MARIO CRISTOBAL

Three key takeaways from the state’s football scene this past weekend -- and a glimpse at what’s to come next week.

Jake Garcia’s two-point scoring run in the fourth overtime – the only play of the day to reach the end zone – gave Miami a 14-12 win over Virginia.

MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. — (AP) — There’s some symmetry in that Don Shula’s perfect 1972 season with the Miami Dolphins featured what was famously called the “no-name defense.”Now 50 years later, Shula’s name is on just about everything. The best high school football coach in the country wins the Don Shula Award. Football and other teams at his alma mater — John Carroll University in his native Ohio — play at Don Shula Stadium. Those are all part of a massive Shula legacy — perfect season, most career wins in NFL history, and a name that still resonates deeply. Because, on that list, Don Shula is one of one.

There’s some symmetry in that Don Shula’s perfect 1972 season with the Miami Dolphins featured what was famously called the “no-name defense.”.

Of everything the Miami Hurricanes did wrong in their stunning loss to the Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders before their bye week, perhaps the most alarming pratfall was the return of an all-too-familiar, awful Miami trope.

Getting embarrassed at home by Middle Tennessee was not part of that plan. On the heels of a road loss to Texas A&M, Miami came out completely flat and got punked by Middle Tennessee, 45-31. This is a Middle Tennessee team that lost 44-7 to James Madison a few weeks ago, yet the Blue Raiders were able to come in and continually decimate the Miami secondary with deep balls. Backed up in its own end zone after the goal line stand, Middle Tennessee wasn’t content to simply get some breathing room and run some clock. 98 YARD TOUCHDOWN PASS FROM MIDDLE TENNESSEE!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Texas A&M bounced back from its Week 2 defeat to Appalachian State with a 17-9 win over No. 13 Miami on Saturday night. The Aggies had just 265 yards of total offense and Johnson was just 10-of-20 passing for 140 yards. Much like Appalachian State did a week ago, Miami had the ball more than the Aggies did. But they settled for five field goal attempts in Texas A&M territory, including at the end of 12-play drive in the third quarter.

Coming off a week full of upsets, Saturday's lineup provides several more opportunities for highly ranked teams to run into trouble. 25 OregonTime: 3:30 p.m. | TV: Fox | Line: Oregon -3.5 | Total: 58Last week, BYU pulled out a big home win in double overtime over Baylor, the defending Big 12 champions. On the other side, the Nittany Lions had a dramatic win over Purdue in Week 1 before blowing out Ohio last week at home. 7 USCTime: 10:30 p.m. | TV: Fox | Line: USC -12.5 | Total: 73.5USC is off to a fast start under Lincoln Riley. While the USC offense has been stellar, the defense has been a bit leaky and will have its hands full against Fresno State.

No. 15 Miami pulled away in the second half and beat Southern Miss 30-7.

That gives the ACC a shot in the month of September to strengthen its reputation, in hopes of returning to this year's College Football Playoff while facing uncertainty about its long-term future in a football-driven landscape. “We have to win football games,” said Elko, who left Texas A&M's staff to take over at Duke this fall. It’s a competitive market, it’s a competitive landscape in college football. “Any time coaches have good wins, it’s good to see,” Narduzzi said. ___Follow Aaron Beard on Twitter at https://twitter.com/aaronbeardap___More AP college football: https://apnews.com/hub/college-football and https://twitter.com/AP_Top25Copyright 2022 The Associated Press.

The Atlantic Coast Conference gets a chance in September to bolster the perception of the league's strength with multiple matchups against other power conferences.

MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. — (AP) — Henry Parrish rushed for 108 yards and three touchdowns, Tyler Van Dyke passed for two more scores and No. 16 Miami downed Bethune-Cookman 70-13 in Mario Cristobal’s debut as coach of the Hurricanes on Saturday. Thaddeus Franklin rushed for two scores, while Devon Perry and Terrell Walden II also ran for touchdowns for the Hurricanes (1-0). But this was the first, of what Miami expects to be many, with him in charge of the operation. It was the fourth-highest attendance figure for a Miami home opener since the Hurricanes moved into the Miami Dolphins’ stadium 15 years ago.

Mario Cristobal was a winner in his Miami opener.

Mario Cristobal was a winner in his Miami opener.

Alabama is No. 1 in the preseason AP Top 25 for the second straight season.

The realignment in the major conferences could lead to fewer opportunities in the future for Group of Five teams to play those bigger schools.

