Late fumble ends No. 4 Miami’s comeback hopes in a surprising 28-23 loss to Georgia Tech

This time, Miami couldn’t overcome a second-half deficit.

Cam Ward was sacked and fumbled the ball with 1:36 left as Georgia Tech beat previously unbeaten No. 4 Miami 28-23.

Georgia Tech forced eight defenders into coverage on the second-down play and Ward couldn’t find a receiver to throw to. Romero Height chased Ward from behind and Jordan Van Den Burg won the ball back.

Miami never got the ball back after Ward’s fumble. Eric Singleton ran for a first down on third down and slipped in front of the end zone after Miami used its timeouts. This allowed Georgia Tech to easily pass the time.

The Hurricanes entered the game 9-0 and landed in the top four of the CFP premiership rankings due to their uncanny ability to overcome second-half deficits. Already this season, Miami had erased a 10-point deficit against Virginia Tech and a 25-point deficit at Cal, and trailed by 11 points early in the second half against Duke a week ago before shutting out the Blue Devils.

However, the magic ended on Saturday – even as Miami gave fans hope that another comeback was on the way.

After a Miami TD was negated by a penalty, Georgia Tech stopped Miami on a third attempt in the fourth with just over 10 minutes left. However, the Yellow Jackets were unable to increase their lead of 28:16 at the time and Miami got the ball back just a few minutes later.

It took just 2:17 for Miami to score and cut the lead to five when Ward hit Xavier Restrepo for a 38-yard touchdown.

Georgia Tech was then stuffed on a third down near midfield and elected to punt. This gave Miami the chance to complete the comeback. Instead, Ward fumbled on the second play of the drive.

Miami’s defense is a problem

Ward has become a Heisman contender thanks to the second-half comebacks and outstanding play that have made him one of the best quarterbacks in college football this season. Miami’s Achilles heel, however, was its defense. And that was visible on Saturday.

QB Haynes King made his first start in weeks for Georgia Tech, although his shoulder injury clearly limited him from throwing the football. The Yellow Jackets rotated freshman Aaron Philo on passing downs and had a plan to stick with the run.

It worked, even though it took a lot of corpses. Georgia Tech opened the scoring with a 16-yard TD run by Jamal Haynes en route to 271 rushing yards on 48 carries. Miami knew Georgia Tech would run, run and run some more. And the Hurricanes had a hard time slowing down Georgia Tech.

Not long after the TD run, Haynes had to leave the game due to injury and did not return. In the end, eight players carried the ball for Georgia Tech, while King led all rushers with 20 carries for 93 yards and a score.

He also completed all six passes he threw, although they were all very short and only accounted for 32 yards. Philo was 5 of 10 passing for 67 yards.

SMU now runs the ACC

Miami’s loss also makes the race for the ACC title incredibly interesting. SMU is now the only team without a conference loss as Miami, Clemson and Pitt each suffered a loss and Louisville is 4-2 in fifth place. The Mustangs, Hurricanes and Tigers have not and will not play against each other this season and SMU’s schedule is very manageable.

It’s now very likely that Miami and Clemson will fight for the right to face the Mustangs in the ACC title game. After a week off on Saturday, SMU still has Boston College, Virginia and Cal on its schedule. With both Miami and Clemson atop the standings, the Hurricanes have the edge thanks to their win over Louisville and Clemson’s loss to the Cardinals a week ago.