Middle Tennessee's bowl championship rings troll Miami win, feature final score

Middle Tennessee's football win over Miami last season is the gift that keeps on giving for Blue Raiders coach Rick Stockstill. Middle Tennessee finished the 2022 campaign 8-5 overall, stamped by its Hawai'i Bowl victory over San Diego State on Christmas Eve.

The Blue Raiders commemorated the win with bowl rings this week and each of the jewelry pieces features the final score of the team's 45-31 victory at Miami in September.

Middle Tennessee torched the Hurricanes with over 500 yards of total offense, including touchdown passes spanning 71, 69 and 98 yards to smack a team previously ranked No. 25 in the country.

"It’s always fun to do stuff that nobody thinks you can do. Coming down here 26-point underdogs and kicking their butt like we did, because it was a butt-kicking,"Stockstill said. "There was no fluke to this. Just really proud of our team, the toughness that we played with. We were the tougher team tonight."

Stockstill, who played quarterback at Florida State, said after the game that he received a ton of text messages from folks who were keeping tabs on the action and pulling for their former teammates against a former hated rival.

"I’m all Middle Tennessee, but I can promise you my phone is blowed up with texts or whatever from my Florida State pals. I had a couple of my former teammates here tonight watching the game," Stockstill said. "Bunch of my former teammates and all that texted me before the game, good luck, kick their tail and all that stuff. So, I know Tallahassee, I know they’re pretty excited about the mighty Blue Raiders kicking these Hurricanes’ tail, because we kicked their tail and I ain’t afraid to say it.”

Middle Tennessee was a multi-touchdown underdog in the game, but dominated the Hurricanes from the start.

“You know, I always thought the Missouri game in 2016 was one of my favorites because they were coming off playing in the SEC Championship, it was played out there, how we played that game. We didn’t play great on defense, but we kept answering offensively every time," Stockstill said. "That was a special win. This one down here just with history and the tradition of this program. Everybody knows The U. You know, all the great players that have played here, it’s pretty special. To beat a ranked team and beat them, it’s pretty daggum special.

"I told our team earlier in the week that Ray Lewis and Michael Irvin and all them cats, they ain’t coming out the smoke. They ain’t coming out the tunnel. Have a strong belief in yourself, have a strong belief in your team and don’t flinch. Don’t look at the scoreboard, just keeping playing. And that’s what we did man. Just a phenomenal win man, a phenomenal win for these guys.”

Miami finished 5-7 in Mario Cristobal's first season.