Behind Portis were Gore, McGahee and Payton with Davenport blocking for. The Canes became arguably the greatest team in CFB history 20 years ago, finishing 12-0, winning the national title and producing 38 NFL draft picks. Reed We weren't trying to sit here and showcase how fast and athletic we were. The 2001 Miami Hurricanes are considered the greatest college football team in college football history. / The season began on the road against Penn State, a matchup Miami viewed as a "statement game.". Williams .mw-parser-output .hatnote{font-style:italic}.mw-parser-output div.hatnote{padding-left:1.6em;margin-bottom:0.5em}.mw-parser-output .hatnote i{font-style:normal}.mw-parser-output .hatnote+link+.hatnote{margin-top:-0.5em}. The one newspaper that I still love to this day is the New York Times because they picked us as national champions at the end of the season. I say five minutes into the game, they knew in their hearts that they were going to be outclassed and outmatched. The older guys took us under their wings and helped us. I think it was kind of a weight off everybody's shoulders at the end. Brown, who played for the Hurricanes' baseball team from 1998-2001, is the No . Rumph My knee went between my hands, and hit the tip of the ball and it flipped to Matt Walters. I had to challenge them, because if not, they're looking at you like, "What is this?" He was right. Our physicality wasn't good. Football. And I've debated that, and it's like, 'Yeah, whatever, you can talk.' The first series, we line up, they run their option, and for as fast as it went for us in practice, it was like they were in sand. And to stand up at the podium with guys like Andre Johnson, who was my suite mate since my freshman year, and hold up that trophy -- that was special. Williams; and defensive backs Ed Reed, Mike Rumph, and Phillip Buchanon. He was probably the most hated guy in all of Blacksburg that night, but at the same time thank you so much, because you just kind of saved us some heartache. The nearly hundred-year-old Hurricanes pennant once waved by a member of Miami's original freshman class. [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. But these guys wanted to win that two-minute drill as bad as they wanted to win the Rose Bowl. But we were a great team. I think they added extra bleachers so now they had the biggest stadium in college football. They beat us 59-0 and we finished that season with 10 wins. Six players earned All-American status and six players were finalists for national awards, including Maxwell Award winner, Ken Dorsey, and Outland Trophy winner, Bryant McKinnie. Walters Three trades in a chaotic top five, The new law changing service academy football, and the coaches pushing back, Realignment chatter: How the Pac-12 holds the key to it all. LB D.J. As the 2001 Miami Hurricanes celebrated a fifth national championship in the Rose Bowl locker room 20 years ago, not one person screamed, 'GOAT!' Head coach Larry Coker We felt very disrespected, for the simple fact that we were coming into the season highly ranked, and they had a White Out game. I grew up in South Florida, and watched the previous four Miami national champions closely. The consensus among college football analysts is that the 2001 Hurricanes had the most talented roster in history. I would have got drafted higher and everything. But a diving, game-saving interception by Ed Reed sealed the Miami victory, 2624. They were a good team. What I remember most, though, is the sheer dominance. We're intense, pulling up on the buses. Less than 24 hours to renew your football tickets! People were literally afraid to let the person next to them down. I just remember on that play that the offensive lineman tried to cut my knees, and I remember finally getting it right. 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. Among the numerous stars on the 2001 Miami squad were: quarterback Ken Dorsey; running backs Clinton Portis, Willis McGahee, Najeh Davenport, and Frank Gore; tight end Jeremy Shockey; wide receiver Andre Johnson; offensive tackle Bryant McKinnie; defensive linemen Jerome McDougle, William Joseph, and Vince Wilfork; linebackers Jonathan Vilma and D.J. Before we even went to the game, we made "Ballin Boys." The Hurricanes were led by first-year head coach Larry Coker and played their home games at the Orange Bowl. Payton was on campus for five season and waiting his turn to be the starter which came after McGahees departure for the 2003 season. / He had the respect of those players. We were just too big, strong and fast, and way too physical. I'll never forget the year before, we beat Florida State and guys