"Your head coach is going to tell them": Shannon Sharpe issues a blunt reality check to Cam Ward after his controversial decision against Iowa State

Cam Ward has been heavily criticized for his decision to skip the second half of the Pop-Tarts Bowl on Saturday. The Hurricanes lost the game in the last minute, 42-41, with quarterback Rocco Becht scoring a 1-yard rushing touchdown. Backup Emory Williams, who played the entirety of the second half, attempted a comeback on a final desperate drive but was intercepted by Iowa State's Drew Surges.

One of those who criticized Ward's decision was Pro Football Hall of Famer Shanon Sharpe, who touched the subject on Sunday on his "Nightcap" podcast. He explained that Ward better not think that he could hide his reasoning for skipping the second half of the game from scouts during the NFL Combine.

"For me, I think this is a bad look," Sharpe said (10:15). "I think scouts, is going to be very interesting because I can assure you, you (Chad "Ochocinco" ) and I, we've been on those meetings at the combine where they go in there and they're going to say 'Son tell us what you were thinking why didn't you play in the second half?'"

"Now, just so you know, your head coach (Mario Cristobal) is going to tell them. So don't go in there thinking you're pulling a wool over somebody's eyes," he added.

To which his co-host Chad Ochocinco echoed:

"They (scouts) know everything."

Mario Cristobal on Cam Ward's decision

Coach Mario Cristobal took the high road when discussing Ward's decision to skip the second half of the game against Iowa State.

"I think all meetings with players and decisions like that, we make them in private and we keep them in private," Cristobal explained via the South Florida Sun Sentinel's Adam Lichtenstein. "So I'll prefer not to answer questions as it relates to that. I know he played his best while he was in there."

Nonetheless, it will surely be difficult for the Miami fans to avoid thinking about what could've been had the Heisman finalist stayed in the game, especially when considering that backup Williams only had six pass plays before the final fateful drive.