Things get heated when you're playing for a national title, and emotions boiled over after the final whistle in Miami.
Miami's Mark Fletcher Jr. throws punch at Indiana's Tyrique Tucker following national title game originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
The No. 1 Indiana Hoosiers won their first-ever national championship, with a 27-21 victory over No. 10 Miami on Monday night. When the Canes had a chance to score a game-winning touchdown on the final drive, quarterback Carson Beck instead threw a game-sealing interception to give Indiana the victory.
A short time after Indiana's victory, ESPN's cameras showed footage of Miami junior running back Mark Fletcher Jr. throwing a punch towards Indiana defensive tackle Tyrique Tucker after the game.
Here's everything to know about the moment between Fletcher and Tucker after the game.
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Mark Fletcher Jr. punch
Here's the footage of Fletcher throwing a punch. ESPN appeared to have found the footage after the fact, as it was shown during the postgame show featuring Scott Van Pelt:
Miami's Mark Fletcher Jr. and Indiana's Tyrique Tucker had to be separated after the CFP National Championship game. pic.twitter.com/pXja5LtGt8
— ESPN (@espn) January 20, 2026
MORE: Curt Cignett explains gutsy decision to go for 4th down late in game
Why did Mark Fletcher Jr. punch Tyrique Tucker ?
It's unclear what led to Fletcher throwing a punch towards Tucker, but the two were seen jawing at each other early in the contest. Tucker had a tackle on Fletcher in the second quarter and words were exchanged thereafter.
Fletcher wasn't too heated for long, however. Afterwards the punch, he was seen congratulating fellow Miami native Fernando Mendoza for the victory:
Mark Fletcher 🤝 Fernando Mendoza
— Kacy Hintz (@KacyHintz) January 20, 2026
What a moment postgame between two South Florida guys pic.twitter.com/Noov4lt9Pg
Fletcher had a great game despite the Miami loss, finishing with 112 yards on 17 carries and two touchdowns. The running back is a South Florida native, who played at the same high school as true freshman Malachi Toney.
MORE: Fernando Mendoza drops rare F-bomb as celebration begins
Who is Tyrique Tucker ?
Tyrique Tucker is Indiana’s redshirt junior defensive tackle. He began his college career at James Madison with Curt Cignetti in 2022, then transferred to Indiana before the 2024 season when Cignetti moved to Bloomington.
Against Miami, Tucker finished with one tackle. Over his career, he has 91 total tackles and 10 sacks, including a career-high six sacks this season. Tucker is a native of Norfolk, Va., and played high school football at Life Christian Academy. His older brother, Diamonte, also played linebacker at James Madison.
MORE:Meet Jamari Sharp, the Indiana DB that made National Championship-sealing INT for Hoosiers
Category: General Sports
