National Title Losers: 2002
by avendittelli on May 11, 2012 9:37 AM EDT
The college football off-season is notorious for its lack of brevity. The longest break of any major sport, when May rolls along and we're still only half way home. As such, we will begin this multi-part series on great past Miami Hurricane teams.
We all know of the illustrious history of the 5 national title winning teams. What many outside the super fandom do not know is how many times Miami was in the title game on the losing side. This fact is what separates Miami from any other program of the last 30 years. Today’s focus: the 2002 Fiesta Bowl losing edition.
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The Miami Hurricanes Upperclassmen Are Probably Not Great
by rayrayrayrayrayrayrayray on May 9, 2012 3:29 PM EDT
Surprise! You probably already knew this, but the Canes juniors and seniors don't project to be all that great. The latest confirmation comes from Mel Kiper Jr. who today released his top five college juniors and seniors at every position heading into the 2012 season. Out of the 160 players listed by Kiper, only two are Miami Hurricanes. They are:
- Ray Ray Armstrong, rated as the fifth best senior safety
- Dalton Botts, rated as the second best junior punter
So, yes: Miami's second best upperclassmen may be its punter. This will likely be a problem. But Mel Kiper, of course, isn't Oz, and some of his projections will invariably be totally off. But does that apply to the Canes?
Hurricanes Recruiting Update: Can The Canes Sway A Couple FSU Commits?
by Lt. Philip Nolan on May 8, 2012 9:13 AM EDT
While Al Golden's recruiting work has mostly been known for getting back to the roots of the "State Of Miami" that Schnellenberger established, he has also shown a penchant for convincing recruits that belong to other schools to switch to Miami. In last years class alone, he swayed Jawand Blue and Robert Lockhart from VT, Antonio Crawford from GT, and Daquan Ivery from Louisville. Having the ability to sell your school enough to have a guy change his mind is a very useful tool in the recruiting world. These kids are susceptible to change their minds at the drop of a hat, and often don't need a coach's prodding to do so. Yet to have Golden not only be able to get them to change their minds, but also stick with the Miami choice, is a welcome change to the recruiting we as fans have been used to recently. That all being said, it looks like Ole Al is starting that trend yet again, trying to woo two guys that are highly interested in rival FSU to come down south a bit to Coral Gables. Hit the jump to read on.
Al Golden Is Coming to a Town Near You
by Craig T on May 5, 2012 11:28 AM EDT
One thing that has impressed me about Al Golden (beyond the manner in which he's handled the Nevin Shapiro bombshell, and pulled in a strong recruiting class, to boot) is how available he has made himself to promote the University of Miami program. At least that's my view from the other side of the state, where Al Golden came on my radio show shortly after national signing day and gave one hell of an interview where other coaches and/or athletic departments from major programs in the state and region gave us the cold shoulder. I've heard him on other shows both in this market and in South Florida. And, if you're the U, why not? It's a terrific way to sell your program to pipeline areas. I've never understood why coaches are so closed off to making offseason media appearances when it's nothing but free advertisement for their programs, but I digress to some degree.
And now, Al Golden embarks on a summer of love.......with Hurricane alums and supporters. Golden will be embarking on a multi-state, seven-city tour that began on May 1 and wraps up on June 5. The full schedule can be found here. Golden will be joined at various stops by Shawn Eichorst, Jedd Fisch, Art Kehoe, Micheal Barrow, and a cast of coaches and special guests, which will vary from site to site. The tour started May 1 in Atlanta and will also touch down in Chicago and New York City. In-state stops include South Florida, Orlando, and Tampa.
So, if you feel like rubbing elbows with the Hurricane staff and talking Hurricanes football with other loyal diehards, make your reservations now.
Randy Shannon Suing The University of Miami
by Lt. Philip Nolan on May 2, 2012 3:04 PM EDT
Yeah, unfortunately you read that right. Former UM linebacker/coordinator/head coach Randy Shannon has filed a law suit against the University of Miami as of April 26th. This story has been broken by a few different sources, and most have included a scan of the paperwork. While I am not well versed in legalese, there are a few things that are relatively clear.
The State Of Miami: A College Football Lifetime In Just 11 Years
by Lt. Philip Nolan on May 1, 2012 10:09 AM EDT
I'm going to mix things up a bit and deviate from the normal hum of recruiting updates and practice analysis. I got to thinking last night about my time as a Miami fan, and all that I have seen. In the span of the almost 17 years that I have watched this team, I've seen everything that a college football wants to see, and a lot that most never care to witness. I've seen huge hits, incredible plays, championships, one of the best teams of all time, some of the worst teams I've seen, an NFL pipeline, and scandal. That last sentence could easily make up the life span of any other normal college football program, but Miami has managed to wrap it all up and deliver it to it's fans all in the span of 11 years. Miami is currently on the upswing with coach Golden and his merry band of minions, and even in the face of possibly (but most likely not) daunting NCAA sanctions, he has brought recruiting back to the level that we as Canes fans expect, brought a sense of urgency to the program, and forced the players to finally recognize that the logo on the side of your helmet means absolutely nothing if you don't make people respect it. The one thing Golden has begun doing in his short time in Coral Gables, and possibly the most important to at least one section of Miami fans...he has finally begun to bury the swagger.
2012 NFL Draft: Six Miami Hurricanes Go In 2012 Draft
by rayrayrayrayrayrayrayray on Apr 28, 2012 10:38 PM EDT
The Miami Hurricanes were tied for the fourth highest number of players drafted in the 2012 NFL Draft, but it's hard to say if the weekend was really a success for any individual player. Most of Miami's draftees will enter into pretty solid situations, but unless some major improvements are made, the 2012 Canes draft class will likely be remembered for a rash of poor decisions.
Let's rundown where each Cane was drafted, how they're feeling about their decision to enter the NFL (if applicable) and the type of situation that they'll be entering into with their new teams.
Olivier Vernon / Miami Dolphins / Round 3, 72 overall
It was probably surprising to Canes fans, coaches and players that Vernon was the first player from the school off the board, but he may be the most physically talented player of the group. Vernon's draft stock was hurt by more or less having his entire junior year wiped out, but the physical tools won out, and it's hard to argue with that. The Dolphins need youth and athleticism on the defensive line, and aside from Cameron Wake have little pass rush to speak of, so Vernon will have a chance to shine. Vernon may have gone a round higher had he come back and had a good year for the Canes in 2013, but considering the team that took him and the position, it's hard to imagine that he's regretting his decision to come out.
Hit the jump for more analysis.
