Sports

Kaaya leads Miami over Appalachian State, 45-10

Brad Kaaya threw for 368 yards and three scores, Mark Walton ran for 130 yards and two touchdowns and No. 25 Miami rolled to a 45-10 win Saturday over Appalachian State in front of a record crowd of 34,658 at Kidd Brewer Stadium.

   Miami (3-0) came in having scored a school-record 108 points in its first two games in wins over Florida A&M and Florida Atlantic. The Hurricanes picked up where they left off, scoring on their first four possessions to build a 24-0 lead.

   Walton set the tone, busting through the middle of the line on Miami's first play from scrimmage and racing 80 yards untouched to the end zone. Kaaya added first quarter TD passes to David Njoku and Stacy Coley.

   Coley finished with five catches for 85 yards and two touchdowns.

   Appalachian State's top running back Marcus Cox left the game in the first half with a lower body injury and did not return.

   THE TAKEAWAY

   MIAMI: Some questioned why Miami scheduled a road game against Appalachian State, a team notorious for pulling big upsets (ask Michigan) and scaring the life out of others (ask Tennessee). But coach Mark Richt's crew showed it has a high-powered offense and that is difficult to stop, as well as a defense that swarms to the football.

   APPALACHIAN STATE:  The Mountaineers came in brimming with confidence after taking then-No. 9 Tennessee to overtime in the season opener and winning 18 of its last 21 games. "Our mindset is we're one of the best teams in the country," linebacker Eric Boggs said last week. But Appalachian State was thoroughly outplayed in the first quarter by a more talented and physically superior Miami team.

   UP NEXT

   MIAMI:  The Hurricanes are off next weekend before opening ACC play Oct. 1 at Georgia Tech. Miami has won six of its last seven games against the Yellow Jackets.

   APPALACHIAN STATE: The Mountaineers (1-2) visit Akron next Saturday, their final tuneup before beginning play in the Sun Belt Conference.