Three keys to an Ole Miss win over Miami in the Fiesta Bowl

No. 6 seed Ole Miss plays No. 10 seed Miami in the CFP semifinals at the Fiesta Bowl on Thursday at 6:30 p.m. Here are three keys to a Rebels win at State Farm Stadium.

Protect the passer

Miami has one of the best pass-rush duos in the country in Rueben Bain Jr. and Ahkeem Mesidor. Bain, an All-American, has 8.5 sacks and 13 tackles-for-loss. Mesidor, who was first-team All-ACC, has 10.5 sacks and 15.5 tackles-for-loss. The Hurricanes are third nationally with 3.29 sacks per game and notched five sacks against Ohio State in the Cotton Bowl. Ole Miss has protected its quarterbacks well this season – 18 sacks allowed are the fewest in the SEC – but Miami provides a unique challenge. Keeping senior quarterback Trinidad Chambliss upright will be key.

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Rush the passer

The Hurricanes are just as good on the other line of scrimmage, having allowed 15 sacks in 14 games. Tackle Francis Mauigoa is one of the top offensive linemen in the country, and Miami quarterback Carson Beck has been kept clean on a whopping 84.2% of his drop-backs, per Pro Football Focus. Beck has been prone to making mistakes – he has seven games in his career where he has thrown at least two interceptions and has thrown at least one interception in 18 games – and Ole Miss’ best hope of forcing an error is to be relentless in its pass rush.

Run, run, run

Yes, Miami has the nation’s No. 5 rush defense, allowing just 84 yards per game. Georgia had the No. 4 rush defense at 81.5 yards per game allowed. Rebels star Kewan Lacy ran for just 31 yards on 12 carries in the first matchup with the Bulldogs; he had 22 carries for 98 yards against Georgia in the Sugar Bowl. The threat of the run game last week opened things up for Chambliss, who threw for a season-high 362 yards in the win. Keeping Miami off balance – and not letting its pass rushers tee off – could be pivotal.