But when you play a team like that, you can't turn the ball over, and I think we ended up throwing four interceptions. Miami started with a 90 lead over the Boston College Eagles, but Miami's offense began to sputter as Dorsey struggled with the swirling winds, throwing four interceptions. So a lot of times when I hear his voice, I can sense that disappointment that he felt with that being his last go around. They were all self-directed. And we're in the buses going right through this wave of red, and it seemed like they all flipped us off in unison. ", Reed They kept telling us don't listen to our coaches, because we're getting our butts kicked. We never got worried. Nobody was too "big time" for anything. CB Mike Rumph How about 2013 Florida State, a team so loaded with talent all 22 of its offensive and defensive starters that year ended up on an NFL roster? The deck was loaded. Ed Reed, a free safety, is in the Hall of Fame (elected in 2019), and his backup was Sean Taylor, arguably the greatest safety who ever played the game. McGahee ran for 4.7 yards per carry and three touchdowns in reserve duty behind Clinton Portis in 2001. They beat us 47-0, and I remember walking off the field and everyone was celebrating and he said, "As long as I have something to do with it, I will never be embarrassed by Florida State again." I went to the University of Florida, where as a freshman in 1995, the Nebraska Cornhuskers staked their claim to the greatest-of-all-time throne after dismantling the Gators in the 1996 Fiesta Bowl. After a blocked punt returned for a touchdown cut Miami's lead to 26-24, Virginia Tech lined up for a 2-point conversion to tie the game. Every team has to go through that, because that's how you get calloused to know that no matter what happens, you're going to find a way to win. It was intense. We knew a kid could run and be athletic and we had the blueprint for that. A lot of people don't know how close that was, but he was a huge leader for us, and he wasn't coming out of that game. There were a lot of expectations, and Larry took the pressure off of them. Football. Truly perfected that.". Hurricanes Can Finish With Best Regular Season in Program History. Soon, that entire mentality took hold across the entire team. They were cracking jokes at us, and they thought that they were gonna just drag us all over the football field and just pound us. I had to make it tough tough. After the close win over Boston College, Miami went on to win over #14 Syracuse, 590,[12] and #12 Washington, 657,[13] in consecutive weeks in the Orange Bowl. Back then, we had availabilities three times a week with players, an open locker room after games and access to practice, too. We probably could have scored 80 points. We let them drive right before the half and Ed Reed wasn't in that drive because he had dinged up his shoulder. We lost the year before, and it kept us out of the national championship game. The Hurricanes were led by first-year head coach Larry Coker and played their home games at the Orange Bowl. Coker Rumph A lot of people talk about the struggles against Florida State, but we had those struggles against Virginia Tech. When I caught it, I wasn't thinking about running it back for a touchdown. Media Requests We look at each other, like how the hell did we do this? I will never forget standing on the goal line at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Florida, when Deshaun Watson threw the winning 2-yard touchdown pass to Hunter Renfrow to beat Alabama 35-31 and finish 15-0. The Hokies, ranked No. We knew, we got them out here, with the weather, the physicality, they weren't going to be ready for that. 1 Miami Flattens No. Dorsey Two weeks later, the game everybody in the locker room had circled on the calendar had finally arrived: Washington. We'd been through so much pain. A lot of people doubted if they should have made the championship. Coach had taught me for four years to get my hands down, get on his helmet and push his head down on the ground so that he doesn't get to your legs. ", Rumph Hurricanes basketball coach Jim Larraaga highlights a 10-member University of Miami Sports Hall of Fame class. They should have gone back to high school where they do the running clock. Sponsorship Opportunities including 17 first-rounders and at least one Hall of Famer in Ed Reed. This team, who kept us out of the national championship, beat us our freshman year slammed the quarterback in the goal post that's what that was all about. Guys rallied behind him. A lot of people don't realize the rivalry between Miami and Virginia Tech. Back at Miami, where he was named to the university's Hall of Fame back in 2011, Wayne helped The U to the 2001 national championship as a four-year starter, registering 173 catches for 2,510 . Then in 2002, with Frank Gore out, exploded on the scene with 1,753 rushing yards and 28 touchdowns on 6.2 yard per carry. (0:44). It's almost like that life doesn't exist. Not a lot needed to be said. After that, there are issues like roster. I remember Ed coming up next to me. The intangibles he had. It's not the individual talent. Like, literally none. Men's Sports . I don't know how General Custer felt, but I felt like General