Football
By MARK LONG
AP Sports Writer
GAINESVILLE, Fla. (AP) — Cam Ward threw for 385 yards and three touchdowns – looking cool, calm and collected on a sweltering Saturday in the Swamp – and No. 19 Miami dominated Florida 41-17 to give coach Mario Cristobal a signature victory to start his third season at his alma mater.
The Hurricanes controlled both lines of scrimmage and never trailed in the renewal of a once-heated rivalry. The latest iteration was a one-sided beatdown, the kind that sent Florida fans scurrying for the exits in the third quarter and raised speculation about coach Billy Napier’s job security.
Napier fell to 11-15 in Gainesville, including 2-10 against ranked opponents and 1-8 against rivals Miami, Florida State, Georgia, LSU and Tennessee. The Gators lost their sixth consecutive game overall and witnessed the end of their 33-game winning streak in home openers, a run that started with Steve Spurrier’s arrival in 1990.
Little looked different to begin Year 3 and now Napier has to hope “The U” is a legit national championship contender to soften his worst home loss.
Among the most egregious miscues: Napier, who retained play-calling duties despite outside cries for him to give them up, dialed up runs on two third-and-5 plays. And his defense committed two roughing-the-passer penalties to extend first-half drives that led to touchdowns.
Miami had no such issues.
Ward, the former Incarnate Word and Washington State starter, showed why he was the Atlantic Coach Conference’s Preseason Player of the Year before ever playing a down in a Miami uniform. He completed 25 of 33 passes, with an interception.
Ward became the first Miami QB since at least 1979 to…
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