Taking Care of Business… Miami 45 - Stanford 6

September 4, 2026 -

Miami (1-0, 1-0 ACC) opened the 2026 season by taking care of business, 45-6, over the Stanford Cardinal 1-1, 0-1 ACC) in Palo Alto, CA on Friday night.

The Canes were in control the entire game, out gaining Stanford 544 yards to 299 yards. In the process, sophomore wide receiver Malachi Toney set a school-record with 234 yards receiving, while catching three touchdown passes. Quarterback Darian Mensah threw for 401 yards and five touchdowns in his debut as a Cane.

Miami came out of the blocks flying, holding the Cardinal to a three-and-out on the opening possession. From there, it took only four plays for the Canes to drive 77-yards for their first score, a 23-yard pass from Mensah to Toney. Stanford answered with 10-play drive of 63 yards, ending in a 30-yard field goal. That was as close as the Cardinal would get to the Canes. After stopping Stamford again, Miami drove 75 yards and scored on a quick-flip pass from Mensah to Toney from 2 yards out.

In the second quarter, Miami quickly stopped another Stanford possession, before Miami drove 89 yards to score on a 5-yard run by RB CharMar Brown. After another defensive stop by Miami, the offense drove 65 yards to score on a 5 yard pass from Mensah to Daylyn Upshaw. With a 28-3 lead, Miami held Stanford to a 24-yard field goal before heading to halftime.

In the second half, Miami continued their offensive blitz with 7-play, 75 yard drive to score on a 34 yard touchdown pass from Mensah to Cooper Barkate and a 87 yard drive with a 47 yard touchdown pass from Mensah to Toney. By then, Miami emptied their bench for the remainder of the third and fourth quarters, getting their younger players some valuable snaps.

Miami ended the scoring in the fourth quarter with a 46-yard field goal from Jake Weinberg. Miami did not allow Stanford to score in the second half.

The Canes return home next Thursday, September 10th to host Florida A&M. Kickoff is set for 7:00 p.m. ET at Hard Rock Stadium.

GO CANES!