Custer. Sterling, sadly, had. It has been achieved by the 2010, 2012, 2013 and 2014 Alabama Crimson Tide football teams and the 2012 Wisconsin Badgers football team. I went to a JUCO in Scranton, Penn. They thought that we looked like a high school team. They're just telling us we're No. They just accumulated so many good players that everybody was looking at them as like, 'How have they done this? Former Miami Dolphin and Pro Football Hall of Famer Jason Taylor and defensive ends coach Rod Wright talk on the field during practice at Greentree . Reed With Coker in place as head coach and key players like Reed and McKinnie returning for their senior seasons, the Hurricanes knew what was in front of them. The 2001 Miami Hurricanes football team represented the University of Miami during the 2001 NCAA Division I-A football season. Because when Jimmy [Johnson] left after winning two national championships, they really changed the whole program, and I didn't want that to happen to those kids. 2 behind Florida -- the team they dismantled in the Sugar Bowl to close out the 2000 season. As a true freshman coming in, I'm all smiles. Williams Our reasoning for presenting offensive logos. If you weren't doing all the right things, if you weren't going to class, making your grades, if you weren't showing up to work out or something like that, you could easily be cast out. We let the country know what this whole season was going to be about. You're gonna to fight. Being from California, playing in the Rose Bowl was special for me. Though Miami dominated nearly every team it played, it had to survive a close one at Boston College in November. So I think that describes how good they were.". Davenport was also an effective weapon as a receiver catching 35 balls for 3 touchdowns in orange and green. There are vivid moments that stand out to me that season. The Houston Texas took him third overall in the 2003 NFL draft. After an interception, Ed Reed strips the ball from his teammate and takes it for a touchdown to seal Miami's win vs. Boston College during the 2001 season. I'm talking about the energy, the heat. You're sweating, you're bleeding, you're laying everything on the line for the guy next to you, and there was no envy." Before we even went to the game, we made "Ballin Boys." We'd just beaten Florida in the Sugar Bowl and gone 11-1. I never experienced that, just to sit there and say, "I'm the best, and that was a product of all our work." But in the moment, as I wrote my recap of that game in January 2002, I was very much like the players. Last edited by a moderator: Jan 7, 2009. Fitzgerald 1.". When Miami needed to pick up a 3rd and short the bigger bodied Cobia was on the field to run iso from Miamis 21 personnel base offense at the time. We're tougher than you think.". He made good decisions and he made everyone around him better. And I've debated that, and it's like, 'Yeah, whatever, you can talk.' As the 2001 Miami Hurricanes celebrated a fifth national championship in the . Beamer 4 in the Bowl Championship Series standings. [17] The offense set the school scoring record, while the defense led the nation in scoring defense (fewest points allowed), pass defense, and turnover margin. Miami also holds a number of NFL Draft records, including most first-round selections in a single draft and most consecutive drafts with at least one first-round selection. In interviews with more than two dozen players, coaches and opposing coaches, here is the story of the 2001 season, told in their own words. A lot of us came back just for this game. Some felt that Miami got snubbed in a chance to compete for the BCS Championship game. We were winning, but we left a lot of points on the field. But I wasn't leaving these guys. You could feel the crowd; you could feel the anger that we had, and how bad we wanted to beat them. "We really had leaders on that team, and I don't think that can be matched," Reed said. Payton spent time in NFL Europe as well as the Canadian Football League. He was leading stuff, telling guys what to do, up and down the court with the ball in his hands, and you could just see this guy had that magical feel for how to play team games. That felt good for all of us. Twenty years later, the 2001 Miami Hurricanes are widely regarded as one of the greatest college football teams of all time. We had 31 scholarships lost. Najeh Davenport was in the three headed monster backfield of the 1998 season with Edgerrin James and James Jackson before injuring his knee. Davis left Miami after coaching the Hurricanes to an 11-1 season in 2000. The final hurdle to the Rose Bowl BCS National Championship Game was at Virginia Tech. And so much more. Gore was a true freshman that got Hurricanes fans excited for the future as he averaged 9.1 yards per carry with 5 touchdowns in his first year on-campus. C Brett Romberg Question, Comment, Feedback, or Correction? We were exhausted. Larry Coker knew that once that baton got handed off, he wasn't changing anything. / And that kind of stuck with me. In all, 17 players from the team became first-round draft picks, and 38 players would be drafted, with stars like Vilma, Reed, Shockey, Wilfork and Portis earning multiple Pro Bowl bids. We could see with our own eyes what made