Stephen Leonard
Writer
For Ohio State, the start of the College Football Playoffs seemed like an eternity after 25 days off. As the reigning champs took the field, it felt like a completely new season was upon us. Ohio State got a win before the game with the commitment of 2027 5-star edge rusher D.J Jacobs (also recruited by Miami). Ohio State won the toss and elected to defer. It was time for the trifecta of wins against Miami to ring in the New Year.
Nothing could have been more polar opposite than the on-field pregame coach interviews. Ryan Day gave a longer-winded response with a sense of urgency.
” First thing we want to do is win the first drive. Win the first quarter. Win the first half… It’s been a while since we played a game, so we got to win this first drive right here and get a fast start.”
Mario Cristobal, on the other hand, was direct.
“Be fast, physical, violent, and relentless. Whatever it takes.”
Just as the Big Ten Championship game ended, the Cotton Bowl began. The defense forced a three-and-out. Then the offense takes a sack to end the first drive, and here we go again with the turnstile offensive line. Mario Cristobal, check the fast off the list early. It looks like the Buckeyes are in for a low-scoring dog fight, just like their last game that ended in a loss to the Indiana Hoosiers. Payton Pierce gives the offensive lack of production a break, punching the ball out of Miami RB Mark Fletcher’s hands in the red zone. For the Buckeyes, now is the time to turn up the gas. The fuel injector was defective, as Julian Sayin and the offense had no answers for Reuben Bain, who siphoned their fuel. Bain is the animal we’ve been hearing about for the past 10 days. Miami established dominance with a sack and tackle for a loss so far from Bain. The Miami physicality was unmatched, and Cristobal crossed off another characteristic he mentioned in the pregame.
The Buckeyes held the score tight but were outperformed, particularly in the trenches. Julian Sayin and the offense were anemic through the first two possessions. Miami QB Carson Beck was firing quickly and leading Miami down the field, along with a physical, punishing run game. Miami dominated without a score, ending the first half 0-0, but out-gained Ohio State 110 total yards to 9 to end the quarter. Nothing screams physically outmatched like negative one rushing yards for a quarter.
Miami continues the domination this time punching it in the endzone, letting Mark Fletcher slip out of the backfield for a swing pass untouched as the defense fell for the formation, trying to stuff the middle (Miami 7-0). It’s time to respond, and Sayin fires a play action pass 59 yards to Jeremiah Smith. The emotional high was short-lived for Buckeyes as Bain hit Sayin for yet another sack and responded by immediately giving Miami a late Christmas present and even paid extra for the gift-wrapped 72-yard pick 6 to Miami CB Keionte Scott (Miami 14-0). It was as if Scott knew where the ball was going before it was delivered. Scott cleared that up in the post-game saying, “It was on film, for sure, but in the moment with all the skill players on one side of the ball, so I obviously knew the ball was coming in that area.”
Ohio State has to respond, or this game could get ugly. Ohio State starts off gaining some momentum, but again, the pressure on Sayin derails the drive. Miami was easily the more violent team and laying the lumber with every hit, every block, and every run. Cristobal mentioned four characteristics he wanted to see. Miami had accomplished three early in this game; they were playing fast, physical, and violent. All that was left was relentless.
Because Miami was playing this game just as Cristobal wished, Ohio State struggled offensively. Three punts and a pick-six had defined the offensive production so far for Ohio State. Again, another punt, and wow, this was a disappointing attempt at pretending Ohio State belonged on the same field as the Hurricanes. As the half was closing in, the defense forced what we think was a three-and-out. Maimi elected to go for the jugular on fourth down, completing the pass and extending the drive. The Silver Bullet defense then shows up with a sack and Sonny Styles’ tackle for a loss. Miami was now backed up out of field goal position. The punt lands in Miami’s favor as the chips continue to fall against the Buckeyes. They pinned the Buckeyes back inside the two-yard line. It will take a 98-yard drive to put any points on the board before half. The offense, with no signs of life to this point in the game, catches fire in the 2-minute offense. Sayin goes off for 8 of 9 passing attempts, advancing the ball with short passes all the way to the Miami 31-yard line. This team caused a lot of anxiety to Buckeye Nation. With almost zero momentum in the entire game, the Buckeyes responded, or so we thought. The drive stalls with pressure from Miami’s all-world defensive line. Once again, the pressure from Miami’s defensive line forced Sayin into quick throws. One included a throwaway with nothing but open turf ahead of him. Sayin had at least enough room to run for a first down, if not more. Of course, Jayden Fielding misses a 49-yard field goal wide left. Ohio State ended the half with -negative 3 yards rushing, the worst half since 2004. Miami forced Ohio State into the worst rushing half in 21 years. Where were the screens, where was the running game, and where was the help to contain the pass rush? Ryan Day did not get the fast start. Did not win the first drive. Did not win the first quarter. The team was utterly dominated in the first half while Miami hit on its objectives.
