MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. – The Miami Hurricanes staved off their first-ever 0-3 conference start, defeating the No. 20 Virginia Cavaliers 17-9 on Friday night at Hard Rock Stadium.
Quarterback N'Kosi Perry, filling in for an injured Jarren Williams, completed 16-of-27 passes for 182 yards and a touchdown in his first start of the season.
The Hurricanes opened the scoring with a 17-yard touchdown strike from Perry to running back DeeJay Dallas in the first quarter.
Virginia trimmed the score with a 25-yard field goal to end the first half.
Twice the Cavaliers pulled to within a point in the fourth quarter -- first on a 21-yard field goal to make it 7-6 and again on a 44-yard field goal to make it 10-7.
Perry ended any hopes of a Virginia comeback with a 3-yard score with 2:31 left to play.