MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. -- With junior quarterback Brad Kaaya struggling, throwing two interceptions in a game for the first time since the first half of his freshman year, Miami turned to its running backs to pick up the load against Florida Atlantic.

Good move.

Sophomore Mark Walton and junior Joe Yearby again produced triple-digit rushing games with Walton setting career single-game highs in carries (17), yards (155), and touchdowns (four) and Yearby adding 121 yards on 20 rushes for one score as the 25th-ranked Hurricanes (2-0) overcame a lethargic first half to post a 38-10 victory over Florida Atlantic (1-1) before a crowd of 57,123 here Saturday night.

"Offensively, not pretty by any stretch," Miami coach Mark Richt said of Miami's passing game. "We had a lot of opportunities but just couldn't cash in on them. We've got to get better there. Then we just started to run the ball and have what people call RPOs -- run-pass option."

After going to the locker room up only 14-3 at the half, Miami kicked up its game in the second. Walton doubled his rushing yardage from the first half (55) to 110 by the end of the third quarter.

"He ran the ball extremely well," Richt said. "He's very physical. I guess somebody told me he had four touchdowns. That's a bunch -- 9.2 yards per carry, that's pretty good. He did a nice job. Yearby did, too."

Walton was coming off a 117-yard game in the opening win over Florida A&M.

"It felt great," he said. "I'm trusting my O-line. They did a great job tonight. Without them, I would haven't have had four touchdowns."

Miami's defense also did more than its part. The Hurricanes held the Owls to just 214 yards in total offense and a mere 47 rushing. They also came up with seven sacks, six of them against FAU starting quarterback Jeff Driskel, and didn't allow a third-down conversion until the third quarter.

"All the credit in the world to Miami," FAU coach Charlie Partridge said. "There's things we did at times that make us look like the program is continuing in the direction we want to go, but we're clearly not there yet."

The Owls took advantage of a short field to get their first points on Greg Joseph's 38-yard field goal in the second quarter when Kaaya's second interception set them up at Miami's 21-yard line.

Their third-quarter touchdown came on running back Greg Howell's 38-yard run. Howell finished with 75 yards on 19 rushes.

Driskel was 18 of 36 passing for 167 yards with one interception.

"The good news is, these are all fixable things for a very young football team and a very talented football team," Partridge said. "I love the fact that I walked into the locker room and no one was content that we played Miami close for two-and-a-half quarters."

Kaaya was only 9 of 20 passing in the first half for 131 yards and finished the game with 17 completions in 31 attempts for 191. The two-interception game was his first since Oct. 14, 2014, against Georgia Tech and the fifth such contest of his career.

Both teams had their struggles in the first half. They each had a kick blocked -- Miami a field goal try, FAU a punt -- and combined for only 98 yards of total offense in the first quarter.

The Hurricanes finally broke the ice midway through the second period with Walton capping a five-play drive with a 7-yard run. He scored again on a 3-yard run later in the second quarter.

NOTES: A heavy rain hit Hard Rock Stadium late in the third quarter with Miami ahead 24-10 and stopped early in the fourth with Miami up 31-10. ... Miami freshman Sam Bruce likely will miss the season after suffering a broken leg to a "non-football-related" injury the week before the game against Florida Atlantic. Considered one of the prizes in the Hurricanes' recruiting class, he was suspended for the first three games. .... Miami senior CB Adrian Colbert, a starter, and junior DT Courtel Jenkins both missed the game against Florida Atlantic because of "lower extremity" injuries. ... Senior DE Trey Hendrickson's block of Miami PK Michael Badgley's 24-yard field goal attempt in the first quarter was his second blocked kick of the season. He also blocked a PAT attempt in Florida Atlantic's opening 38-30 win over Southern Illinois.