Nobody understands targeting anymore after ref’s ruling in Ole Miss-Miami

Officiating throughout college football has been a hot-button topic this season, and Thursday's College Football Playoff Semifinal between the No. 10-seed Miami Hurricanes and No. 6-seed Ole Miss Rebels was no different.

With 3:59 remaining in the first quarter, Miami quarterback Carson Beck dropped back and connected with star freshman wide receiver Malachi Toney for a first down. However, many felt that more yards and an ejection could have been tacked on at the end of the play following the hit delivered by junior safety, Nick Cull.

As seen in the video below, Cull's helmet very clearly hit the helmet of Toney.

ESPN rules analyst Bill Lemonnier, supporting a targeting call: "Definitely defenseless player. Strong hit to the head/neck area. This shouldn't take long."

After review, there was no targeting.

Lemonnier then explained why the refs reached that conclusion. 🏈🦓🎙️ #CFP pic.twitter.com/VkkNSwgCji
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) January 9, 2026

ESPN's Kirk Herbstreit pointed out the helmet-to-helmet hit, while ESPN's rules expert Bill Lemonnier chimed in with the fact that he, too, felt it was targeting.

"Definitely a defenseless player," Lemonnier said. "Strong hit to the head, neck area...This shouldn't take long."

Although it was initially ruled targeting on the field, the official announced to the stadium that there was no foul for targeting on that play.

Miami Hurricanes mascot in the first half during the 2026 Fiesta Bowl. — Miami Hurricanes mascot in the first half during the 2026 Fiesta Bowl and semifinal game of the College Football Playoff at State Farm Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images | Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

Lemonnier later backtracked on his initial stance, citing a lack of "indicator," whether that be the player launching or thrusting himself into the head of the receiver.

Regardless of what the explanation is, a clear understanding of what targeting actually is continues to evade people around college football. Even notable college football personalities such as David Pollack and Yahoo's Caroline Fenton seemed to have mixed feelings about the final ruling.

"I have zero clue what the hail targeting is!!!!! I didn't think that should have been called but technically it met the criteria," wrote former ESPN analyst, David Pollack.

"That was quite literally textbook targeting," wrote Fenton.

They weren't the only ones to have differing opinions on the call:

"Is that really targeting? He is facemask/side of helmet and looks totally accidental," wrote Bud Elliott of CBS Sports.

"If that’s targeting, it shouldn’t be. Two guys arriving at about the same time," added Pat Forde of Sports Illustrated.

While it'd be nice for there to have a clearer explanation of what warrants a targeting call, the longstanding issue that college football has had with the rule is the fact that it results in an automatic ejection. Luckily for Ole Miss and Cull, the call was overturned, and he wasn't ejected.

However, had the call stood, the Rebs would have lost a key player, and also given up even more yardage, thus possibly changing the outcome of a drive that ended with a punt.

The winner of Thursday night's clash will advance to the championship and play the winner of Indiana and Oregon. The Rebels and Hurricanes have met just three times, with Thursday's meeting marking the first time since 1951.

Miami came into the game favored by three, according to DraftKings.