No. 4 Miami looks to stay perfect in battle with Georgia Tech

With every week that passes, the No. 4 Miami Hurricanes' pursuit of their first Atlantic Coast Conference title and College Football Playoff appearance grows closer.

After Tuesday's CFP rankings placed the Hurricanes in the four-spot, Miami knows where it stands in the committee's mind ahead of Saturday's game in Atlanta against the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets.

Miami (9-0, 5-0 ACC), one of the nation's five remaining undefeated teams, was included in the CFP poll for the first time since 2020 and sits at its highest ranking since it was No. 2 in November 2017.

The Hurricanes' 5-0 conference mark has them tied with SMU atop the ACC leaderboard. Miami has only appeared in the ACC Championship Game once, a 38-3 loss to Clemson in 2017.

Despite its perfect record, the Hurricanes haven't gone through the season without a handful of scares. Miami rallied from a 10-point, fourth-quarter deficit in its 38-34 win over Virginia Tech and a 25-point deficit in a 39-38 win at California before overcoming a pesky Duke team last time out. The Hurricanes trailed the Blue Devils 28-17 in the third quarter at home on Saturday before pulling away for a 53-31 victory.

Behind quarterback Cam Ward's 3,146 passing yards and 29 touchdowns, the 2024 season has brought back relevance to a Miami program that hasn't won a postseason game in eight years.

"I think our hunger is growing," Miami head coach Mario Cristobal said. "We recognize what a blessing it is to be in November and playing very significant football. I think we understand the importance of focusing on 1-0 and nothing else matters besides our current opportunity."

The explosive Hurricanes offense leads the nation with 556.9 yards and 47.4 points per game. As consistent as the unit has been for Miami, its opponent this week finds itself on the other side of the spectrum.

Georgia Tech (5-4, 3-3) has lost two straight, most recently being held without a touchdown in its 21-6 loss at Virginia Tech. A major factor in the skid has been the absence of quarterback Haynes King. The second-year starter left a 41-34 win at North Carolina on Oct. 12 with a shoulder injury and hasn't played since.

King, who has thrown eight touchdowns to just one interception, adding 353 rushing yards and six scores on the ground, was filled in for by Zach Pyron and Aaron Philo. Pyron completed just 10 of 22 passes for 76 yards in Georgia Tech's loss to Virginia Tech, before being benched for third-stringer Aaron Philo, who threw for 184 yards in the defeat.

According to head coach Brent Key, King's status is still up in the air.

"We're hopeful," Key said. "I don't have anything else to tell you other than he is day-to-day. He is improving, he practiced, he is out there so we will see and it will be a game-time decision."

A win Saturday would be Georgia Tech's sixth, making them bowl eligible for a second straight year for the first time since appearing in a bowl every season from 1997-2014.

--Field Level Media