Malachi Toney keeps giving No. 1 Miami Hurricanes reasons to celebrate
Malachi Toney had just caught a touchdown in double overtime for the Miami Hurricanes against their in-state rival Florida State Seminoles on Saturday night and immediately knew what he wanted to come next.
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The sophomore star wide receiver wanted to be the one throw the ball on the ensuing two-point conversion attempt.
Why?
“I wanted to celebrate,” Toney said with a smile before cupping his right hand over his mouth and waving his left arm — the same celebration former UM quarterback Cam Ward did during his record-setting 2024 campaign.
Toney got his wish — and both he and the Hurricanes had reason to celebrate afterward. He floated a perfect pass to Cooper Barkate in the end zone to cap the eight-point possession and then his defense held firm to make the points stand as the difference in Miami’s 43-35 win over FSU.
The Hurricanes (6-0, 4-0 Atlantic Coast Conference) are now the No. 1 team in the country in the AP top 25 poll for the first time since 2002 entering their home game against the Pittsburgh Panthers (5-2, 2-2 ACC) on Saturday (noon, ESPN).
“Just keep going forward,” Toney said.
Toney, with his undeniable swagger and skill at just 19 years old, continues to be a big reason for the Hurricanes’ undefeated run to begin this season.
Toney caught 11 passes for 154 yards and two touchdowns, ran for another 31 yards and threw that double-overtime two-point conversion against the Seminoles for one of the best all-around performances of his young, yet already record-setting Hurricanes career.
Saturday marked his third career game with at least 100 receiving yards and two touchdowns, putting him in a five-way tie for the most in UM history along with Santana Moss, Andre Johnson, Phillip Dorsett and Charleston Rambo.
Through six games this season, Toney already has 50 catches (tied for third nationally), for 758 yards (fourth nationally) and eight touchdown catches (tied for fifth nationally). He has multiple touchdown catches in two of six games, double-digit catches in three of six games and at least 100 receiving yards in four of six games.
“The kid,” quarterback Darian Mensah said, “is special.”
Opponents know that — and have known that since he made his debut last season with a six-catch, 82-yard, one-touchdown performance in Miami’s opener against Notre Dame — and they still can’t stop him.
He caught every pass that went his way on Saturday against FSU and 50 of 56 targets from Mensah overall this season.
“The ball goes to him a good bit because he’s a really good football player,” offensive coordinator Shannon Dawson said, “and the quarterback trusts him.”
Toney continues to climb multiple UM all-time leaderboards. His 159 career catches rank fourth all-time in UM history, while his 1,969 career receiving yards are 10th and his 18 receiving touchdowns ninth. It’s not out of the realm of possibility that he breaks all three records (200 catches and 2,844 receiving yards by Xavier Restrepo, 26 touchdowns by Michael Irvin) by the end of the year.
The same can be said resetting the school’s single-season records. Toney already has the records for catches and receiving yards with 109 and 1,211, respectively, set as a freshman last year, while the single-season receiving touchdowns is 13 by Leonard Hankerson in 2010.
Oh, and don’t forget his impact goes beyond catching the ball. He’s an elite blocker in the run game despite being just 5-11 and 193 pounds. He can run on trick plays as well, evidenced most recently by his 30-yard rush in the fourth quarter that set up Javian Mallory’s 5-yard rushing touchdown to tie the score at 21-21. He ran 23 times for 113 yards and a touchdown as a freshman.
And as a former quarterback growing up, he can still sling it when given the chance. Toney completed 4 of 7 passes for 82 yards and two touchdowns last season.
He finally got the chance to throw again on Saturday, and it paid off for the Hurricanes.
“Everybody knows he can throw it,” Dawson said. “Finding ways to get wrinkles where it’s him doing other things is something I think about all the time.”
UM-UNC game time set
The Hurricanes’ road game against the North Carolina Tar Heels on Oct. 31 is scheduled for a 7:30 p.m. kickoff and will broadcast on either ABC or ESPN, the ACC announced Monday.
Network designation will be announced following the conclusion of this week’s games.
Miami is 11-14 all-time against UNC, who they last played in 2023. The Hurricanes lost each of their past five matchups with the Tar Heels.
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