Miami had the yards, the ball, and the chances, but SMU had the breaks. The Hurricanes fell 26-20 in overtime, undone by two Carson Beck interceptions — including one at the goal line on the first possession of OT — and a tying SMU drive aided by an unnecessary-roughness flag in the final minute of regulation. T.J. Harden's one-yard score ended it after Ahmaad Moses' second pick set the table. Miami's chances of meaningful postseason play have now plummeted; let's take a deeper dive into the game that turned this season upside down.
FINAL (OT): SMU 26, Miami 21
— Miami Hurricanes Football (@CanesFootball) November 1, 2025
1. Miami found out the hard way with Carson Beck
The Georgia transfer threw for 274 yards and two touchdowns, but his two interceptions were the difference. Moses snagged both, the second coming just short of the end zone in overtime. Beck wasn't hit much — SMU finished with zero sacks — yet the giveaway margin swung the game as Miami's defense held the Mustangs to just 23 rushing yards.
The ending fit a season-plus long narrative: Beck led the SEC with 12 interceptions at Georgia in 2024, including a six-game stretch with 12 picks and multi-INT days against Alabama and Florida. Saturday's two were "one too many" in a game Miami otherwise controlled. Now, this isn't to say that this loss is on Beck — Miami played poorly in too many other facets of the game. But, after the 4 INT performance against Louisville a few weeks ago, the narrative won't die out and Miami has found that out the hard way.
2. The November spiral is a real thing, unfortunately
Under Mario Cristobal, Miami entered Saturday 4-8 in November (1-3 in both 2022 and 2023; 2-2 in 2024). Add the loss to SMU, and it's now 4-9. Whether you pin it on a conservative end-of-game play calling — Miami kneeled with 25 seconds and a timeout at the end of regulation — a run game that bogs down late, or just the weight of recent history, the pattern persists. The loss damaged Miami's rankings and ACC hopes, and it again arrived in the season's most unforgiving month.
Looking ahead to next season, the "can't-play-in-November" narrative will be extremely loud and if Cristobal can't face those demons, we might be having a completely different conversation at this time next year.
3. Sloppy play + bad in the redzone + unfavorable officiating = L
Nearly every team metric tilted Miami's way on Saturday: total yards (433-388), time of possession (37:42-22:18) and third down conversion rate (7-16 to 3-13). But the Hurricanes were flagged 12 times for 96 yards, went 2-for-5 scoring touchdowns in the red zone (two TDs, two field goals, one turnover on downs), stalled on a fourth-and-1 at the SMU 29 in the third quarter and lost the turnover battle 2-1.
One penalty — that is slightly controversial — loomed largest: a late hit on SMU QB Kevin Jennings that turned fourth-and-9 into the tying field goal drive with 25 seconds left. You can debate calls that weren't made, but Miami's penalties, miscues and an overtime interception left the door wide open for SMU to take this game.
Flag on Lightfoot and SMU gets an automatic first down! pic.twitter.com/M1AwbeG9Ca
— Grant Speaks (@GrantSpeaks1) November 1, 2025
Honorable mention (the good stuff)
Even with a loss as devastating as this one, there is still some good that deserves to be acknowledged.
True freshman Malachi Toney again flashed with nine catches for 70 yards, operating as a chain-mover in space. Joshisa "JoJo" Trader announced himself with a 36-yard touchdown among five grabs for 81 yards. On defense, Keionte Scott filled the stat line (eight tackles, two TFLs, one sack, one pass breakup), and Rueben Bain Jr. added 1.5 tackles for loss as Miami generated two sacks and held SMU to 0.9 yards per rush. Those are winning ingredients that have been overshadowed in the post-game conversation.
Moving forward in 2025
College football is chaos, and Saturday proved it again. The ACC Championship path is essentially gone, but at 6-2 with Syracuse up next, a 10-2 finish would still land Miami on the fringe of the final CFP rankings conversation. Obviously, it wasn't enough last year but that is still something to watch because you truly never know in college football. The CFP committee comes out with its first set of rankings for this season on Tuesday.