No. 10 seed Miami became the first double-digit seed to win a College Football Playoff game Wednesday night by knocking off No. 2 seed Ohio State 24-14 in the Goodyear Cotton Bowl. The Hurricanes now advance to the Vrbo Fiesta Bowl, where they will face off against the winner of Thursday’s Allstate Sugar Bowl matchup against No. 3 Georgia/No. 6 Ole Miss.
A potential Miami/Georgia matchup is extremely juicy, as Hurricane quarterback Carson Beck transferred to Miami from Georgia prior to the 2025 season. Beck spent two seasons as the Bulldogs’ starting quarterback (2023-24), where he led Georgia to a 24-3 record.
He however never recorded a College Football Playoff win as the program’s starter, as he was Stetson Bennett‘s backup on the 2021 and 2022 National Championship teams.
During Wednesday night’s edition of ‘SportsCenter with Scott Van Pelt,” Beck was asked about the potential of facing Georgia in the College Football Playoff. He sort of sidestepped the question, understandably.
“When you look at the College Football Playoff bracket when it came out, it’s hard not to look forward to games,” Beck said. “You look at the bracket and the way things could pan out, obviously having beat Texas A&M and Ohio State and earning the right to go out and play in Arizona in the Semifinals, it’s hard not to look forward to that.”
“You see the two teams we could end up playing, so I’m super excited for this team and the opportunity to play in the Semifinals. Whichever team wins that game, we’ll go in and prepare and make the most of it.”
Miami never trailed in 24-14 win over Ohio State in Cotton Bowl
Miami never trailed in the game, as it jumped out to a 7-0 lead early in the second quarter thanks to a nine-yard touchdown pass from Beck to star running back Mark Fletcher Jr. Ohio State drove the length of the field and looked to tie the game, but Buckeye quarterback Julian Sayin was picked off by Miami DB Keionte Scott. Scott returned the interception 72-yards for a pick-six, propelling the ‘Canes to a 14-0 advantage.
A one-yard touchdown run from Ohio State running back Bo Jackson cut into the deficit, but a Miami field goal drew it back out to 17-7. It appeared the Buckeyes had all the momentum following a Jeremiah Smith 14-yard receiving touchdown, but a CharMar Brown five-yard touchdown run with just under a minute remaining dashed all hope of an Ohio State comeback.
Beck was extremely serviceable in the win, completing 19/26 passes for one touchdown with no interceptions. He is now one Bulldog win away from facing his former team in the Vrbo Fiesta Bowl, with a spot in the National Championship Game on the line.