Pittsburgh head coach Pat Narduzzi made the case for Miami to make the College Football Playoff in an interview with Brett McMurphy of On3. Miami won 38-7 at Pittsburgh in the final game of the regular season on Saturday. Pittsburgh beat Notre Dame 37-15 on November 15.
Miami outgained Pittsburgh 416-229, had 28 first downs to 11 and held the Panthers to 30 yards rushing on 21 carries. Notre Dame outgained Pittsburgh 387-219, had 20 first downs to 17 for the Panthers and allowed 70 rushing yards on 25 carries.
Miami had six tackles for loss and four sacks against Pittsburgh. The Panthers had six TFLs and two sacks against the Hurricanes. Notre Dame had seven TFLs and four sacks against Pittsburgh. The Panthers had seven TFLs and one sack against the Fighting Irish.
Miami outgained Notre Dame 339-314, had 20 first downs to 18 and held Notre Dame to season lows of 93 yards rushing and 3.3 yards per carry on 28 attempts. The Hurricanes had five tackles for loss and three sacks. Miami held Notre Dame to two TFLs and one sack.
"They’re both tough & imposing, but Miami is powerful up front & plays a really physical brand of football...The real edge, though, is what they’ve shown week in & week out in ACC play. It’s a grind in this league. Miami has proven they can handle that & still play at a championship level."Pittsburgh head coach Pat Narduzzi
Miami dominated Notre Dame for three quarters. The Hurricanes led 21-7 entering the fourth quarter and out-gained the Fighting Irish 277-177. Miami limited Notre Dame's Jeremiah Love to 33 yards on 10 carries. That was the lowest total for Love during the 2025 season.
Miami is 18th nationally, averaging 6.58 TFLs and 14th with 2.83 sacks per game. Notre Dame is 58th, posting 5.83 TFLs and nint,h averaging 2.92 sacks per game. Miami held Notre Dame well under their season averages in the stats most often associated with being tough, imposing and physical.
Miami asserted its physicality against Notre Dame on the final drive of the game. Akheem Mesidor sacked Notre Dame quarterback C.J. Carr on the third-to-last play of the game and an intentional grounding was called.
Rueben Bain and Mesidor combined for another sack on the penultimate play of the game. Notre Dame was called for a false start on the final play and Miami earned the 27-24 win. Miami showed they are the tougher, more physical and imposing team when the game was on the line.