Miami vs. FSU: Score, Highlights and Twitter Reaction

The No. 12 Florida State Seminoles survived a near-comeback from the in-state and ACC rival Miami Hurricanes on Saturday at Doak Campbell Stadium in Tallahassee, Florida, hanging on for a 29-24 win. 

Seminoles running back Dalvin Cook, hindered by an ailing hamstring, finished with 269 all-purpose yards and three touchdowns—including a 23-yard go-ahead rushing score with six minutes, 44 seconds remaining in the game.

The Seminoles defense triumphed, forcing an incomplete pass on a Miami fourth down with 53 seconds remaining to secure the win.

FSU head coach Jimbo Fisher improved to 6-0 against Miami, as Florida State's Twitter account noted in flyover fashion:

Miami took its first lead thanks to a 29-yard touchdown connection from quarterback Brad Kaaya to receiver Stacy Coley—the ensuing extra point gave the Hurricanes a 24-23 advantage and handed FSU its first deficit of the season, according to Bud Elliott of Tomahawk Nation.

As the game dwindled, it looked like the story would be missed opportunities by FSU. 

Earlier in the fourth, the Seminoles couldn’t turn a critical end-zone pass-interference call against Miami into a touchdown and had to settle for one of kicker Roberto Aguayo’s three successful field goals in four attempts, extending their lead to 23-17.

That came after Kaaya led a 17-play, 80-yard drive that yielded a one-yard touchdown catch by running back Joseph Yearby and pulled the Hurricanes to within three. The Hurricanes tweeted their approval:

Kaaya finished 29-of-49 for 405 yards with three touchdowns and a 148.8 passer rating. But Cook emerged as the game's most valuable player—particularly given his health heading into Saturday.

Cook left FSU’s 24-16 win over Wake Forest in Week 5 with a hamstring injury and was limited in practice leading up to Saturday’s win over Miami, according to Brendan Sonnone of the Orlando Sentinel. 

With all the Heisman Trophy hype surrounding LSU Tigers superstar Leonard Fournette, Cook hasn’t emerged in the spotlight, as Travis Haney of ESPN.com noted:

Florida State remains unbeaten and is in the midst of an eight-game slate in the Atlantic Coast Conference. The fate of the ACC appears to be riding on the Seminoles' Nov. 7 showdown at No. 6 Clemson, who defeated Georgia Tech 43-24 on Saturday.

Miami is now riding a two-game losing streak and will take on Virgina Tech next week at home.

Postgame Reaction

Did Saturday offer a possible preview of a looming rematch in the ACC title game?

Kaaya didn't think this would be the only meeting between the two rivals this year, per Matt Porter of the Palm Beach Post:

Fisher offered nothing but praise for Miami in his postgame press conference, per Rivals.com.

"Hats off to Miami," Fisher said. "I knew they would come in here and play well. I knew they wouldn't quit. I knew they would play hard. That's a talented football team. ... That's what Miami-Florida State is supposed to be about."

Hurricanes coach Al Golden, now 0-5 against FSU, expressed his disappointment to Susan Miller Degnan of the Miami Herald.

“I thought they were resilient. I thought they believed," Golden said. "Despite going down early they stayed together and we had opportunities to win. ... Just needed one more play. Just needed a takeaway."

This could be the kind of loss that catapults Miami, and time will tell when the Hurricanes host Clemson on Oct. 24.