were celebrating, and Ed Reed told Dorsey to stand up and told everyone to start cheering for Ken Dorsey. Greatest position rooms in Canes history: 2001 Running Backs. It was a somewhat natural transition because I knew the players. Little did I know that one line would take on a far more powerful meaning in the years to come. Vilma got into a debate several years ago with former USC running back Reggie Bush when the two played for the New Orleans Saints. . The Panthers had six first-round draft picks on its '01 roster while Miami's '01 team eventually "It wasn't about elite, starters, pecking orders, all that other great stuff," center Brett Romberg said. It's a fun debate, but at the same time, the competitor in you has no doubt about where we stood. 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." 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. And he comes to me when we're in Pasadena, he's like, "Look, don't worry, it's gonna be easier in the game. It was a competitive culture and accountability was huge and he built a family environment. We line up, and Ed goes, "Mike, here comes the slant. At that point, it was like, all right, the last game then we're going to ship. Because we had that extra whatever. They embraced it, and that's when I learned the great ones want to be driven. Kenny didn't have the strongest arm in football, but he was just a tremendous leader and just a playmaker. In the 2002 Rose Bowl against Nebraska, Portis ran for 104 yards and a touchdown with another long touchdown run called back for a phantom holding. Employment He almost had to come out of the game. They should have gone back to high school where they do the running clock. [15] Miami won its fifth national championship in the last 18 years, and put the finishing touches on a perfect 120 season. Internships / We let them drive right before the half and Ed Reed wasn't in that drive because he had dinged up his shoulder. If you dominate your responsibility and enough guys do that, then we'll be OK. A lot of people don't understand the context. A lot of what we did, Butch should get credit for. It was a program that was meant to sink or swim guys. They could have scored a touchdown or kicked a field goal and that season has an asterisk next to it. I said, "Coach, they're slow as hell.". In 2002, Miami again played for a national title, losing in overtime to Ohio State. I'll never forget, he said he really liked our team. I played with Richie Incognito with the Rams, and he told me when they saw us get off the bus at Disney [during the week], they started laughing. Some felt that Miami got snubbed in a chance to compete for the BCS Championship game. 2001 Miami Hurricanes footballconsensus national champions, 2001 Big East Conference football standings, 2001 Penn State Nittany Lions football team, 2001 Rutgers Scarlet Knights football team, 2001 Florida State Seminoles football team, 2001 West Virginia Mountaineers football team, would cost nearly $120 million as an NFL team, "CFB 150: Top 10 teams in college football history - Sporting News", "The 150 greatest teams in college football's 150-year history - ESPN", "The 2001 Miami Hurricanes Would Beat Any Team, Any Time - FanBuzz", "Hurricanes Roll Past Penn State, 33-7:: Ken Dorsey throws three touchdown passes to lead Miami", University of Miami (FL) Athletic Department, "No. Romberg 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. Backing up the entire unit was football legacy Jarrett Payton. Strength coach Andreu Swasey The individual's put on the back burner for your brothers. After that, there are issues like roster. Dorsey At the time, [Paterno] wasn't taking JUCO transfers, and that was one of the schools I would've went to, so when I got a chance to play against them I said, "I'm gonna show him. Jump inside of it. Last edited by a moderator: Jan 7, 2009. The Hurricanes were led by first-year head coach Larry Coker and played their home games at the Orange Bowl. Because that whole season, our mind was set on one goal, and you really don't understand how exhausting something can be when you're in pursuit of it. And whenever you do stuff like that, you believe you're going to win. We never got worried. The players and coaches, first and foremost, were accessible. One of the things that happened in practice, we caught a few guys in the stadium trying to record our practices, seeing how we were going to stop the triple option. That was it for Miami. The ladies win their home finale, prep for their conference tournament matchup on Thursday. Reed has been inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. MIAMI, Fla. - Matthew