Miami Hurricanes Punch Ticket to College Football Playoff — Could Win National Title at Home

It's official: The Miami Hurricanes are dancing in December.

After being on the outside looking in for each of the first five rankings, Miami claimed the No. 10 spot in the selection committee's final ranking on Sunday afternoon, securing an at-large bid into the 12-team field. The bracket consists of the five highest-ranked conference champions and the next seven highest-ranked teams.

The Hurricanes will travel to College Station, Texas, to face No. 7 Texas A&M in the first round. Game date and time have not yet been announced, but kickoff will either be at 8 p.m. on Dec. 19 or one of three time slots on Dec. 20 (noon, 3:30 p.m. or 7:30 p.m.).

Here's where it gets exciting for local fans: Should Miami advance through the opening round, quarterfinals and semifinals, the Hurricanes would play for the national championship on Jan. 19 at Hard Rock Stadium — giving them a chance to capture their first national title since 2001 on their home turf.

For South Florida, the road to glory could end right in our backyard.