Now starting the half with the ball, it is do or die. Tempo was helping in the two-minute offense to close the half, but Ryan Day started off slowly with an effective running game utilizing Bo Jackson. With the running game production, the air attack started to have success. Mixing the pass and the run game, Ohio State’s balanced attack drove the ball to a goal-to-go situation. Bo Jackson got his first taste of running the ball in the red zone, and you guessed it, he scored on a second effort (14-7 Miami).
Momentum is huge in college football, and now the defense has to respond to maintain the upper hand. Fletcher and Beck put together a drive that eventually stalled. Unlike Ohio State, Miami’s kicker nailed a 49-yard field goal (17-7 Miami). For Ohio State, anything short of a touchdown here puts that momentum back squarely in the hands of the Hurricanes.
More of the same as Bo Jackson and the run game take over for the second drive of the half. It was like watching two different teams and totally different game plans. Time for Jeremiah Smith to take over the game. Sayin dropped back, throwing deep to the left sideline, connecting to Smith for 22 yards to the Miami 22. A sweep for Smith along the sidelines went for a short gain as time expired in the 3rd quarter. Ohio State wants the ball in Smith’s hands to climb back into this game.
Miami forces a Fourth and two. Instead of risking another missed field goal, Ohio State gambled. Sayin connects to Smith for a TD, but hold the celebration, folks, there’s a flag on the field. The first flag of the game, holding on Miami, was declined by Ohio State (14-17 Miami).
Now with momentum fully in the Buckeyes’ favor, the defense smothers the Hurricanes to get the ball back. Sayin is on fire, and Bo Jackson looks like an All-American leading Ohio State to consecutive scores with the first two possessions of the second half. Now another possession to take the lead. It is time weather the storm. Sayin is having his way this second half, perfect through the air. Sacked again as Bo Jackson gets plowed by Miami’s blitzing LB, Wesley Bissainthe, on his way to the quarterback. Like clockwork, Smith is targeted for the first down. A flag for holding stalls the drive. Miami takes back the momentum just as Ohio State was poised to take the lead for the first time. Remember, Cristobal had hit on three of the four characteristics he wanted to see in this game. The final characteristic, relentless, was starting to form in his team.
Miami then drained crucial time off the clock, dragging the Buckeyes defense all the way down the field. A spot in the semifinals awaited the Hurricanes with a three-point lead going into the two-minute timeout. Commercials extend the anxiety for both fan bases. Ohio State was in desperate need of a stop, while Miami was ready to announce its return to college football’s elite. Miami 2nd and 9 at the Ohio State 25 quickly becomes a 3rd and 4. The play to define the game was upon us. Miami drew up a pass to the right sideline, a wide receiver screen to CJ Daniels. After 13 yards to the Ohio State 7, the Buckeyes needed a prayer. Ohio State elected to give up a TD (24-14 Miami).
Ohio State closed the game, allowing pressure on Sayin, which forced his second interception of the game. Miami was able to take a knee and celebrate with 43 ticks left on the clock.
Another season came to an end for the Buckeyes. A season that started with limited expectations by Buckeye standards. Entering the season, a 12-2 record would have been considered a success. As the season progressed with 12 straight wins from Texas to Michigan, the expectations grew with each W. This wasn’t the way it was supposed to end. Sonny Styles summed it up best. “This is a team that should’ve won a National Championship.”
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