Miami’s defense has been airtight to fuel run to CFP semifinals. And now Ole Miss awaits

CORAL GABLES, Fla. (AP) — The biggest signing for Miami going into this season might not have been quarterback Carson Beck out of Georgia, wide receiver CJ Daniels out of LSU or defensive back Keionte Scott out of Auburn.

It might have been the guy they got from Minnesota.

Corey Hetherman — Miami’s defensive coordinator — was hired away from the Golden Gophers in January 2025 and given a simple yet enormous task: Fix a defense that was so porous last season that not even a 10-win team with a No. 1 draft pick like Cam Ward at quarterback and the top-ranked offense in the country was deemed worthy of a spot in the College Football Playoff.

The result: The Hurricanes are giving up their fewest points per game since 2001, which not coincidentally just happens to be their last national championship season. They’ve given up 9.7 points per game in their current six-game winning streak, plus an even-stingier 8.5 points per game in its two CFP wins over Texas A&M and Ohio State. And now comes another massive test for Miami (12-2), which will take on high-octane Mississippi (13-1) in a CFP semifinal at the Fiesta Bow...