that team go. At that point, euphoric adrenaline runs over you. Miami clinched a spot in the national title game against Nebraska at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, Calif., and felt confident this game would be its crowning achievement. Former coach Butch Davis It didn't matter who stood in the way, they didn't stand a chance against us. The loudest game. [14] Defeating Virginia Tech earned the top-ranked Hurricanes an invitation to the Rose Bowl to take on BCS #2 Nebraska for the national championship. Led by twelfth-year head coach Jim Larraaga, they play their home games at the Watsco Center on the university's campus in Coral Gables, Florida as members of the Atlantic . Walters They were so dialed in on winning a national championship, so focused on leadership, accountability and -- as ridiculous as it sounds now -- proving themselves that it became impossible in the moment to assign this team a place in college football lore. Walters It's one of those weird ones you can't explain, but you've got to get through. If I slacked off at all, I wasn't going to play as much because Vince Wilfork is my backup. In interviews with players and coaches, here . This endowed scholarship was created in 1992, in the memory of beloved Hurricanes' Hall of Fame player and coach Walter Kichefski. Ed was somebody that would really talk to players. They're driving to win, the whole stadium thought they were about to win. Chudzinski ", Flashback: Ed Reed strips ball from teammate for Hurricanes pick-six (0:44), 'It's the most talented team to ever play': An oral history of the 2001 Miami Hurricanes, Breaking down the latest in 2024 football recruiting, from top commits to March visits, The Turnover Luck Index: Rating every 2022 team, from USC to Rutgers, ACC boss: Rule changes backed by FBS leaders, Top draft prospect Carter charged in fatal crash, Stoops: QB Leary (pec) 'close to full go' for UK, Hall of Fame coach Ault named to CFP committee, New NCAA president readies for NIL, legal issues, Ex-Vols staffers agree to show-cause penalties, UNC hires ex-Browns HC Kitchens as assistant, Kiper's updated NFL mock draft: Who's moving up for a QB? The dominance on the field and at the next level was unparalleled throughout the century-plus existence of our version of the sport. OL Joel Rodriguez We were pissed. We had it in us, and we knew we had it in us. He almost had to come out of the game. All rights reserved 2001 Football Rosters. The Panthers had six first-round draft picks on its '01 roster while Miami's '01 team eventually When Miami offensive coordinator Rob Chudzinski wanted a more versatile player he went with Davenport. The atmosphere was too much for them. We knew that was going to be a tough game. I don't want to sound disrespectful, but we were five steps faster than them, 10 pounds hungrier, much more violent, which is a different style of football. Dorsey It started as a joke first, but it just went to like, no matter what you put us through, we can't be hurt. What players and coaches insist set this team apart was their camaraderie, accountability and willingness to do whatever it took to win a championship -- especially those afternoon workouts. But I feel like if you look at the history, every team that's won a national title has had a game like that, where it comes down to the last minute and if you lose, your season's over. ACC Network FAQs Because we had that extra whatever. Williams I couldn't get off the ground fast enough to go give him a hug. Portis is now a member of the Miami Hurricanes Hall of Fame. Nevertheless, Miami was left with a bitter sense of disappointment, believing they had been deprived of a shot at a potential national championship. Dorsey threw four interceptions. We knew what we had on paper, but to see how we were dominating, and the energy we produced in such a hostile environment, it was like, "OK, wow, we are who we think we are.". That truly goes to show how much trust we had, for him to hear my voice and give me the ball. The ladies win their home finale, prep for their conference tournament matchup on Thursday. In addition, Vilma, Shockey, Wilfork, Joseph, Rolle, McKinnie, and Reed have won the Super Bowl. It's nothing new to us. We knew what route was coming on that play. * 21+ (19+ CA-ONT) (18+ NH/WY). Romberg Walters ran ten yards with the ball before teammate Ed Reed grabbed the ball out of his hands at around the Miami 20-yard line and raced the remaining 80-yards for a touchdown. The year before, Miami lost at Washington 34-29 -- and that loss ultimately kept the Hurricanes out of the national title game they felt they deserved. Reed We all loved Dorsey, but we knew we had other skill sets and talent on that team. But Larry was a perfect fit for that team. There will be unsung heroes picking up blitzes. All I could think as I looked on from the press box was, "I can't believe they're about to blow this," knowing full well a trip to the national championship and the Rose Bowl was on the line. We knew we were good, and when we got out there and played on Saturdays, the people we went against were not as good as the guys we had on our scout team. A total of 38 . It's Ed!". 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