Miami outlasts Ole Miss in Fiesta Bowl to advance to CFP ...

What’s Happening

Let’s talk about The Hurricanes beat the Rebels 31-27 on a late Carson Beck TD run and will play at home for the national title College Football Playoff The Miami Hurricanes have clutched the Fiesta Bowl, beating the Ole Miss Rebels in a 31-27 thriller to earn a spot in the College Football Playoff National Championship Game.

There were four lead changes in the fourth quarter at State Farm Stadium, with the Hurricanes to play either Oregon or Indiana for the national championship. Miami quarterback Carson Beck scrambled for the game-winning touchdown from 3 yards with 18 seconds remaining. (let that sink in)

He also threw for 268 yards, with Miami finishing with 191 rushing yards.

The Details

Ole Miss quarterback Trinidad Chambliss did his part with 277 passing yards. Your thoughts: live@theathletic.

Com Check out our live schedule for this week The first step toward addressing a problem, as the saying goes, is admitting you have one. Good news for concerned SEC football the fandom: It does seem the conference admits it has a problem.

Why This Matters

That was true even before Ole Miss took an L to Miami, meaning the SEC was shut out of the national championship game for a third straight year. Ole Miss acquitted itself well, played a solid game and almost got there. In fact, Ole Miss being the last SEC team standing was immaculate symbolism.

Players and coaches will be watching how this unfolds closely.

Key Takeaways

• The rest of the conference should take heed.
• As it is, the reality of the SEC’s situation set in this week among the conference’s defenders and within the league itself.
• “There’s no way to defend the SEC.

The Bottom Line

It’s been trash,” Finebaum dropped on ESPN’s “First Take” on Tuesday. Twenty-three years after a controversial defensive pass interference doomed Miami in the Fiesta Bowl, a similar situation in the same event went the other way — sending the Hurricanes to the College Football Playoff national championship.

What’s your take on this whole situation?