‘This is the dream’: Hurricanes’ resolve leads to national championship berth
Wesley Bissainthe was one of the first believers. The linebacker and Miami Central standout took a chance on coach Mario Cristobal’s vision for the Miami Hurricanes. He was part of Cristobal’s 15-player transition recruiting class, the first group of incoming freshman to enroll under the Hurricane alumnus trying to get the program back to national relevance. Bissainthe is one of just a handful of players who saw the whole process play out, who stuck with the process and, finally, who helped turn a dream into reality.
“When you put your mind to something and you really work and you grind for it, it’ll happen,” Bissainthe said. “And look where we are now.”
Where exactly are the Hurricanes?
No. 10 Miami is heading for the national championship after a thrilling, 31-27 College Football Playoff semifinal win over the No. 6 Ole Miss Rebels in the Fiesta Bowl on Thursday at State Farm Arena.
In a game that featured four lead changes in the final seven minutes, Miami sealed the win with a perfectly executed 15-play scoring drive capped by a Carson Beck 3-yard rushing touchdown with 18 seconds left and a final stop by the Hurricanes’ defense.
As the final whistle blew, as Ole Miss quarterback Trinidad Chambliss’ pass to the end zone fell incomplete with Ethan O’Connor and Zechariah Poyser blanketing De’Zhaun Stripling in coverage, Bissainthe watched as his teammates began to flood the field.
Emotions then flooded over him.
“When I saw everybody running on the field, it was a dream. It felt like a dream,” Bissainthe said. “I was waiting on somebody to wake me up. I don’t know, but it was a great experience, man. I’m happy we got the dub, and I’m grateful for this.”
It marks the latest step on a journey four years in the making. Cristobal warned this would take time as he overhauled the roster and that the results would eventually come.
It’s the latest moment of validation for a team that had to battle for what it had earned, make its case that it was worthy of being in the playoff field and then show the naysayers round after round the decision was justified.
After seven consecutive wins — the final four in the regular season following two midseason losses in a three-week stretch and then against Texas A&M, Ohio State and now Ole Miss in the postseason — here they are.
Only one game is standing in the way of the Hurricanes’ ultimate goal: A national championship.
“We made a promise to each other that we were going to get to this point,” safety Jakobe Thomas said. “And I just know that me, personally, it’s go time, seriously now. It has been. This is the dream, and it’s at home.
“We’re coming.”
The national championship game on Jan. 19 between the Hurricanes (13-2) and the No. 1 Indiana Hoosiers (15-0) will be played at Hard Rock Stadium — the Hurricanes’ home stadium in Miami Gardens.
They’re the first team in 12 years of the CFP format to play for the title game on their home field; the closest instances were the University of Georgia playing in Atlanta for the 2018 national championship game (an overtime loss to Alabama) and LSU playing in New Orleans for the 2020 national championship game (a win over Clemson).
“It doesn’t get better than this,” star edge rusher Rueben Bain Jr. said.
That said, the Hurricanes know they will have to play better than they did on Thursday if they want to win their first national championship since the 2001 season.
The offense scored just five times despite dominating in time of possession (41:22-18:38) and making it into Ole Miss territory on nine of 10 drives (not including a kneel down to end the first half). Two drives stalled near midfield, a third saw a Carter Davis 51-yard field goal attempt miss and a fourth saw Beck throw an interception after getting inside the Rebels’ 25-yard line.
Penalties proved costly for the first time this postseason, with Miami flagged 10 times — many at critical moments.
This allowed Ole Miss to stay competitive throughout the game. Miami’s defense, its strength all season, didn’t break often but the Rebels were able to do enough throughout the game to keep it close and take a lead late when Miami’s offense sputtered. A 73-yard rushing touchdown from Kewan Lacy gave the Rebels an early 7-3 lead and then four field goals from Lucas Carneiro chipped away at Miami’s lead — first forcing a 10-10 tie with 4:38 left in the second quarter, then 17-13 with 11 seconds left before halftime, 17-16 with 22 seconds remaining in the third quarter and then pulling Ole Miss ahead 19-17 with seven minutes left.
Chaos ensued after, with Miami and Ole Miss exchanging touchdown drives on back-to-back-to-back possessions — Beck a 36-yard touchdown to Malachi Toney with 5:04 left, Chambliss a 24-yard touchdown pass to Dae’Quan Wright with 3:13 left and finally Beck’s 3-yard rushing touchdown with 18 seconds left.
“It almost seems like the tougher it gets, the better we play,” Cristobal said. “And it’s a testament to them, to their resilience and their will.”
The resilience showed on Thursday. The Hurricanes continued to believe they had a chance. There was an opportunity to prove themselves and they took it — like they have all season.
And it has them in the national championship.
“We knew we were special from the jump,” Bissainthe said. “Yeah, we slipped up a couple times, but we always knew we were special, and we knew if they let us in, that a lot of teams were going to be in trouble. And look what happened.”
This story was originally published January 10, 2026 at 6:00 AM.
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