ARLINGTON, Texas — Mario Cristobal shared a moment with legendary Miami coach Jimmy Johnson on the sideline during the Hurricanes’ 24-14 win over No. 2 Ohio State on New Year’s Eve. The man who recruited Cristobal to The U was on hand along with former greats Michael Irvin and Ray Lewis.
No. 10 Miami turned back the clock on the field too, withstanding a second-half surge from the defending national champion Buckeyes to become the first double-digit seed to make the College Football Playoff semifinals in the 12-team playoff era.
The Hurricanes, whose postseason hopes looked bleak after an overtime loss to SMU in Dallas on Nov. 1, returned to Texas and won two games — at No. 7 Texas A&M on Dec. 20 and Thursday against the Buckeyes — to pull to one game away from a national championship appearance at Hard Rock Stadium, their home field.
Miami jumped on the Buckeyes, holding them to nine yards in the first quarter, their fewest in any quarter since having minus-6 in the first quarter against Michigan in 2017, according to ESPN Research. The Hurricanes racked up 110 yards, the second most the Buckeyes allowed in a first quarter all season.
After Miami scored on a 9-yard throw from Carson Beck to running back Mark Fletcher Jr., Ohio State’s Julian Sayin completed a 59-yard strike to Jeremiah Smith on the first play of the Buckeyes’ next drive, and it looked like they could quickly even the score. But Keionte Scott stunned Sayin two plays later, stepping in front of a screen pass, intercepting it and returning it 72 yards for a touchdown, the second-longest pick-six in College Football Playoff history.
“I shot my shot, and the ball went in my hands,” Scott said. “I was full of emotions. I think I took a little moment to peek at the [Ohio State] sideline and look at everybody and let them know what was going on. So that was a pretty cool moment. … Just having fun. At the end of the day, that’s what this team relies on — just going out there, playing free and just having fun.”
After trailing 14-0 at halftime, Ohio State closed the gap to 17-14 with 13:28 left in the fourth quarter. But Miami’s defense, which harassed Sayin with five sacks, seven tackles for loss and two interceptions, was able to withstand the Buckeyes. CharMar Brown scored a 5-yard touchdown with 55 seconds left to finish a 10-play, 70-yard drive that took 5:01.
The Hurricanes were able to grind out the win, picking off Sayin two plays later amid a fierce pass rush. Their 24 points were the most Ohio State gave up this season.
“Our players kept responding,” Cristobal said. “Our players kept coming with their counterpunch. The touchdown drive at the end and then to finish it off with an interception … those are great counterpunches. Those are just really left hooks to the body and to the head. Those are great, great counterpunches by our team.”
The Miami offense wasn’t flashy, but it was physical, including the play of Beck, who completed 73.1% of his passes for 138 yards and a touchdown with no turnovers. He especially showed his toughness on a play in the fourth quarter, on third-and-11 at the Miami 24, when he scrambled for 11 yards, fighting for every yard.
“He said he was going to run somebody over,” Fletcher said.
“He did say that,” Cristobal added.
Beck, a backup to Stetson Bennett on Georgia‘s 2021 and 2022 national championship teams before transferring to Miami, said this season’s experience with the Hurricanes was uncharted territory for him.
“Shoot, I’ve never been on this stage before,” Beck said. “I’ve obviously played at Georgia and played in big games, but I’ve never had the opportunity to be a starting quarterback in the playoffs. I’ve been able to be a part of national championship teams and championship teams, but I’ve never had this opportunity. So for me, I’m taking it in one moment at a time, one play at a time, and just giving everything that I have for this football team.”
Beck said the chess match against Ohio State was a battle with NFL talent all over the defense, saying the Buckeyes had size and speed and closed quickly.
“They’re probably the most talented defense I’ve ever faced,” Beck said. “Just player to player, that’s one hell of a team, and I’m really proud of our guys to be able to pull it out against a team like that.”
Cristobal said he was proud of how far the Hurricanes have come since the loss to SMU, continuing to believe and improve. Now they will wait on the results of Friday’s Allstate Sugar Bowl between No. 6 Ole Miss and No. 3 Georgia. The winner will face Miami in a CFP semifinal at the Vrbo Fiesta Bowl on Jan. 8.
“That’s their DNA, but that’s the way we’ve been working hard to wire our team,” Cristobal said. “Probably the most important, we have a long way to go. But we are getting better in really good chunks and really good increments.”
Fletcher, who led Miami with 90 rushing yards on 19 carries, said this team is fulfilling Cristobal’s promise to return the Hurricanes to prominence.
“I’ve been here since the start,” Fletcher said. “I just trusted his plan, trusted the vision. And he told me that we’ll get this program back to national championship status, and we just continue to keep on going one game at a time.”
