Our Ohio State vs. Miami cheat sheet for Cotton Bowl in CFP
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Ohio State opens the College Football Playoff in the quarterfinals against Miami on New Year’s Eve.
It marks the first postseason meeting between the teams since the famed 2003 Fiesta Bowl in which the Buckeyes pulled off a shocking upset to win the BCS national championship.
The Hurricanes prevailed at Texas A&M during the first round on Dec. 20, setting the stage for the historic rematch at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas.
A dominant defense carried Miami as it held the Aggies to just a field goal in the 10-3 win. Texas A&M was the first team since Cincinnati in 2021 to not score at least a touchdown in a playoff game.
When does Ohio State play next?
The quarterfinal game at the Cotton Bowl is scheduled for Dec. 31. Kickoff is at 7:30 p.m.
Ohio State vs. Miami scouting report
These three factors and players linger as some of the major storylines in this matchup.
1. Will Ohio State clean up its pass protection?
Miami's 41 sacks are the fourth-most in the Football Bowl Subdivision and include seven from their opening-round win at Texas A&M. Rueben Bain Jr., the defensive end who was named the ACC defensive player of the year, causes his share of the disruption. He tallied three of the seven sacks against the Aggies. After quarterback Julian Sayin was sacked five times in the Buckeyes’ loss to Indiana in the Big Ten championship game, the pass protection will need to be better. It was a big of an outlier, though. The Buckeyes had allowed only six sacks during their 12 previous games.
2. Jeremiah Smith has extra motivation
It was only two years ago that Smith signed with Ohio State over Miami, which had sought to keep the top-ranked receiver from leaving South Florida. Smith said he expects some chippiness with the Hurricanes and seemed to relish the opportunity. “I’m bringing it all,” he said. The most significant development for Smith might be his recovery from a quad strain that limited him in November. Smith said he is fully healthy, giving the Buckeyes’ passing offense a boost.
3. Could the long layoff get the Buckeyes?
During the first year of the 12-team playoff, all four teams who had a first-round bye lost in the quarterfinals. The format was different as the top four seeds were reserved for the conference champions before the move to a straight seeding model this year. But there were signs of rust from the long layoff, and as the Buckeyes will have been off for nearly four weeks, they’ll need to stay fresh as possible as Miami has the more recent wave of momentum to ride on the heels of its first playoff win.
What Ohio State players, coaches have said about their matchup with Miami
The dominance of the Hurricanes’ defense in the opening round got the attention of the Buckeyes last weekend.
“They're an elite-level defense,” center Carson Hinzman said.
It’s Miami’s relentless pass rush that looms the largest as it has totaled more sacks than any previous opponent Ohio State has seen this year.
“They bring blitzes from all over the place,” coach Ryan Day said, “and it's hard to recognize where they're coming in. They have a front that disrupts the game.”
The defense makes the offensive issues from the Buckeyes’ loss to Indiana in the Big Ten championship all the more pressing during their final week of preparation.
Ohio State vs. Miami prediction
The competitiveness picks up at this point in the playoff, and it’s evident that Miami’s defense could cause trouble, but it doesn’t offer enough on the other side of the ball to mount an upset bid that could put Ohio State at serious risk. The Hurricanes missed three field goals and didn’t reach the end zone until the final minutes against Texas A&M. Expect the Buckeyes to move on to the semifinals.
Ohio State vs. Miami tickets
You can find College Football Playoff tickets for the Cotton Bowl on StubHub.
College Football Playoff bracket 2025-26 dates
- First round: Dec. 19 and 20
- Quarterfinals: Dec. 31 and Jan. 1
- Semifinals: Jan. 8 and 9
- National championship: Jan. 19
Joey Kaufman covers Ohio State football for The Columbus Dispatch. Email him at jkaufman@dispatch.com and follow along on Bluesky, Instagram and X for more.
This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: When does Ohio State play next? Cotton Bowl schedule, prediction for CFP
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