At their best, Miami has looked like the class of the ACC and a team that can play with just about anyone in the nation. At their worst, they lost tight games to a middling Louisville team and a solid if unspectacular SMU, putting the Hurricanes’ playoff hopes in serious jeopardy.
If Miami can make it into the 12-team College Football Playoff field, and that’s a big if, ESPN’s Nick Saban can make some serious noise.
“I think if Miami finds their way into the playoff, they will be one of the most dangerous teams in the playoff,” Saban said on Saturday’s College GameDay. “With Carson Beck, the offensive line they have, the skill guys they have, the defense they have, I don’t want to say they underachieved by losing two games, but if they get in this playoff, they’re going to be the most dangerous team that anybody has to play because of the talent level they have.”
Miami came out of the gates hot this season, beating Notre Dame 27–24 and blasting a very strong South Florida team two weeks later. They’re playing strong football down the stretch, with three straight blowout wins after the SMU loss that knocked them out of the CFP picture. A win over No. 22 Pitt would be a solid data point for the Canes, but they’ll still need plenty of help to reach the field.
How Miami can still make the College Football Playoff
Miami would make the field as an automatic bid if they can reach and win the ACC championship, but plenty needs to happen for the Canes to get that opportunity. Here are the four pathways for Miami to reach Charlotte:
- Beat Pitt AND Virginia loses AND Duke loses AND SMU wins or
- Beat Pitt AND SMU loses AND Duke loses AND Virginia loses AND NC State wins or
- Beat Pitt AND SMU loses AND Duke loses AND Virginia loses AND UNC wins AND Syracuse wins or
- Beat Pitt AND SMU loses AND Duke loses AND Virginia wins AND NC State wins AND Syracuse wins
If another team takes the ACC title, Miami will likely need to reach at least No. 10 in the final CFP rankings to land an at-large bid. Canes fans should be rooting against Oklahoma (vs. LSU), Alabama (at Auburn), BYU (vs. UCF) and Notre Dame (vs. Stanford).
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Nick Saban Says One College Football Playoff Bubble Team Would Be ‘Most Dangerous’ in Field.
