Miami earns 'home game' in title pursuit as first team in modern era to host national championship
As fate would have it, the Hurricanes will be vying for their first national title since 2001 inside the confines of their home stadium
•
1 min read
No. 10 Miami punched its ticket to the College Football Playoff National Championship on Thursday with a thrilling 31-27 win over No. 6 Ole Miss during the CFP semifinals at the Fiesta Bowl. The Hurricanes will face the winner of No. 1 Indiana and No. 5 Oregon on Jan. 19 at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami for college football's ultimate prize.
The Hurricanes went on a 15-play, 75-yard drive that lasted 2:55 and resulted in a 3-yard touchdown run by quarterback Carson Beck. Ole Miss had one final chance to pull off an upset on the last play of the game, but the pass in the end zone was incomplete.
Despite being guaranteed to be the worst seed in the title game, Miami will actually be playing at its own stadium for the right to win its first national title since 2001. That's because Hard Rock Stadium was chosen as the site for the CFP title game back in 2022. The city of Miami will host the title game for the second time this decade and the first time since hosting Alabama's win over Ohio State back in 2021.
Although it's rare for a college or professional team to play for a title at their home stadium, it's not unheard of. During the 2020 season, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers defeated the Kansas City Chiefs to win their second Super Bowl title. The Buccaneers won the Super Bowl inside Raymond James Stadium, although attendance was limited due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The following year, the Los Angeles Rams defeated the Cincinnati Bengals at SoFi Stadium to win their second Super Bowl title in franchise history. Before that, no team in NFL history had played for the Super Bowl title inside its home stadium.
Next year's CFP title game will take place in Las Vegas. UNLV plays its home games at Allegiant Stadium in Sin City, which would be the next opportunity for a college football team to accomplish the same feat as Miami. Due to the circumstances -- and the fact that Miami plays its home games inside an NFL stadium -- it might be quite some time before a college football team matches this feat.