He's one of four new coaches in the Atlantic Coast Conference, joining Duke's Mike Elko, Miami's Mario Cristobal and Virginia Tech's Brent Pry. Additionally, Elliott, Elko and Pry have never been head coaches before. “I don't know if it makes it any easier,” Elliott said Thursday during the ACC Kickoff preseason media days. But this is the first time that all four are in one seven-team division, adding another variable into a Coastal Division race long known for its unpredictability. Cristobal spent the past five seasons as head coach at Oregon, as well as a stint leading Florida International.

The Atlantic Coast Conference has four new coaches for this season, all in the same division.

(Photo by David Rosenblum/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)Enjoy retirement, turnover chain. Miami coach Mario Cristobal confirmed Thursday at his ACC media days appearance that Miami would no longer be breaking out the iconic jewelry after forcing a turnover. The turnover chain was introduced in 2017 and its various iterations have been a big part of the Miami program for the past five seasons. But the turnover chain era is now over, just like Diaz’s tenure as Miami head coach. And Cristobal really didn't seem too inclined to talk a lot about the chain being put out to pasture on Thursday.

The college football season is right around the corner, meaning we'll soon get our first glimpses at some prominent head coaches at new schools. Kelly came close but never won a national title at Notre Dame, and expectations are always high when it comes to a program like LSU. Kelly faced tough schedules as an independent at Notre Dame, but the juggernaut of the SEC West is a different kind of beast. Kelly got Notre Dame to the precipice of a national title on multiple occasions but the Irish are still in pursuit of their first title since 1988. The Irish open the 2022 season at Ohio State in a significant early test for the new Notre Dame regime under Freeman’s leadership.

Miami is hiring Michigan offensive coordinator Josh Gattis to run new coach Mario Cristobal’s offense with the Hurricanes. The news comes just days after Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh announced he was staying with his alma mater after interviewing with the Minnesota Vikings. Gattis joined Harbaugh at Michigan in 2019 after stints as an assistant coach at Alabama and Penn State. __Follow Ralph D. Russo at https://twitter.com/ralphDrussoAP and listen at http://www.appodcasts.com___More AP college football: https://apnews.com/hub/college-football and https://twitter.com/AP_Top25. Sign up for the AP’s college football newsletter: https://apnews.com/cfbtop25Copyright 2022 The Associated Press.

Miami is hiring Michigan offensive coordinator Josh Gattis to run new coach Mario Cristobal's offense with the Hurricanes.

Kennedy Brooks ran for 142 yards and three touchdowns as No. 14 Oklahoma rode a dominant first half to beat No. 15 Oregon 47-32 in the Alamo Bowl.

The Miami Hurricanes’ plans to play in the Sun Bowl on Dec. 31 appear to be uncertain at best, after the school announced its football program has entered COVID-19 protocols.

Oregon-Lanning Football FILE - Georgia defensive coordinator Dan Lanning during warm ups before an NCAA football spring G-Day game in Athens, Ga., on April 20, 2019. Oregon has hired Georgia defensive coordinator Dan Lanning as its next head coach, a person involved in the negotiations told The Associated Press on Saturday, Dec. 11, 2021. (Joshua L. Jones/Athens Banner-Herald via AP, File) (Joshua L. Jones)Oregon hired Georgia defensive coordinator Dan Lanning as head coach Saturday, completing a search for Mario Cristobal's replacement that took less than a week. Georgia coach Kirby Smart said in a statement that Lanning would stay with the team through its playoff run. “Dan is an outstanding, high-energy football coach who will provide a world-class experience for our football student-athletes,” Oregon athletic director Rob Mullens said.

Oregon has hired Georgia defensive coordinator Dan Lanning as its next head coach, a person involved in the negotiations told The Associated Press on Saturday. The Atlanta Journal Constitution first reported on Friday that Oregon would hire Lanning. The 35-year-old Lanning will be a first-time head coach with Oregon after spending the last four years at Georgia, the last three as defensive coordinator. 2 Michigan in the College Football Playoff at the Orange Bowl on Dec. 31. ___More AP college football: https://apnews.com/hub/college-football and https://twitter.com/AP_Top25 Sign up for the AP’s college football newsletter: https://apnews.com/cfbtop25Copyright 2021 The Associated Press.

Former Miami coach Manny Diaz has been hired as defensive coordinator at Penn State less than a week after he was fired by the Hurricanes.

As University of Miami students and alumni celebrate the hiring of a new football coach who has been touted as the program’s savior, not everyone is doing cartwheels on the Coral Gables campus.

