Miami heading home for shot at
national title after beating Ole Miss 31-27 in Fiesta Bowl
[January 09, 2026]
By JOHN MARSHALL
GLENDALE, Ariz. (AP) — Miami’s return to relevance was a long,
winding road filled with more downs than ups.
Even when the Hurricanes rejoined the national conversation, they
were doubted, told they didn’t belong.
Through it all, they kept chugging along — straight into the
national championship game.
Carson Beck scrambled for a 3-yard touchdown with 18 seconds left,
and Miami will head back home for a shot at its first national title
since 2001 after beating Mississippi 31-27 in an exhilarating
College Football Playoff semifinal at the Fiesta Bowl on Thursday
night.
“We never flinched,” said Beck, who threw for 268 yards and two
touchdowns with an interception. “In the face of adversity, when we
had to respond, we responded.”
The 10th-ranked Hurricanes (13-2) didn’t play in the Atlantic Coast
Conference title game and were a somewhat controversial CFP pick –
at least outside of South Florida – yet proved they belong.
Miami held Texas A&M and reigning national champion Ohio State to a
combined 17 points to reach the CFP semifinals. Then the Hurricanes
shut down the high-scoring Rebels (13-2) for three quarters in the
desert before pulling it out in a wild fourth.
Malachi Toney, hero of Miami's opening CFP win over Texas A&M,
turned a screen pass into a 36-yard touchdown that put the
Hurricanes up 24-19.
Trinidad Chambliss, a year removed from winning a Division II title
at Ferris State, led the Rebels down the field and found Dae'Quan
Wright for a 24-yard touchdown with 3:13 left.
Then it was Beck's turn.
He won a national title as a backup at Georgia before two productive
seasons as the Bulldogs' starter. Beck kept the Hurricanes calm amid
the storm, leading them down the field for the winning score — and a
shot at a national title on their home field at Hard Rock Stadium.
Now 37-5 as a starter, Beck gets one more chance at glory against
against top-ranked Indiana or No. 5 Oregon on Jan. 19 in the CFP
championship game.
“He’s hungry, he’s driven, he’s a great human being, and all he
wants to do is to see his teammates have success,” said Mario
Cristobal, in his fourth season coaching his alma mater. “And that’s
what we witnessed tonight.”
The sixth-seeded Rebels lost their coach before the playoff, but not
their cool.
If anything, Lane Kiffin’s decision to bolt for LSU seemed to harden
Ole Miss’ resolve, pushing the Rebels to the best season in school
history — and within a game of their first national championship
game.
“I will just remember how they embraced each other,” Ole Miss coach
Pete Golding said. “There was a lot going on the last month. They're
going to be talking about this for a long time.”
They sure will.
Ole Miss took the lead on Lucas Carneiro’s fourth field goal, from
21 yards, and seemed poised to continue its improbable run with
Chambliss’ TD pass to Wright.
Even after Beck's touchdown, the Rebels still had a chance.
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Miami players celebrate after winning the Fiesta Bowl NCAA college
football playoff semifinal game against Mississippi, Thursday, Jan.
8, 2026, in Glendale, Ariz. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)
Chambliss completed two passes to get Ole Miss to
the Miami 35 with 6 seconds left, offering a glimmer of hope.
The best season in Rebels history ended when Chambliss' heave to the
end zone fell incomplete as time expired, but what a run it was.
“This team has just sacrificed a lot to get to this
point,” said Chambliss, who threw for 277 yards and a touchdown.
“This season’s been bumpy and there’s been a lot of things going on,
and we just kept our focus. It’s been truly special.”
With Golding calling the shots after being promoted from defensive
coordinator — and most of the assistants sticking around — the
Rebels blew out Tulane to open the playoff and took down mighty
Georgia in the CFP quarterfinals.
They faced a different kind of storm in the Hurricanes.
Miami has rekindled memories of its 2001 national championship team
behind a defense that went from porous to nearly impenetrable in its
first season under coordinator Corey Hetherman.
The Hurricanes walled up early in the Fiesta Bowl, holding Ole Miss
to minus-1 yard.
One play revved up the Rebels and their rowdy fans.
Kewan Lacy, the nation’s third-leading rusher, burst through a hole
up the middle for a 73-yard touchdown run on the first play of the
second quarter — the longest run allowed by Miami’s defense since
2018.
The Hurricanes seemed content to grind away at the Rebels in small
chunks offensively, setting up CharMar Brown’s 4-yard touchdown run
and a field goal.
Miami unlocked the deep game just before halftime, taking advantage
of a busted coverage for a 52-yard touchdown pass from Beck to
Keelan Marion.
Carneiro made a 58-yard field goal just before halftime, had a
51-yarder bounce off the left upright and caromed in a 54-yarder off
the same upright later in the third quarter.
The kicker's ups and downs mirrored the Rebels' night in the desert,
one that ended with the Hurricanes heading home to play for a
championship.
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