When all was said and done, the College Football Playoff selection committee deemed Miami worthy.
The Hurricanes are No. 10 in the final playoff rankings, securing a spot in the playoff bracket. Miami will face Texas A&M in the first round of the playoffs UM will have its first postseason opportunity to compete for a national title since the 2002 season, which ended with a controversial loss to Ohio State in the national title game.
“We are excited to be making our first appearance in the College Football Playoff,” Miami athletic director Dan Radakovich said in a press release. “Congratulations to Mario Cristobal, our coaching staff and our student-athletes on a terrific regular season that was justly rewarded by the CFP Committee. We look forward to facing Texas A&M in the opening round and I know Miami fans will make their presence felt in College Station.”
Miami jumped into the bracket following a series of fortunate events during the conference title games on Saturday. BYU lost a blowout to Texas Tech, which pushed the then-No. 11 Cougars behind the Hurricanes. Later in the day, then-No. 9 Alabama suffered a three-touchdown loss and scored just seven points in a loss
The loss dropped BYU out of playoff contention. The committee ranked Miami ahead of Notre Dame, taking the head-to-head result from Week 1 into account despite ranking the Fighting Irish ahead of the Hurricanes in each previous ranking.
The Hurricanes’ trip to the playoff comes after a week of high-level lobbying that started with Miami coach Mario Cristobal and included athletic director Dan Radakovich, ACC commissioner Jim Phillips and many members of the national college football and general sports media. The controversy even reached Governor Ron DeSantis and Secretary of State Marco Rubio (a UF alumnus).
“You know that there’s a lot of reality behind it when a Florida Gator speaks up for a Miami Hurricane,” Cristobal said Wednesday.
Miami was campaigning hard to get in ahead of Notre Dame, which UM beat in Week 1 of the season but consistently ranked ahead of the Hurricanes in the College Football Playoff rankings. The two teams ended the season with identical records and similar computer metrics.
“I was there — many of you were, too,” Radakovich wrote in an open letter earlier in the week. “It was an electric night at Hard Rock Stadium when Miami defeated Notre Dame to kickstart this terrific season. Moments like that are what makes college football such a compelling sport.
“Let’s ensure those moments matter.”
THE CANES ARE PLAYOFF BOUND pic.twitter.com/1TYGgZlU5D
— Miami Hurricanes (@MiamiHurricanes) December 7, 2025
