Miami dropping six spots in the latest College Football Playoff committee rankings created such a stir that the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC), in which the No. 12 Hurricanes (10–2) play, got involved.
ACC commissioner Jim Phillips said in a statement that the conference is “incredibly shocked and disappointed” about the formerly No. 6-ranked Hurricanes being on the fringe of the playoffs. Miami, which didn’t make the ACC championship game because of its loss against Syracuse, doesn’t control its own destiny.
“As we look ahead to the final rankings, we hope the committee will reconsider and put a deserving Miami in the field,” Phillips said.
Miami had one of the strongest starts in the country at 9–0 and a top-five ranking, but the Hurricanes suffered a 28–23 upset against unranked Georgia Tech on Nov. 9, which set back Miami’s playoff hopes. Syracuse (9—3), now ranked No. 22, then played spoiler with a 42–38 upset on Nov. 30 at its JMA Dome.
The loss to the Orange allowed No. 17 Clemson (9–3) to make the title game instead of the Hurricanes. Clemson will face No. 8 SMU (11–1) for the ACC title on Saturday at Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte.
Miami didn’t play Clemson or SMU during the regular season in the 17-team conference, and the two finalists didn’t meet either. Despite three losses overall, Clemson had only one loss in ACC play.
“But Miami certainly has done enough to be in the playoffs due to the fact that Miami has won 10 games as opposed to some other candidates that have won nine games,” Hurricanes head coach Mario Cristobal told ESPN on Tuesday before the rankings release.
Miami notably sits behind one 9–3 team, No. 11 Alabama in the latest playoff rankings. The Crimson Tide, which didn’t make the SEC Championship Game, has losses to unranked Vanderbilt (6–6), No. 7 Tennessee (10–2), and an unranked Oklahoma squad (6–6).
“Go right to the facts,” Cristobal said. “Miami has played a really good schedule this year, and our conference has a winning record against the Big Ten, [and] has a winning record against the Big 12. In our matchup against the SEC, [we] won convincingly in Gainesville, Florida.”
Cristobal then said his team fared better against South Florida in non-conference action than Alabama’s win against the Bulls. Miami beat USF 50–15 on Sept. 12 in Tampa, Florida, while the Tide beat the Bulls 42–16 at home in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, on Sept. 7.
With the 12th ranking going into the conference championship weekend, the Hurricanes can still make the 12-team field, albeit with slim odds. All but three of the Power Four conference finalists are in the top 12, but the Big 12, which has an automatic bid, doesn’t have a top 12-team in the current rankings.
Arizona State (10—2), ranked No. 15, will take on No. 16 Iowa State (10–2) for the Big 12 title. Miami could get help from No. 2 Texas (11—1) in the SEC Championship Game against No. 5 Georgia (10–2), as a third loss could knock the Bulldogs and the Tide from the top 12. Alabama beat Georgia this season but didn’t play Texas.
Meanwhile, Clemson could thwart Miami’s playoff hopes with a win over SMU for the ACC title. Lastly, No. 2o UNLV (10–2) could complicate things with an upset of No. 10 Boise State (11–1) in the Mountain West Conference title game.
If things fall in the Hurricanes’ favor this weekend, but the committee leaves the team out, it won’t satisfy Cristobal or Phillips.
“Miami has more wins and fewer losses than the team directly ahead of them and a dominant victory over an SEC team whose late-season surge includes a win over No. 13 Ole Miss,” Phillips wrote in the media statement. “Moreover, with two losses by a combined nine points—to a ranked Syracuse team and a Georgia Tech team that just took No. 5 Georgia to eight overtimes—Miami absolutely deserves better from the Committee.”
