Miami is a good 24-7 in August by October underneath fourth-year coach Mario Cristobal. However when the calendar flips to November, issues mount. That was the story once more Saturday, when the No. 10 Hurricanes fell 26-20 in additional time at SMU, dropping the Hurricanes to 4-11 in November and December underneath Cristobal’s route.
The style of defeat was significantly excruciating, as an pointless roughness penalty with simply over a minute remaining helped place the Mustangs for a game-tying subject purpose. It was Miami’s second loss in three video games since a 5-0 begin that appeared to scream “The U is again.”
Now, Miami (6-2, 2-2 ACC) will want a boatload of assist from others forward of it within the ACC standings to also have a shot at taking part in for the league championship. The query then turns into: how would the School Soccer Playoff Choice Committee deal with a possible two-loss Miami group?
Whereas victories over Notre Dame, South Florida, Florida and Florida State initially appeared to make for an extremely robust resume, that logic is faltering. The Gators and Seminoles are a large number, and South Florida is not the clearcut prime group from the Group of Six as was initially believed.
To have the two-loss Miami dialog, you have to additionally consider the Hurricanes will not lose once more down the stretch. Video games towards Syracuse, NC State, Virginia Tech and Pitt are all fairly winnable. However the identical would have been stated about ACC contests towards Louisville and SMU, that the ‘Canes discovered methods to lose.
The saying will get trotted out this time of 12 months that, “they bear in mind November.” Given Cristobal’s report this time of 12 months, that is a foul omen for a once-promising Hurricanes season that’s teetering getting ready to collapse.
Loser: Florida cannot *catch* a break
A few brutal performs within the fourth quarter tanked Florida’s possibilities of upsetting No. 5 Georgia in a heartbreaking 24-20 loss for the Gators. First, the Gators led 20-17 and had been on Georgia’s 18-yard line when interim coach Billy Gonzales gambled and left his offense on the sphere on a fourth-and-1. The daring name backfired when Jadan Baugh was stopped shy of the sticks with slightly below eight minutes remaining.
Then, after a go-ahead landing from the Bulldogs, brutality struck once more. Trailing 24-20, Florida quarterback DJ Lagway unleashed a bomb down the sphere to large open receiver J. Michael Sturdivant, who laid out to make the catch at Georgia’s 21-yard line. Nevertheless, it was dominated that that the ball hit the bottom. The decision was upheld on overview, negating a possible 50-yard acquire with underneath 4 minutes remaining. The Gators turned the ball over on downs on the next play, leaving them 0 for two on a pair of important fourth-down performs. It was the distinction in a hotly contested rivalry showdown.
Winner: Ohio State makes case for No. 1
Ohio State has a agency grip on No. 1 within the AP ballot, and that will not be altering after its 38-14 win over Penn State. There’s some thriller over whether or not the Buckeyes might be No. 1 within the debut batch of School Soccer Playoff rankings on Tuesday, nevertheless. Indiana and Texas A&M are additionally undefeated and within the combine heading into the preliminary rankings launch. But when the CFP Choice Committee members watching the second half of the Buckeyes’ win over the Nittany Lions, they will have bother slotting Ohio State wherever aside from No. 1. Ohio State’s elite aerial assault and stifling protection confirmed up in a dominant group effort that underscored why the Buckeyes are the betting favourite to win their second straight nationwide title.
Loser: Vanderbilt’s comeback bid meets crushing finish
No. 9 Vanderbilt’s bid for a miraculous rally at No. 20 Texas got here up agonizingly brief when an onside kick try rolled out of bounds with 33 seconds left. A number of Commodores got here up simply wanting corralling it, leaving Vandy on the dropping finish of a 34-31 sport. Provided that Vanderbilt trailed 34-10 getting into the fourth quarter, it took a shocking effort from the Commodores to reel off 21 unanswered factors and get again within the sport. To return all the way in which again and have such an awesome probability on the onside kick solely to see it flutter out of bounds made for a gutting finish.
Winner: Arch Manning stacks good video games
Do not look now, however Arch Manning could lastly be turning the nook. Texas’ redshirt sophomore quarterback delivered one other massive efficiency in a 34-31 win over Vanderbilt. After coming alive late in a comeback win at Mississippi State final week, Manning surpassed 300 yards passing for the second straight week towards an SEC opponent. Not dangerous for a participant who spent the week in concussion protocol.
