It took that extra X Factor. [17] Additionally, the Hurricane defense scored eight touchdowns of its own. But we were fruits of what they'd done. Shannon 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 . You can make the argument it's the most talented team to ever play. In interviews with players and coaches, here . He was the perfect coach for our team, and his personality just meshed with us. We sucked on offense. Gore has been named to five Pro Bowl rosters and has ran for 14,028 yards over his career. It was so scary. Miami has two games remaining before the postseason begins and winning out has big implications for their place in the programs best all-time regular seasons. Maybe Alabama last year. You were getting into a street fight when you went and played those guys. The Pro Football Hall of Fame class will be inducted during NFL Honors, which airs on ABC at 9 p.m. And whenever you do stuff like that, you believe you're going to win. They were big boys, all positions, not just the offensive line. McGahee didnt have the most prolific career, but the two years he suited up in his orange and green gear were exciting. 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. I don't know if this ever got released to the media, but Kenny [Dorsey] got hit and took a hard shot to the ribs. However, in the final minute of the fourth quarter, with Miami clinging to a 127 lead, BC quarterback Brian St. Pierre led the Eagles from their own 30-yard line all the way down to the Hurricanes' 9-yard line. Everything in Ed wanted to destroy Florida State for so many reasons. LB Jonathan Vilma It was one of those games. I say five minutes into the game, they knew in their hearts that they were going to be outclassed and outmatched. 1 in both polls -- was sitting at No. Reed You had Sean Taylor behind him. Instead, they played their backups and won 37-14, a score that does not reflect the sheer dominance of that game. Starters are marked with an asterisk (*). 15 Washington 3429 on the road, while the Seminoles' lone loss was on the road to the #7 team in the country by 3. Additional contributors included future stars Kellen Winslow II, Sean Taylor, Antrel Rolle, Vernon Carey, and Rocky McIntosh. I remember thinking that it was going to be such a difficult game, and we over prepared ourselves so much that the game came easy. I don't know a single person that wasn't pissed headed into that 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. We were mentally driven. McGahee played in the NFL from 2003-2013 including the year of rehab in 2003. Sometimes the practices in the bowl games get a little stale or tired. Led by quarterback Ken Dorsey, free safety Ed Reed, running back Clinton Portis, wide receiver Andre Johnson, tight end Jeremy Shockey, offensive tackle Bryant McKinnie, and linebacker Jonathan Vilma, Miami won the 2001 national championship. Were the backups better than the starter? Johnson was a member of the Hurricanes' most recent national championship team in 2001. 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. Miami jumped on Virginia Tech early, leading 203 at halftime, and 2610 in the fourth quarter. As the 2001 Miami Hurricanes celebrated a fifth national championship in the Rose Bowl locker room 20 years ago, not one person screamed, 'GOAT!' Purchase Tickets. There are currently 44 players in the NFL who were brought up at the "U." One NFL team has quite a collection of Miami alumni. It's a really tight locker room, we're getting ready to go out, and I absolutely remember it like it was yesterday, and I remember getting chills from hearing his battle cry, just like coming out in the second half, we're putting this away. Randy Shannon is giving us every way to run this option, and I was frankly frustrated because it was hard to process it all. We lost the year before, and it kept us out of the national championship game. Like, literally none. When we recruited him in high school, when I actually went to see him in person it was at a basketball game. And that kind of stuck with me. . That served as motivation. When he spoke, the team listened. I would have got drafted higher and everything. It is through the support of Hurricane fans and alumni that we are able to make a difference. It's one of those weird ones you can't explain, but you've got to get through. 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. [6] [7] The Hurricanes have had at least one former player make the Pro Bowl every season since 1985, 31 years in a row. Chudzinski Reed McGahee single handedly beat the Florida Gators in 2002 rushing for over 200 yards in the contest. I tried to display that my senior year, 'cause I could have left my junior year. The 26-point margin tied for Penn State's worst home loss under Joe Paterno. The season began on the road against Penn State, a matchup Miami viewed as a "statement game.". Football. A stacked defensive line room, with Vince Wilfork as a backup, too. Ohio State beat Miami in the 2003 Fiesta Bowl (2002 BCS Championship Game). Vilma We just hope that this train just doesn't go off the track. Former coach Butch Davis [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. There's a 78% chance your favorite NFL team has employed a first-round pick from 2001 Miami since an incredible 25 teams have rostered one of them at some point or another. But that goes to the larger point: The focus was not on their talent, but on gaining the respect those players felt had been denied to them going back to high school. At the very end of January, [my family and I] ended up making the decision to leave. The way we were able to play, come out firing on all cylinders, was huge. It really set the stage -- to not only win but be a dominant team like we were. You're sweating, you're bleeding, you're laying everything on the line for the guy next to you, and there was no envy." We have the recipe, we have the tools, we have everything to be successful. Can the Lions fix their defense? It has been estimated that the 2001 Hurricanes would cost nearly $120 million as an NFL team as early as 2009. 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. Walters 1. The University of Miami Sports Hall of Fame contributes in many ways to the University and its athletic programs. 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. But despite being outgained by the Hurricanes by 134 yards and being dominated in time-of-possession, the Hokies never quit. We all loved Dorsey, but we knew we had other skill sets and talent on that team. 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. 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. It's almost like that life doesn't exist. It was my first game ever to be a head coach and it was against Joe Paterno. Coker Payton was on campus for five season and waiting his turn to be the starter which came after McGahees departure for the 2003 season. We look at each other, like how the hell did we do this? At fullback the Canes used two starters in Najeh Davenport and Kyle Cobia. 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. CB Mike Rumph At that point, euphoric adrenaline runs over you. We were just too big, strong and fast, and way too physical. Coker This 2001 Miami team crushed Nebraska for the title in the Rose Bowl. There's going to be some tremendous 3- or 4-yard runs. Schumann returning to Georgia, Adelson: 2001 Canes make case for college football's GOATs, Miami's turnover chain set a celebratory standard across the college football landscape. The 2001 Miami Hurricanes have been called "the single most talented college roster" ever. Williams And obviously you can point out all the talented guys on the team, but at the time, they weren't the biggest recruits and the five-star guys. And then on the practice field, he had that voice. The Hurricanes led 34-0 at halftime and could have easily won 59-0 had they decided to play their starters the majority of the second half. Sure enough, they run a slant, I go in to pick it off, and I spread my fingertips, and had my hands below my knee. They knew he was the straw that stirred the drink. / Jump inside of it. McGahee ran for 4.7 yards per carry and three touchdowns in reserve duty behind Clinton Portis in 2001. Shockey was diving for balls, Ed Reed was coming up full-speed, full-tackle. The 2001 Miami Hurricanes are considered the greatest college football team in college football history. Romberg / DT Matt Walters ", Reed Download Our App. I'd been at Oklahoma and Oklahoma State for years and we'd never beaten [Nebraska]. Like it was a fairy tale.". ACC Network FAQs And I am a firm believer in that team, too. / It never seemed like Davenport recovered all of his speed after the knee injury, but he did run for 5.3 yards per carry and 13 touchdowns in his Miami career. 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