Fiesta Bowl matchup set. What to know about Miami’s playoff semifinal opponent
The Miami Hurricanes’ College Football Playoff semifinal matchup is set.
The 10th-ranked Hurricanes (12-2) will face the No. 6 Ole Miss Rebels (13-1) in the Fiesta Bowl on Thursday in Glendale, Arizona, for their College Football Playoff semifinal. Kickoff is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. from State Farm Stadium, home of the NFL’s Arizona Cardinals, and the game will be broadcast on ESPN.
Here’s what you need to know about the matchup.
How both teams got here
Miami advanced to the semifinal with a pair of upset victories, defeating the No. 7 Texas A&M Aggies 10-3 in the first round on Dec. 20 and the No. 2 Ohio State Buckeyes 24-14 in the Cotton Bowl on Wednesday.
Against Ohio State, the Miami defense recorded five sacks and forced two turnovers against Ohio State, including Keionte Scott returning an interception for a touchdown, while Mark Fletcher Jr. and CharMar “Marty” Brown each scored touchdowns.
Ole Miss defeated the No. 11 seed Tulane Green Wave 41-10 in the first round of the playoff before rallying to upset the No. 3 Georgia Bulldogs 39-34 in the Sugar Bowl on Thursday night.
The Rebels erased a nine-point halftime deficit by scored three touchdowns in an 11-minute span to go up 34-24 with 9:02 left in the fourth quarter. Georgia scored the 10 points on a Gunnar Stockton 18-yard touchdown to Zechariah Branch with 7:03 left and a Peyton Woodring 24-yard field goal to tie the game with 55 seconds left.
The Rebels then marched down the field, with Lucas Carneiro hitting the game-wining 47-yard field goal with six seconds left in regulation. Carneiro went 3 for 3 on the day, also making from 55 and 56 yards.
Ole Miss quarterback Trinidad Chambliss completed 30 of 46 passes for 362 yards, including a 40-yard strike to De’Zhaun Stribling on the game-winning drive, and two touchdowns. Running back Kewan Lacy ran for two touchdowns.
Team history
Miami is 1-2 all-time against Ole Miss, but the Hurricanes and Rebels haven’t played each other since 1951. Every meeting prior to this one has been in Miami.
How each team has fared in the Fiesta Bowl
The Hurricanes are 0-4 all-time in the Fiesta Bowl, losing 39-37 to UCLA on Jan. 1, 1985; 14-10 to Penn State on Jan. 2, 1987; 29-0 to Arizona on Jan. 1, 1994; and the infamous 31-24 double-overtime loss to Ohio State on Jan. 3, 2003.
This will be the first appearance in the Fiesta Bowl for Ole Miss.
What would be next for the winner?
The winner of the Fiesta Bowl advances to the College Football Playoff National Championship Game on Jan. 19, facing the winner of the Peach Bowl matchup between the No. 1 Indiana Hoosiers (14-0) and No. 5 Oregon Ducks (13-1).
Indiana routed No. 9 Alabama 38-3 in the Rose Bowl on Thursday, while Oregon shut out No. 4 Texas Tech 23-0 in the Orange Bowl in their respective quarterfinals.
This story was originally published January 1, 2026 at 11:52 PM.
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