Let the talk between UM and FSU begin: ‘We’re going to continue to beat Florida State’

And so it begins. No one was expecting these two teams to just get to Saturday without taking any jabs at the opponent, play a friendly football game and shake hands after, right?

Not when the Miami Hurricanes and Florida State Seminoles square off.

UM junior cornerback DJ Ivey fired first on Tuesday.

“All I know is Miami Hurricanes, and they don’t lose to Florida State,” Ivey said. “That’s all coach [Manny] Diaz preached: We don’t lose to Florida State, and we’re going to continue to beat Florida State. I’m 2-0. I plan to be 4-0.”

Current Hurricanes are entitled to feel confident going in. They’ve won the past three in the rivalry. They’re coming off an impressive 47-34 win at Louisville. Meanwhile, Florida State lost its opener to Georgia Tech, and will be without coach Mike Norvell, who tested positive for COVID-19, on game day.

Miami’s senior class can go 4-0 in their college careers against FSU with a win, but that hasn’t been the case in a long time in Coral Gables. The Seminoles won the previous seven installments before the current UM streak, so there are several classes that never got to taste victory against the rivals from Tallahassee.

“I don’t think we would be anything if it weren’t for the older guys that came before us,” said senior safety Amari Carter. “I was part of that freshman class that ended the streak of seven with Florida State winning, but it was the older guys that really held it down and showed us the ropes. Ever since then, we’ve just been trying to battle, keep the streak going.”

Interestingly enough, Carter said he grew up an FSU fan because of alumni in the family.

“I was on the other side of the thing, but I didn’t know any better,” he said. “My mom, she went to Florida State, my uncle went to Florida State, I have cousins that went to Florida State, but all of that was ended when I came to Miami. The whole family, they went to Florida State, but of course, they’re going for me.”

Better Bolden

After Diaz revealed on Monday that redshirt junior safety Bubba Bolden sent him a text vowing to play better — after a performance that earned him ACC Defensive Back of the Week, no less — Bolden disclosed what he sent his coaches.

“I reached out to all the guys — [defensive coordinator Blake] Baker, [safeties coach Epraim] Banda and coach Diaz — and just said, ‘I could play better. I’ll do better next game, and I’ll really lock in this week,'” Bolden said.

Bolden had 11 tackles, one for loss, and a forced fumble in the win.

“On paper, it looked good,” Bolden said. “I played hard. I played fast, but when it comes down to our scheme of things and some of my assignments, I could’ve done a lot better. There could’ve been a lot more plays, maybe I wouldn’t have had those tackles, maybe I would’ve had a [pass breakup] or an interception.”

On one third-quarter drive, in particular, Bolden allowed Louisville star receiver Tutu Atwell to make two catches, one which went for a touchdown to cut Miami’s lead to one possession.

Bolden has recovered from his ankle injury suffered in celebration of an interception against Florida State last year. He said, while he felt ready to return the one week of spring that UM had before the coronavirus pandemic halted athletic activities, he truly felt 100 percent two weeks later.

“It’s been a long journey, but I had to stay down for the come-up,” said Bolden. “Now, I’m here, and I’ve got a lot more I got to get better at.”

Added Ivey of Bolden against Louisville: “He was flying around like crazy. Without him out there, I don’t know who would make those tackles.”

Ivey responds

Ivey drew the ire of a lot of Hurricanes fans after he didn’t play well in the opener against UAB, giving up the first touchdown that night and another catch over the top of him later. He understood the frustration from fans, took the criticism and bounced back for a solid performance against Louisville.

“It’s not a big deal. They’re fans. It’s what they’re supposed to do,” Ivey said. “Only thing I’m worried about is what the teammates, what my coaches believe or think about me. I’m not too concerned about the outside. That’s what they’re supposed to do. They’re going to judge. I just continue to play ball. That’s all.”

On what was missing from him in Game 1, Ivey said, “It was more focus. I wasn’t too much locked in on the game and the task that was at hand that was presented to me. Next game, I just came back locked in. You just got to come to work.”