The Miami Heat are seeking their first national championship in more than two decades after defeating Ole Miss 31-27 in the Fiesta Bowl on Thursday night. Here are five standout plays from the No. 10 Hurricanes’ College Football Playoff semifinal victory over the No. 6 Rebels.
Kewan Lacy’s 73-yard touchdown run
The star running back gave the Rebels a 7-3 lead with a long touchdown run on the first play of the second quarter.
But the touchdown cost Ole Miss. Lacy appeared to injure his right hamstring as he approached the end zone. Replays showed he appeared to be struggling as he slowed down toward the goal line.
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Lacy didn’t play the rest of the quarter, and Mississippi State coach Pete Goldin said he would be evaluated at halftime. Lacy returned to the game in the third quarter with a compression sleeve on his right leg. He served as a decoy for much of the second half.
Mississippi threw the ball 19 times before Lacy picked up his third pass of the game. He rushed 11 times for 103 yards and a touchdown.
Malachi Toney 36-yard touchdown catch
Toney grabbed a tunnel screen and rushed 36 yards for a touchdown with 5:04 left in the game to give the Heat a 24-19 lead.
The freshman wide receiver was targeted 10 times and caught five passes for 81 yards. Almost none of those catches happened downfield, either. Toney finished with 77 yards after the catch; no other Miami player had more than 30 points.
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As a freshman in 2025, Toney became one of the most dynamic playmakers in college football with over 1,000 receiving yards. He also made an incredible catch that didn’t come up late in the game. If Tony goes all out on this catch, we have no words to describe how good it is.
Dae’Quan Wright 24-yard touchdown catch
Ole Miss needed less than two minutes to respond to Toney’s touchdown run. Wright scored on a 75-yard kickoff on the sixth possession to give Mississippi State a one-point lead, then Trinidad Chambliss’ two-point pass to Caleb Odom gave Mississippi State a 27-24 lead.
Wright found himself open on a corner route as the safety was slow to follow him to the pylon. It was Wright’s third catch of the game, and he finished with 64 yards.
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Carson Beck 3-yard rushing touchdown
After Toney scored a 75-yard rushing touchdown on Miami’s fourth possession, the Hurricanes needed more offense to regain the lead. Carson Beck’s T3-yard touchdown run gave the Heat a 31-27 lead with 18 seconds left.
Baker’s rush was the Hurricanes’ 15th possession, a drive that took nearly three minutes.
Baker attempted 12 passes on that drive, and the Hurricanes also benefited from a facemask penalty by Ole Mis defensive back Jaylon Braxton. Baker was asked to wear a mask after he pitched to Kieron Marion on the sideline with less than two minutes left in the game.
It was Baker’s first rushing touchdown since scoring in a Week 3 win over USF. The Georgia transfer completed 23 of 37 passes for 268 yards, two touchdowns and an interception, and had a minus-6 rushing yardage when sacks were taken into account.
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Trinidad Chambliss’ unfinished Hail Mary attempt
After Baker’s goal, Mississippi had little hope of a comeback. The Rebels had just one timeout left, but were still at midcourt with 13 seconds left.
The Rebels then reached the Miami 35-yard line with six seconds left before Chambliss threw a Hail Mary into the end zone as the game ended.
Understandably, Mississippi State fans wanted to disrupt DT Stribling’s pass. But it’s worth noting that there’s almost no pass interference on a Hail Mary attempt. Penalty kicks do not guarantee Mississippi State a legitimate chance to win.
If the referee had raised the flag on the play, the Rebels would have been downed at times at the 20-yard line. Sure, it’s easier to score from the 20-yard line than the 35-yard line, but it’s still a low-percentage game. Even with penalties, Miami likely won the game. But did the penalty prevent Stribling from catching the pass? He was able to tip the ball when it dropped.
