No. 4 Miami dominated early and used a pair of late touchdowns to earn a 26-7 win over rival Florida on Saturday night at Hard Rock Stadium.

The Hurricanes (4-0) scored on their first two possessions and held the Gators to 32 yards of offense in the first half. Of Florida’s six drives in the first half, five were three-and-outs. But the Hurricanes got only 13 points out of their first six trips into Florida territory. Miami appeared to add another score when CharMar Brown churned a fourth-and-1 conversion into a 48-yard breakaway, but officials blew the play dead. The drive stalled, and the Hurricanes punted.

Florida kept the game close and finally broke through in the third quarter with a 7-yard touchdown rush by Jadan Baugh and, on the next play from scrimmage, an interception from defensive back Cormani McClain. The Hurricanes’ swarming defense kept Florida from doing anything with the extra chance. Miami tacked on short scoring runs by Brown and Mark Fletcher Jr. in the final five minutes to secure a 4-0 start for the third consecutive season.

The Gators opened the season with a win against Long Island but have dropped three in a row against South Florida, LSU and Miami. They are 1-3 for the first time since 1986 heading into an idle week. The culprit was an offense that went 0-for-13 on third down — Florida’s first game without a conversion since 2016 against Florida State. Miami held Florida to only 141 yards. That’s the lowest by the Gators since amassing 151 in a loss to Missouri in 2013.

It might be the last time the Gators and Hurricanes meet in the regular season for a while. The in-state rivals aren’t scheduled to play again – and with the SEC adopting a nine-game league schedule beginning next season, it’s unclear whether the opportunity will arise going forward.

The questions about Billy Napier’s future will continue

If Saturday was another referendum on Napier’s job, it was an ink-blot test that allows you to make whatever conclusion you wish. Critics will point to another loss that dropped him to 4-16 against ranked opponents and 3-12 against rivals (0-3 against Georgia, 1-2 against Tennessee and Florida State and 1-3 against LSU).

Napier and former Alabama colleague Mario Cristobal took over peer programs in the same coaching cycle; Cristobal has now beaten Napier by multiple scores in back-to-back years. The fact that Florida appeared to field only 10 players on a Miami field goal — a recurring problem during the 2023 season — raises questions about how much progress there has been.

Unless I’m missing something pic.twitter.com/ZmROMqUz8f

— Matt Baker (@MattBakerCFB) September 21, 2025

On the other hand, Florida was competitive for 55 minutes against a nationally ranked team, just like last week. The Gators have not quit on Napier, and they were playing without three key defensive linemen, including.NFL Draft prospect Caleb Banks. Those are points Napier supporters can cite, even as his overall record fell to 20-22.

Napier’s path ahead doesn’t get much easier. After an open date, Florida hosts No. 8 Texas and travels to No. 10 Texas A&M with No. 5 Georgia, No. 13 Ole Miss, No. 15 Tennessee and No. 7 Florida State looming later this fall.

Napier’s buyout is 85 percent of what’s left on his contract; that’s about $19.4 million at the end of this contract year. — Matt Baker

This story will be updated.

(Photo: Carmen Mandato / Getty Images)

Sep 21, 2025

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