Florida vs. Miami: Biggest Takeaways from Hurricanes' 21-16 Win

Miami got two first-half touchdown passes from quarterback Stephen Morris and forced five Florida turnovers to beat the No. 12 team in the nation, 21-16, on Saturday afternoon at Sun Life Stadium. 

The win should ensure the Hurricanes a spot in the AP poll for the first time since 2009. 

If you buy into this tweet from ESPN's Stats & Info, Miami could be headed for a marquee finish by the time the 2013 college football season is in the books:

The Hurricanes jumped out to a 14-6 lead by the end of the first quarter. Morris, who has notoriously struggled in big games against top opponents like the Gators, threw both of his touchdown strikes early on to set the tone for Al Golden's squad. 

Florida charged back after cutting the deficit to just five with a late second-quarter field goal, and Will Muschamp's defense came out hungry for more at the start of the second half. Each of Miami's four third-quarter drives ended with a punt. 

Of course, the Hurricanes knew Florida's defense was stout. ESPN SEC on Twitter had a closer look at just how stout with this post earlier in the week:

But it was Miami's defense that was crucial down the stretch, forcing two turnovers in the fourth quarter and capitalizing on the latter with a Duke Johnson touchdown that gave the "U" some breathing room.

Florida QB Jeff Driskel led his offense on a scoring drive with right around two minutes to play, but it wasn't enough to complete a comeback. 

As noted by ESPN's Kirk Herbstreit, it's been an outstanding start for ACC teams against SEC foes:

Now that the latest chapter of the Florida-Miami rivalry is in the books, there's more than a few storylines from South Beach worth discussing moving forward. We'll take a look at three of those aspects below. 

Hurricanes Finally Get Signature Win

It wasn't always pretty, but a win is a win.

Limited to just 212 yards of total offense and virtually unable to do anything with the ball after their first-quarter onslaught, the Hurricanes found a way to win ugly by forcing turnovers and taking advantage of Florida's mistakes. 

It's what good teams do. 

As noted by Gator Facts on Twitter prior to the game, Miami's success against top teams has just not been there since Larry Coker left the program:

Though technically not a top-10 team (started Week 2 at No. 12), Miami beating Florida is as big as it will get in college football this week. It doesn't help either squad with respect to conference dominance, but the win for Miami certainly means more than the loss does for Florida. 

The question moving forward is simple: Can Miami continue its early-season success?

Only one (Florida State) potential top-10 team looms on Miami's ACC schedule later this year, it's far too early to anoint the Hurricanes as "back" in the national title hunt. CBS Sports' Bruce Feldman, taking a look at the stats and defending his opinion on Twitter, agrees:

Time will tell if this win will be remembered as a springboard or an anomaly. 

Driskel Must Limit Turnovers for SEC Success

As Jeff Driskel goes, so do the Gators. 

Since taking over as the full-time starter last year, Driskel has shown composure, accuracy and a willingness to prioritize taking care of the ball under center for Muschamp. That being said, it's clear the Florida offense needs that effort on a weekly basis if this team is going to have success in the SEC. 

Just for comparison's sake, take a quick gander at Driskel's stats in wins versus those he's compiled in losses. 

Driskel accounted for three of Florida's five turnovers on the afternoon. If high turnover numbers persist as the Gators stare down teams like LSU (Oct. 12), Georgia (Nov. 2) and South Carolina (Nov. 16) over the next few weeks, there's a good chance the losses will pile up. 

Football teams just don't win many games where they turn the ball over five times. It's as simple as that. 

Driskel, in charge of the offense and in a position (QB) of leadership on the team, must ensure that his unit's performance is a one-week blip on the radar. If not, Florida faces an uphill battle and will lean too heavily on its defense to bail the offense out of jams. 

Dear Florida and Miami: Renew This Rivalry!

Across the country, certain college football rivalries are dying.

ESPN CollegeFootball noted as much on Twitter:

Although they've played just four times since 2003, Miami and Florida proved again on Saturday that there's as much passion, tension, intensity and organized violence waiting to brew in the Sunshine State as there is in any other college football traditional showdown.

Morris noted as much to Palm Beach Post reporter Matt Porter after the game:

Zero future matchups are currently scheduled between the two teams, but if Saturday was any indication, fans would pay top dollar for any home-and-home or neutral-site series between the two programs. 

Sports rivalries are an emotional thing. 

The Gators and the Hurricanes have gone at each other's throats for years, with Miami now holding a slight 29-26 advantage. Sure, the climax of the feud might have hit its breaking point in the 1980s, but there's no evidence to suggest a yearly battle wouldn't trigger deja vu. 

Here's looking at you, athletic directors Jeremy Foley and Blake James.

Negotiations might not be cordial, timely or even appropriate given the standard preference to face lighter opponents before conference play begins, but college football fans everywhere would be ecstatic if something could be worked out. 

Until then, Miami is fully within its right to boast about the latest outcome in the series. 

Follow B/R's Ethan Grant on Twitter.