Mensah to Malachi Toney. Mensah completed 31 of 37 passes for 387 yards and four touchdowns. Toney caught 16 of them for 194 yards and three scores. Miami moves to 7-0. Pittsburgh drops to 5-3 and has now lost three straight.
How it was won
Miami opened with a 40-yard field goal from J. Weinberg at 7:21 of the first quarter, then Mensah found Toney for 19 yards with two minutes left in the period. Javian Mallory's 16-yard run early in the second quarter made it 17-0.
Pittsburgh answered at 4:36 with a 5-yard Damon Ferguson Jr. run. That was as close as it got. Mensah hit Toney for 53 yards at 1:50, then G. Mueller for 3 yards with 39 seconds left in the half.
The third quarter started the same way. Mark Fletcher Jr. scored from 2 yards out at 13:00 to make it 38-7. Holden Geriner found Cataurus Hicks for a 36-yard touchdown at 10:22, and Mallory replied with a 2-yard run at 4:33. Mensah's 11-yard throw to Toney early in the fourth made it 52-14.
Pittsburgh added the last nine points: a safety at 7:41 when G. Pringle Jr. was stopped for no gain in the end zone, and a 49-yard pass from C. Dailey to Cam Sapp with 46 seconds left.
The box score shows how complete it was. Miami outgained Pittsburgh 506 to 403, had 25 first downs to 18, and converted 10 of 15 third downs against Pittsburgh's 4 of 12. The Hurricanes held the ball for 36:20 and did not turn it over. Pittsburgh lost it once.
Mallory finished with 47 yards and two touchdowns on seven carries, and Fletcher had 41 yards on 13. Vandrevius Jacobs added three catches for 50 yards.
For Pittsburgh, Geriner went 18 of 32 for 268 yards and a touchdown. Hicks was the bright spot with five catches for 149 yards. Ferguson ran nine times for 39 yards and the team managed 69 rushing yards in all.
Against the number
Miami closed at -20.5 and won by 29, so the favorite covered comfortably. The Hurricanes were already past that margin at halftime.
The total closed at 50.5 and the teams combined for 75, an over by 24.5 points. Miami alone came within a point of the closing total.
The moneyline closed at Miami -1650 and Pittsburgh +950. The market had this as a mismatch, and it played like one. The full price history is on the game page.
What's next
Miami goes on the road Saturday, October 31, at North Carolina. The Tar Heels beat Pittsburgh 21-17 earlier this season. Miami has scored at least 33 points in every game so far and won at Clemson 41-13.
Pittsburgh returns home the same day to face Georgia Tech on ESPN2. The Panthers started 5-0, but since then they have lost 21-17 to North Carolina, 27-21 at Boston College and now this one. They need a result against Georgia Tech to stop the slide.
