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12/20 17:26 CST Miami's fierce defense dominates Texas A&M to advance to Cotton
Bowl
Miami's fierce defense dominates Texas A&M to advance to Cotton Bowl
By KRISTIE RIEKEN
AP Sports Writer
COLLEGE STATION, Texas (AP) --- Miami brought a nasty defense into Texas A&M on
Saturday to down the seventh-seeded Aggies in the College Football Playoff.
The No. 10 seed Hurricanes forced Marcel Reed into three turnovers and sacked
him seven times in the 10-3 victory.
"The defense was off the charts the entire day," coach Mario Cristobal said.
They move on to face No. 2 Ohio State in the Cotton Bowl on New Year's Eve.
Texas A&M had a chance to tie it after freshman Malachi Toney's 11-yard
touchdown reception with less than two minutes left.
The Aggies drove down the field and had a first down at the 5. But Miami (11-2)
forced consecutive incompletions before fellow freshman Bryce Fitzgerald leapt
in the end zone to grab his second interception of the day to secure the win.
"When the lights come on, certain guys just kind of have it. He's that guy,"
Cristobal said. "When the lights come on, he knows what to do, how to do it,
and there's no flinch in that guy at all. You don't sense any type of freshman
reservation from him."
The Hurricanes stifled Texas A&M's powerful offense, which entered the game
averaging 36.3 points a game. Along with the seven sacks of Reed, they flushed
him out of the pocket and forced him to try to make tough throws again and
again. He was 25 of 39 for 257 yards but was unable to get the Aggies in the
end zone for the first time this season.
"Just trying to make sure he was uncomfortable and trying to not give the same
coverage every time... and I thought our guys did a really good job of handling
that all day," defensive coordinator Corey Hetherman said.
They also limited Texas A&M to 89 yards rushing on 35 carries with the team's
longest run coming on an 11-yard scramble by Reed.
Defensive end Rueben Bain Jr., the ACC Defensive Player of the Year, had four
tackles for loss and three sacks to lead Miami's formidable pass rush. The
junior also blocked a field goal in the second quarter to help the 'Canes shut
out Texas A&M before halftime.
Bain credited Hetherman, who is in his first year at the school, for the team's
defensive success Saturday.
"It's crazy for us to win this game in this kind of way," Bain said. "From the
first snap to the last, the defense came to play, and that's the way it's going
to be, especially when you've got somebody like coach Hetherman, somebody like
that, coaching us every play just to come out and give our best."
Toney's big play was made possible by a defensive stand after he fumbled the
ball on the previous possession. He made a reception, but Dalton Brooks knocked
the ball out and Daymion Sanford recovered it on the Texas A&M 47 with about
seven minutes to go.
The Hurricanes got the ball back when Bain sacked Reed on two of three plays on
the ensuing drive to force a punt.
Hetherman talked about the growth of the defense that has allowed the group to
improve throughout the season.
"Now that defense is connected, and now they want to play for one another, they
want to go out and compete every single series," Hetherman said. "They don't
want to let themselves down."
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