There was nothing spectacular about his three-touchdown efficiency, however Manning efficiently distributed the soccer to Texas’ playmakers and allow them to go to work. A whopping 258 of his 328 passing yards got here after the catch as Vanderbilt struggled with tackling.
Winner: Tate Sandell delivers for Oklahoma
The MVP of No. 18 Oklahoma’s 33-24 win at No. 14 Tennessee wasn’t quarterback John Mateer, working again Xavier Robinson or anybody from the protection, though all of them did their elements. Relatively, it was redshirt junior kicker Tate Sandell. The UTSA switch hit a 55-yarder in his first SEC highway sport two weeks in the past at South Carolina and hit two extra towards the Volunteers. The 2 55-yard bombs had been a part of a 4-for-4 night time for the 5-foot-9 lefty. He additionally drilled kicks of 51 and 40 yards. His booming accuracy made the distinction in what was a de facto elimination sport for the School Soccer Playoff.
Winner: Texas Tech reveals its mettle
No. 13 Texas Tech walked right into a probably thorny scenario at Kansas State and walked out with a 43-20 win thanks to 5 turnovers from the Wildcats. Okay-State had gained two straight and three of its previous 4 to select up some traction getting into what amounted to a make or break sport for the Purple Raiders. With a large showdown towards No. 10 BYU awaiting subsequent week, it could have been tempting for Texas Tech be in lookahead mode. In actual fact, a sluggish begin steered which may be the case.
However the Purple Raiders scored on all six of their possessions throughout the second and third quarters to take management. A pair of touchdowns within the remaining 5 minutes — together with a fumble return for a landing — put the ending touches on an enormous win.
Loser: Miami stumbles but once more
Miami retains inventing new methods to lose video games underneath Mario Cristobal. In Saturday’s 26-20 loss at SMU, it was an pointless roughness penalty that tortured the Hurricanes. Trailing 20-17 with 1:08 remaining, SMU confronted a fourth-and-9 play from its personal 48-yard line. However as an alternative of getting to execute in a tense scenario with the sport on the road, the Mustangs acquired a present. Miami defensive lineman Marquise Lightfoot apparently missed the memo that the play had been blown useless and walloped SMU quarterback Kevin Jennings effectively after the whistles had blown.
The blunder gifted SMU a primary down and allowed the Mustangs to kick a game-tying subject. Miami then faltered in additional time because it misplaced to an unranked ACC opponent for the second time. It was SMU’s first house win over a top-10 group since 1974.
Loser: Georgia Tech’s protection collapses
No. 8 Georgia Tech dropped from the ranks of the unbeaten amid a complete defensive collapse in a 48-36 loss at NC State. The Wolfpack racked up 583 yards whereas pillaging the Yellow Jackets on the bottom and thru the air. Georgia Tech quarterback Haynes King did his greatest to maintain up, totaling 511 yards and 4 touchdowns by himself. When your QB does that and you continue to lose, you realize it was a foul day for the protection.
Winner: Indiana mashes the gasoline pedal
No. 2 Indiana scored 21 factors in a span of simply over two minutes through the third quarter to show a comparatively tight sport into yet one more blowout victory over Maryland. The Hoosiers’ game-changing spurt included a 31-yard landing run from Kaelon Black arrange by an interception, a 32-yard fumble return from Devan Boykin and, lastly, a 16-yard landing run from Roman Hemby arrange by yet one more Maryland fumble. By the point it was all stated and performed, the Hoosiers had been 55-10 victors, marking their fourth Huge Ten victory of 25-plus factors this season.
Loser: Boise State wilts
Boise State’s path to a different School Soccer Playoff look hit a probable insurmountable highway block on Saturday with an 30-7 loss to Fresno State. The Broncos (6-3, 4-1 Mountain West) in all probability wanted to win out and get some assist with the intention to be the highest-ranked Group of Six convention champion come Choice Sunday. Whereas the loss did not totally wreck their hopes of successful the Mountain West, there may be nearly no shot {that a} 3-loss Boise State group can be the highest-ranked G6 champion.