Miami Cristobal Football Miami football coach Mario Cristobal speaks after being introduced at a news conference, Tuesday, Dec. 7, 2021, in Coral Gables, Fla. Cristobal is returning to his alma mater, where he won two championships as a player. (AP Photo/Lynne Sladky) (Lynne Sladky)Mario Cristobal scrawled notes in pencil on a yellow legal pad during the private flight that brought him to Miami. “It’s time to go to work,” Cristobal said. That’s what you’ve got to work to be, because I can’t proclaim that, I can’t tweet that. We’ve got to work that into reality.”Cristobal is a Miami native, won two national championships at the school as a player and earned two degrees from his time here.

Miami welcomed new coach Mario Cristobal with an introductory news conference in Coral Gables, Florida.

Diaz went 21-15 in three seasons at Miami. But Diaz kept working, even in recent days while the school was trying to pry Cristobal out of Oregon. Firing Diaz, though, suggests Miami is secure in the belief that Cristobal is coming. Diaz never got Miami to an ACC title game, one of the factors in the administration’s thinking. ___More AP college football: https://apnews.com/hub/college-football and https://twitter.com/AP_Top25 Sign up for the AP’s college football newsletter: https://apnews.com/cfbtop25Copyright 2021 The Associated Press.

Mario Cristobal is leaving Oregon and headed home to Miami.

Mario Cristobal is leaving Oregon and headed home to Miami.

Manny Diaz was fired as Miami’s football coach Monday, after a 7-5 regular season and with the school in deep negotiations to bring Oregon coach Mario Cristobal back to his alma mater to take over. Diaz went 21-15 in three seasons at Miami.

Florida was added to the lengthy list of schools looking for a head football coach that already includes LSU and USC.

25 Oregon in the Fiesta Bowl. All extracurricular activities tied to the Fiesta Bowl were shelved, the sightseeing tours among them. “Our players, to have the opportunity to do the things that would typically be involved in the Fiesta Bowl would be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity," Iowa State offensive coordinator Tom Manning said. You would like to have the full experience of the Fiesta Bowl, but it’s the way that it’s gone this year.”The Fiesta Bowl is the culmination of what coach Matt Campbell has built during five seasons in Ames. We’ve had some great games in the past.”HALL'S IMPACT: Oregon's top priority defensive will be trying to slow Hall.

USC reached the Oregon 49, but the Ducks' pass rush prevented Slovis from getting off a Hail Mary. Brown’s first throw for the Ducks was a TD pass to Redd on Oregon’s opening drive. USC earned its spot in the title game by going unbeaten with three late comeback victories along the way. Shough hit Johnson with a 16-yard TD pass in the second quarter before Stepp’s 1-yard TD run capped USC’s 80-yard drive in response. Brown hit Dye with a short TD pass to finish a drive that consumed half of the third quarter.

The Tigers have locked up the best recruiting class of the Dabo Swinney era, which already includes two national titles and five playoff appearances. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip, File)The February signing period in college football is now about tying up loose ends. Exactly what went down is unknown, but Evans apologized to his college coaches during the UnderArmour All-America game in Januarym, where he was the offensive MVP. Four Southeastern Conference schools changed coaches, and heading into signing day Mississippi State's Mike Leach seems best positioned to crack the top 30. The Tigers have locked up the best class of the Dabo Swinney era, which already includes two national titles and five playoff appearances.

Wisconsin running back Jonathan Taylor, left, is congratulated by Jack Dunn after running for a touchdown during the first half of the Big Ten championship NCAA college football game against Ohio State, Saturday, Dec. 7, 2019, in Indianapolis. (AP Photo/AJ Mast)

11 Wisconsin in the 106th edition of the Rose Bowl. The Ducks (11-2) and Badgers (10-3) are regular New Year’s Day visitors to Pasadena: Wisconsin is in the Rose Bowl for the fourth time in 10 seasons, albeit the first in seven years, while Oregon has earned its fourth berth in 11 seasons. This game also is a rematch of the 2012 Rose Bowl. Oregon has reached the Rose Bowl four times in the past 11 years under three coaches, winning in two of those first three trips. Wisconsin started 6-0 this season before back-to-back losses to Illinois and Ohio State knocked it out of the national title picture.

5 CFP) head into the final weekend with a slight edge over Big 12 title game participants Oklahoma and Baylor, which hold the next two spots in the playoff rankings. 4 Georgia in the SEC championship game on Saturday, there figures to be one spot open. Utah leads the nation in run defense, allowing 56.3 yards per game and only 2.26 per carry. MOVING ONThis will be the sixth and final season the Pac-12 will play its title game in the home of the San Francisco 49ers in Santa Clara. The move to the Bay Area hasn't been a great one for the Pac-12, which played its first three title games on campus sites.