Miami quarterback Ken Dorsey was supposed to lead his Hurricanes to their second-consecutive national championship and extend his collegiate record to 39-1.
The Ohio State defense had other ideas.
In a game where the explosive Miami offense was supposed to supply all the fireworks, it was the Buckeye defense that came up with the biggest plays. OSU forced five Miami turnovers and sacked Dorsey four times. The Buckeyes also held Heisman Trophy finalist tailback Willis McGahee to just 67 yards on 20 carries.
“We see the type of teams Miami played,” said cornerback Will Allen. “They were playing undisciplined teams. Miami lived off big plays, but our whole year, our defense wasn’t doing that.”
But while the turnovers set up Buckeye scores, the biggest defensive stand came on the very last snap of the game.
With OSU clinging to a 31-24 lead in the double overtime, the Hurricanes faced a fourth-and-goal inside the OSU 1-yard line. With star tailback Willis McGahee on the sidelines with a knee injury, the Hurricanes elected to put the ball in Dorsey’s hands to move the game into a third overtime.
But as Dorsey dropped back to pass, a host of Buckeye defenders broke through the Miami offensive line, hitting Dorsey as he was backpedaling. Dorsey was able to get away a throw of desperation, but the ball fell innocently to the ground and the Buckeye bench rushed the field.
“That last play of the game summarized the whole season,” said defensive end Simon Fraser. “It was a nailbiter and our defense was there to get the job done. Everyone believed we could get it done and it’s just unbelievable.”
But the biggest story was the turnovers. Coming into the game, Miami committed just two turnovers a game, but the Buckeye defense forced a season-high five Hurricane miscues.
OSU’s first takeaway came on the Hurricanes’ first drive of the second quarter. On third-and-four, Dorsey looked in favorite receiver Andre Johnson’s direction. But the only player in the vicinity of Dorsey’s pass was OSU cornerback Dustin Fox. Fox took the pick and returned it 12 yards.
The very next drive, Doss brought back a Dorsey interception 35 yards, setting up quarterback Craig Krenzel’s first rushing touchdown, tying the score at 7.
“Coach (Mark) Dantonio (defensive coordinator) harped about all week how we need some turnovers,” Doss said. “Guys were going out there and trying to make plays. We just continued to go out there and make plays.”
Just 13 seconds later, the Buckeyes picked up their third takeaway, this time as defensive tackle Kenny Peterson hit Dorsey from the right-handed quarterback’s blindside. The ball fell to the turf and defensive end Darrion Scott pounced on it. That set up Maurice Clarett’s first touchdown of the game and gave OSU a 14-7 halftime lead.
Probably the most important turnover of the game came in the third quarter after Krenzel was intercepted by Hurricane defensive back Sean Taylor. As Taylor was racing up the sidelines, Clarett came from behind and ripped the ball from Taylor’s arm. OSU got the ball back and Mike Nugent kicked a field goal to push OSU’s lead to 17-7.
Allen then recovered a fumble of his own in the fourth quarter after Hurricane receiver Roscoe Parrish was stripped of the ball by Fox.