The lack of quarterback Maddux Madsen to harm within the first quarter additionally difficult issues for Boise State, each within the second on Saturday and probably for the remainder of the season. It was Fresno State’s third straight win within the sequence because the Broncos (6-3, 3-2) snapped out of a two-game dropping skid to achieve bowl eligibility underneath first-year coach Matt Entz.
Loser: Nebraska’s distress continues
Nebraska’s winless streak towards AP-ranked opponents grew to 29 straight with a 21-17 loss to No. 23 USC. The Cornhuskers led 14-6 at halftime however could not overcome a game-ending harm quarterback Dylan Raiola suffered early within the third quarter. USC quarterback Jayden Maiava struggled, however he and freshman working again King Miller produced simply sufficient offense to assist the Trojans escape with a gritty highway win. There is not one other ranked foe on Nebraska’s schedule, although it is possible that Iowa may very well be ranked after they meet within the common season finale.
Winner: UConn going bowling once more
UConn turned bowl eligible for the second consecutive season with a 38-19 win over UAB, marking the primary time since 2009 and 2010 that the Huskies have stacked consecutive seasons with not less than six wins. If fourth-year coach Jim Mora Jr. did not carry the stigma of being a “retread” following his six-year run at UCLA from 2012-17, he’d be getting extra buzz for different jobs on this loopy teaching carousel.
Mora inherited a program that was 3-32 over its prior three season of play and has now reached bowl eligibility in three of his 4 seasons. At a college that prioritizes males’s and girls’s basketball above all else, fielding a top quality impartial soccer program is elite work. Mora deserves a ton of credit score for what he is doing.
Loser: Clemson on improper finish of brutal name
Dunking on Clemson amid a season of unprecedented battle underneath Dabo Swiney is en vogue, and that will not be altering after the Tigers’ 46-45 house loss to Duke. However there isn’t a denying that Clemson’s loss got here partially as a result of it ended up on the improper finish of a questionable go interference name with the sport on the road. The Tigers led 45-38 and appeared to have clinched the sport with a fourth-down cease with underneath a minute to play. Then got here the referee’s clarification of a penalty flag.
It was defensive go interference, which despatched Swinney right into a tizzy and gifted the Mustangs a first-and-goal from the 3-yard line. SMU promptly scored and transformed a two-point conversion to flee with a wild win. You be the choose. Ought to this have been go interference on Clemson?
Winner: West Virginia rises
West Virginia was on a five-game dropping streak that included three Huge 12 highway losses that got here by a median of 25.6 factors because it hit the highway to face No. 22 Houston. Towards that backdrop, the Mountaineers pulled the last word stunner, beating the Cougars 45-35. Houston dedicated as many turnovers (4) within the sport because it had dedicated all season to assist gift-wrap a much-needed win for WVU.
12 months 1 of Wealthy Rodriguez’s return to the Mountaineers’ sideline gave the impression to be careening in a grotesque route. This end result places some wind behind West Virginia’s sails for the ultimate month of the season. It could additionally get the Mountaineers out of the Backside 25 for subsequent week.
Loser: Deion Sanders’ tenure hits a brand new low
Deion Sanders’ first season at Colorado in 2023 wasn’t all the time fairly, however the Buffaloes had been nearly all the time aggressive on their method to a 4-8 mark. Then got here the breakthrough 2024 marketing campaign highlighted by 9 wins. Now the Buffs look like bottoming out. Per week after falling 53-7 at Utah, Colorado adopted up with a 52-17 loss towards Arizona. Colorado performed a whopping 4 quarterbacks within the loss. Certainly one of them, Ryan Staub, was intercepted on each his go makes an attempt. Significantly, what is that this?
Loser: Navy drops from unbeaten tier
The day started with six undefeated groups remaining in faculty soccer. That tally dropped to 5 when Navy fell 31-17 at North Texas. Three turnovers, together with a pair of second half interceptions from star quarterback Blake Horvath, crippled the Midshipmen’s possibilities of incomes what would have been a momentous American victory.
The result solely added to the immense uncertainty within the league title image, because the convention will head to the second week of November with a number of groups sitting at one loss within the convention standings. With video games towards league stalwarts South Florida and Memphis nonetheless forward, Navy will face stiff resistance in its quest to make the American title sport.
