Carson Beck leads Miami to emotional, dramatic Fiesta Bowl win | Opinion
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They hugged him. They mugged him. They exchanged fist bumps and high fives, slaps on the back and more and it went on for what seemed like forever on Thursday night, Jan. 8.
Miami Hurricanes quarterback Carson Beck was literally swarmed on the star-studded sideline full of famous alums at State Farm Stadium following his game-winning touchdown run in the Vrbo Fiesta Bowl.
Somewhere, the celebration is still marching on — just like the Hurricanes, who punched their ticket to the national championship after rallying for a dramatic 31-27 victory Jan. 8 over Mississippi in the College Football Playoff semifinals.
Beck capped a thrilling 15-play, 75-yard drive with a 3-yard scamper into the end zone when it appeared initially as though he might be sacked for a big loss. Instead, Beck danced around, avoided trouble and then easily waltzed in for the score with 18 seconds left to play.
After being a member of two national title teams as the backup QB for Georgia, Beck gets his first crack to win one as Miami’s starter on Jan. 19 at home, Hard Rock Stadium in Miami, where the 10th-seeded Hurricanes take on the winner between top-seeded Indiana and No. 5 Oregon in the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl on Friday, Jan. 9.
Beck was named the Fiesta Bowl’s offensive MVP after completing 23 of 37 passes for 268 yards and two touchdowns in addition to his decisive scoring run that stunned the Ole Miss crowd, which outnumbered the Miami faithful in both numbers and decibels.
This was no sure thing for the Hurricanes, who had gone winless in their previous four appearances in the Fiesta and hadn’t won a national title in a quarter century and had to rely on an at-large berth just to get into the CFP 12-team field.
In a game that was always close, sixth-seeded Mississippi went ahead 27-24 with 3:13 remaining when Trinidad Chambliss connected with tight end Dae’Quan Wright for a 24-yard touchdown and Chambliss hit tight end Caleb Odom for a successful 2-point conversion.
Miami got 133 rushing yards from Mark Fletcher Jr. and seven receptions for 114 yards and a touchdown from Keelan Marion, who was clutch during the final drive.
The Hurricanes led 17-13 at halftime and it was an interesting back-and-forth between both teams.
After their first two possessions and one play of their third, the Rebels had registered minus-1 yard in total offense and were trailing 3-0 to Miami at the end of the first quarter. But when the second quarter opened, so did a giant hole in front of Kewan Lacy.
On second and 3 from the Ole Miss 27, Lacy took a handoff from Chambliss and raced straight ahead. He never stopped until he ran across the goal line for a 73-yard touchdown. Suddenly, it was 7-3 and Mississippi fans, who clearly outnumbered Miami supporters in the stands, roared their approval with a loud standing ovation.
But there was a problem. Lacy apparently suffered an injury of some type during the long TD scamper, presumably to his hamstring, and he didn’t play the rest of the half and wasn’t a factor again until the fourth quarter.
Making matters worse for the Rebels, Miami immediately went on another long, exhausting drive like it did during the game’s first possession. This time, it was a 15-play, 75-yard march the last seven minutes, 41 seconds, capped by a hard, 4-yard touchdown run by CharMar Brown.
But if you like big, explosive plays — like Lacy’s cross-country TD rush — this game had that, too. It was befitting all the superstar alums from both schools that graced the sidelines, the end zones and everywhere else VIPs happened to gather.
Sandwiched around field goals of 42 and 58 yards by Carneiro, Mississippi’s sure-footed kicker, Beck and Marion hooked up for a 52-yard touchdown for the Hurricanes. Marion sprinted past the nearest Ole Miss defender down the middle of the field before hauling in the catch and running it in for the score.
Carneiro and Miami’s Carter Davis each missed 51-yard field goal attempts early in the third quarter, but Carneiro’s 54-yarder with 22 seconds left in the quarter pulled Ole Miss to within a point, 17-16.
This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Carson Beck leads Hurricanes to emotional, dramatic Fiesta Bowl win
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