Should UM’s Malachi Toney have avoided scoring, drained the clock vs. Texas A&M?

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COLLEGE STATION, Texas — Hurricanes star freshman Malachi Toney had a clear path in front of him.

Miami’s offense had been stuck in the mud all day, but in the final two minutes of Saturday’s playoff game against Texas A&M, Toney finally got a lane to the end zone. He took it.

Toney’s score put UM ahead of Texas A&M 10-3, which proved to be the final margin of victory in Miami’s College Football Playoff debut. 

“They were depending on me to go out there and make a play, so that’s what I went out there and did,” Toney told the ACC Network after the game.

But did Toney make the right decision? Or should he have hit the turf so the Hurricanes could drain more clock before attempting a game-winning touchdown or field goal in the final seconds?

UM offensive coordinator Shannon Dawson said, given the situation, he was glad to see Toney, who set the UM record for most catches in a season earlier in the game, score.

“If you can score, in my opinion, you score,” Dawson said.

Dawson said it was a good move because field goals — even short ones — were not a sure thing in Saturday’s game. The Hurricanes blocked a short field goal earlier in the game. Miami’s Carter Davis had his worst game at UM, missing three of four field goals earlier in the game.

Best not to leave it to chance, Dawson said.

“It was one of those situations where we needed to score,” Dawson said. “And so I didn’t feel comfortable, personally, being up 3. Being up 7 with no timeouts against those guys, I feel a lot more comfortable against (them).”

SEC Network analyst Cole Cubelic told the Andy and Ari On3 podcast that he was standing with former Texas A&M and FSU coach Jimbo Fisher and SMU coach Rhett Lashlee when Toney scored, and both coaches said Toney should have scored.

“Both said, ‘You have to take the lead,'” Cubelic said.

But the Aggies nearly made Miami pay for not draining the clock. Texas A&M got the ball back with 1:44 left in the fourth quarter. Despite having used all of their timeouts, TAMU marched down the field. In less than a minute, the Aggies were in the red zone. With 39 seconds left, they were at the UM 5-yard line. But fellow freshman Bryce Fitzgerald sealed the victory with an interception — his second of the game — in the end zone.

The touchdown was also a big moment for Toney, who nearly cost UM the game earlier in the quarter. Toney fumbled after a catch and turned the ball over. But Miami got a defensive stop, which gave the standout freshman a chance at redemption.

“You saw the entire team just go right to him after the fumble,” UM coach Mario Cristobal said. “Everybody trusts him. A lot of the reason why we’re here today is because of his playmaking ability. And he brings so much energy to the team. They trust him, they love him and they knew that there was going to be some more football to be played, and he was going to be a big part of the reason why we’re going to have a chance to (win) the game.”

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