Cleveland scored a last second three-pointer of the game to lead the Seminoles to an 85-84 victory over the top ranked Miami Hurricanes at the Watsco Center. A stacked defensive backs room, with Sean Taylor and Antrel Rolle as backups. Ed Reed, Kenny Dorsey -- they took ownership of everything: Lifting, the workouts in the summer, coming in to watch film. That was the first time I was ever a champion of anything, so I just wanted to stay in the locker room. Prior to the 2006 Rose Bowl, ESPN's SportsCenter ran a special in which the 2005 USC Trojans, led by stars Matt Leinart, Reggie Bush, and LenDale White, were compared with the greatest college teams of the past 50 years, as picked by sports fans voting on ESPN.com, to determine their place in history. It wasn't something given. Matt! Portis is now a member of the Miami Hurricanes Hall of Fame. Does that mean I didn't root for Vince? "I said, 'Our difference is, we were gonna try to outhit you.' As a matter of policy, Sports Reference only reports the results of games as played on the field. Williams You're gonna to fight. Vilma When Vince Wilfork took their All-American guard Toniu Fonoti and threw him five yards in the backfield and made a tackle for a loss, their whole sideline s--- their pants, and then all of a sudden Vilma started decapitating tight ends, and it became a whole different animal, and they weren't aware, used to it, privy to, they literally thought they were going to come in there and mop the floor with us. Like, literally none. But I did have the feeling that we were going to win the national championship and we were going to do whatever it took to make it happen. We all had our careers that take off from there, but from my eyes, I was like, "What now?" Instead, they played their backups and won 37-14, a score that does not reflect the sheer dominance of that game. '", Added former Syracuse coach Paul Pasqualoni: "That team was so talented, so explosive, so good on defense. It was so scary. Adelson: 2001 Canes make case for college football's GOATs, 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? Hurricanes basketball coach Jim Larraaga highlights a 10-member University of Miami Sports Hall of Fame class. McGahee also was a consensus All-American in 2002. When I caught it, I wasn't thinking about running it back for a touchdown. That roster included 38 players who went on to . I thought to myself, "Oh my gosh, do not drop this." OT Bryant McKinnie They pushed each other to the limit, and the one thing that separates that group, they were super, super competitive. Use without license or authorization is expressly prohibited. Coker It is only now, with the perspective of history and time that those who suited up in 2001 understand -- and brag about -- what they accomplished in one magical season. We were really dialed in on character, on personality traits, do they love football? The players coming to my backing was a big asset in me getting the job. 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 . 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. Dorsey and Johnson were named Rose Bowl co-Most Valuable Players. The SPORTS REFERENCE and STATHEAD trademarks are owned exclusively by Sports Reference LLC. They were invited to the Rose Bowl, which served as the BCS National Championship Game, and defeated Nebraska, 3714, to win the school's 5th national championship. In the NFL he ran for 8,474 yards and 65 touchdowns over his career. We were trying to showcase how tough we were. The Canes became arguably the greatest team in CFB history 20 years ago, finishing 12-0, winning the national title and producing 38 NFL draft picks. Najeh Davenport was in the three headed monster backfield of the 1998 season with Edgerrin James and James Jackson before injuring his knee. 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. Reed But I wasn't leaving these guys. We had 31 scholarships lost. Mission Statement When it came time for the 2001 Miami Hurricanes to do their summer workouts, they had one plan in mind: Make it as grueling as possible. Gambling problem? He made good decisions and he made everyone around him better. While the 2001 squad only won a single national championship; they had NFL legends, All-Americans and Pro Bowlers in their film sessions. Walters It started as a joke first, but it just went to like, no matter what you put us through, we can't be hurt. He made things happen. "Because you're trying to recruit the foundation of what's to come for the next four years. That drive starts with where this team started: in 1997, when Miami was at its lowest point as a football program, in the midst of NCAA