Miami tried so hard to lose this game

For all the success Mario Cristobal has had in his coaching career – both with Miami and beyond – he still has a lingering reputation for dropping games his team really had no business losing. Snatching defeat from the jaws of victory, if you will.

It looked like that was once again happening in the Fiesta Bowl for very large stretches, with television cutaways to incredibly-stressed Miami fans coming fast and furious. It was certainly a shock coming off the heels of a virtually flawless performance against Ohio State last week.

The second half was a penalty and mistake-filled 30 minutes of football, that will now be long in the rearview after the dramatic win. Well, after after you read this, of course.

The first thing that puzzled in the second half was one of the most inexplicable flea-flicker plays we’ve seen. Miami was moving the ball at will down the field to begin the half, reaching the Ole Miss 34-yard line after a 19-yard bruising run. One would think another running play over the tired and bruised Rebels defense would be the call. Nope! How about a flea-flicker that turned into a disastrous intentional grounding penalty leading to a missed field goal.

The next drive featured another crucial penalty that took a 3rd-and-3 into a 3rd-and-8 and forced a passing attempt to convert deep in Ole Miss territory. The result: a tipped pass that ended with an interception. Two very successful drives to open the second half that resulted in a total of zero points.

Two crucial 15-yard penalties – one for targeting and one for a late hit – helped sustain the next Ole Miss drive that eventually led to a touchdown. The targeting one seemed questionable, but there was no doubt on the late hit. Those were two of ten penalties on the night for a whopping 74 yards for Miami.

It didn’t bite them on Thursday, but a return to the mistake-free football we saw versus Ohio State will be needed to win the national title.