sanctions that reduced its scholarship total to 15 in that signing class. Take Ed Reed. You're gonna communicate and you're gonna stay together, or you've got to go. However, they had to do so under a new head coach, Larry Coker, who was named to the post after Butch Davis left to become head coach of the NFL's Cleveland Browns. You had to work. Shockey had been there and done that, but we had new guys stepping in who weren't first-round draft picks yet. Rumph In addition, Vilma, Shockey, Wilfork, Joseph, Rolle, McKinnie, and Reed have won the Super Bowl. All rights reserved But there were a few things in the contract we were having a difficult time agreeing on. "Dominate" had started the year before, breaking down the team before going into the locker room right before we came out for the game. Reed A stacked running back room, which featured Frank Gore as the No. Rankings for the 2023 NFL draft: Top prospects at every position from Kiper, McShay, Miller, Reid, Kiper's new Big Board rankings for the 2023 NFL draft: Top 25 prospects, Syracuse QB Shrader to miss spring practice, Sources: Asst. 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. Walters The loudest game. The same standings that kept Miami out of the 2000 national championship game. The Hurricane defense picked up the slack by limiting BC to just seven points. They knew he was the straw that stirred the drink. Washington had beaten Miami the year before, but in 2001, it looked as if the Huskies wanted to be anywhere but playing in prime time in the Orange Bowl as the Hurricanes gleefully kept their foot on the gas to prove a point. Or write about sports? That game solidified our quest to dominate. / Miami may have cost themselves an ACC title with their first home loss of the season. DC Randy Shannon We [were] truly a team. / 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. The Houston Texas took him third overall in the 2003 NFL draft. I'm talking about the energy, the heat. 1 Hurricanes Roll Over Washington, 65-7", "Cane Whuppin': Unbeaten Miami Flogged Nebraska Early and Often to Win an Undisputed National Title", "A Handy List of College Football's Heisman Trophy Winners", "2002 NFL Draft Listing - Pro-Football-Reference.com", College football national champions (championship game era), https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=2001_Miami_Hurricanes_football_team&oldid=1122701728, Big East Conference football champion seasons, Short description is different from Wikidata, Pages using infobox college sports team season with no sport parameter, Pages using CFB schedule with named parameters, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, Sands 27 yard pass from Dorsey (Sievers kick), Davenport 28 yard pass from Dorsey (Sievers kick), Shockey 10 yard pass from Dorsey (Sievers kick), B. Johnson 44 yard pass from Mills (Kimball kick), Fitzgerald 5-yard blocked punt return (Sievers kick), Andre Johnson 27-yard pass from Ken Dorsey (Sievers kick), Jeremy Shockey 1-yard pass from Dorsey (Sievers kick), A. Johnson 18-yard pass from Dorsey (Sievers kick), Jonathan Vilma 36-yard fumble return (Sievers kick), Gardner 57-yard pass from Chris Rix (Beitia kick), Michael Boulware 73-yard fumble return (Beitia kick), Sean Ryan 9-yard pass from Brian St. Pierre (Kevin McMyler kick), Ed Reed 80-yard interception return (kick failed), Clinton Portis 4-yard run (Todd Sievers kick), Portis 5-yard pass from Ken Dorsey (Sievers kick), Andre Johnson 25-yard pass from Dorsey (Sievers kick), McDougle 18-yard interception return (Sievers kick), Najeh Davenport 1-yard run (Sievers kick), A. Johnson 3-yard pass from Dorsey (Sievers kick), Geathers 13-yard pass from Crudup (Sievers kick), Jeremy Shockey 14-yard pass from Ken Dorsey (Todd Sievers kick), Manning 22-yard blocked punt return (pass failed), Andre Johnson 50-yard pass from Ken Dorsey (Todd Sievers kick), Clinton Portis 39-yard run (Sievers kick), James Lewis 47-yard interception return (Sievers kick), Jeremy Shockey 21-yard pass from Dorsey (Kick failed), Andre Johnson 8-yard pass from Dorsey (Sievers kick), Judd Davies 16-yard run (Josh Brown kick), DeJuan Groce 71-yard punt return (Brown kick), $ BCS representative as conference champion, This page was last edited on 19 November 2022, at 03:33. Finale, prep for their conference tournament matchup on Thursday the strongest arm in,. Basketball coach Jim Larraaga highlights a 10-member University of Miami Sports Hall of Fame he almost had to them. Canes history: 2001 running backs just seven points are considered the greatest college football team in college.! 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