Canespace

Two Tickets To Paradise

On one field, Michael Irvin and Lamar Thomas demonstrated how to run routes. On another, Joaquin Gonzalez and Brett Romberg led offensive linemen through drills. Clearly, these current and former UM players were in paradise.

And at one point in the evening, as young football players milled about, Calais Campbell pulled Greg Rousseau to the side and showed him some of the moves that helped him earn the NFL’s Defensive Player of the Year award in 2017. Soon after, Jaelan Phillips joined the conversation.

On Saturday night, nearly two dozen former Hurricanes football stars returned to the Carol Soffer Indoor Practice Facility and the Greentree Practice Fields to participate in one of the more well-known events hosted by the Miami program: Paradise Camp.

For many of them, whether they are an NFL Hall of Famer or a alum still playing in the league, the opportunity to be part of Paradise Camp was a no-brainer, their chance to give back to the program they believe changed their lives.

“You come to The U and you’ll always have support. It’s a deep thing. You will always have support,” Irvin said. “All of us showing up all the time, it’s important to show whatever kid is thinking about coming here…we want them to know, right here, buddy, you will always have that support and I think that’s very important…It’s not like a family. We are a family.”

Added Gonzalez, “Any excuse to come back to Coral Gables, even though I live in Miami, is always welcome. It’s always awesome. To do it under these circumstances, such a beautiful backdrop, all about football and talk to the younger generations, to me, I thoroughly enjoy it, maybe more than the kids do. It’s an opportunity.”

Irvin, the Hall of Fame receiver who has been at several past Paradise Camps, helped kick off the evening’s festivities by addressing a large crowd that included approximately 300 campers, their families and high school coaches.

Behind him, Miami head coach Manny Diaz smiled and an awe-inspiring group of Hurricanes nodded along as Irvin spoke. Among them were Edgerrin James, Lamar Thomas, David Njoku, Calais Campbell, Trent Harris, Ufomba Kamalu, Jon Beason, Sean Spence, Antrel Rolle, Duane Starks, Deon Bush, Kenny Phillips, Sheldrick Redwine, Brian Monroe, Javarris James, Lamar Miller and K.J. Osborn.

Also there were the three newest members of the Hurricanes’ NFL fraternity, Jaelan Phillips and Greg Rousseau, who were both first-round picks in this year’s draft and kicker Jose Borregales, who signed a free agent contract with the Super Bowl champion Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

While past Paradise Camp events have primarily featured Miami greats who have already completed their careers, Diaz felt it was important to make sure Hurricanes currently still playing in the NFL could share their perspective with the campers in attendance.

“It’s really neat. It’s fun to have them share the stories of their first minicamps and things like that,” Diaz said. “The alumni that were here in the 80s, 90s and early 2000s are awesome. But I do think it’s important that our recent alumni feel that you don’t have to be 20 years removed to have the pride of the program. To see guys like K.J. Osborn, [Sheldrick] Redwine, Trent Harris here…the more we can do that, the better we all are.”

The Legend That Is Harry Miller

During my time running this crazy blog I have met some pretty interesting and serious people. And one of those people is my friend Harry Miller.

He recently visited Central Florida where we reunited to celebrate our Canespace friendship. Needless to say a good time was had by all. 

Of all the bloggers I have met, and there are many, few are more impressive, experienced or well traveled as my good friend Harry Miller. This guy has been there and done that many, many times. He is the Clint Eastwood of Canespace.

If you could spend four hours with Miller he could spin you some stories that would impress. From growing strawberries in South Florida to supervising crews laying tons of iron to building new homes this all around guy has got it done.

We had lunch on the lake in Clermont and he told me some stories that would make your head spin. Tales of fist fights, flame outs and the success of the american dream come to life. All true and an amazing history to experience.

Harry Miller, I appreciate your friendship and our shared moments together.

You are an American icon, a patriot and a Canespace Legend to the end.

We Remember U

On this Memorial Day 2021 we would like to offer a sincere THANK U to all of the incredibly brave men and women who have risked their lives in combat or have been killed in the defense of our freedom.

For all of those men and women who have served in the U.S armed forces and who have literally put their lives on the line to protect and defend the United States of America this blog is for U.

For all of the courageous men and women who recognized that freedom isn't free and found it necessary to put themselves in harms way we thank U.

For all of those Army soldiers who have fearlessly risked their lives to defend our Country in World Wars, regional conflicts and in  battles against the war on terrorism, we honor U.

For all of those Navy sailors, who save the free world on the open seas, without concern for their own safety to defend the world's oceans we recognize U.

For all of those highly skilled Air Force pilots and their support crews who defend our airspace with their incredible talent and ability we salute U.

And for all of those who served as a Marine like my father who faught in Korea and served as a Staff Sargent in Camp LeJune, NC may God bless you and keep you safe and well. It's not easy being first in and last out.

We wish all American defense personnel and all U.S. citizens across our great Nation the peace, freedom and security that all sovereign Nations deserve.

We would like to take this opporuntity to recognize all who served and all who paid the ultimate sacrifice to defend our freedom. And we wish all of our bloggers, their families and friends a safe and happy Memorial Day.

Miami Hurricane fans salute the armed forces and ask that God Bless America!

For all of those men and women who have served in the U.S armed forces and who have literally put their lives on the line to protect and defend the United States of America this blog is for U.

For all of the courageous men and women who recognized that freedom isn't free and found it necessary to put themselves in harms way we thank U.

For all of those Army soldiers who have fearlessly risked their lives to defend our Country in World Wars, regional conflicts and in  battles against the war on terrorism, we honor U.

For all of those Navy sailors, who save the free world on the open seas, without concern for their own safety to defend the world's oceans we recognize U.

For all of those highly skilled Air Force pilots and their support crews who defend our airspace with their incredible talent and ability we salute U.

And for all of those who served as a Marine like my father who faught in Korea and served as a Staff Sargent in Camp LeJune, NC may God bless you and keep you safe and well. It's not easy being first in and last out.

We wish all American defense personnel and all U.S. citizens across our great Nation the peace, freedom and security that all sovereign Nations deserve.

We would like to take this opporuntity to recognize all who served and all who paid the ultimate sacrifice to defend our freedom. And we wish all of our bloggers, their families and friends a safe and happy Memorial Day.

Miami Hurricane fans salute the armed forces and ask that God Bless America!

For all of those men and women who have served in the U.S armed forces and who have literally put their lives on the line to protect and defend the United States of America this blog is for U.

For all of the courageous men and women who recognized that freedom isn't free and found it necessary to put themselves in harms way we thank U.

For all of those Army soldiers who have fearlessly risked their lives to defend our Country in World Wars, regional conflicts and in  battles against the war on terrorism, we honor U.

For all of those Navy sailors, who save the free world on the open seas, without concern for their own safety to defend the world's oceans we recognize U.

For all of those highly skilled Air Force pilots and their support crews who defend our airspace with their incredible talent and ability we salute U.

And for all of those who served as a Marine like my father who faught in Korea and served as a Staff Sargent in Camp LeJune, NC may God bless you and keep you safe and well. It's not easy being first in and last out.

We wish all American defense personnel and all U.S. citizens across our great Nation the peace, freedom and security that all sovereign Nations deserve.

We would like to take this opporuntity to recognize all who served and all who paid the ultimate sacrifice to defend our freedom. And we wish all of our bloggers, their families and friends a safe and happy Memorial Day.

Miami Hurricane fans salute the armed forces and ask that God Bless America!

For all of those men and women who have served in the U.S armed forces and who have literally put their lives on the line to protect and defend the United States of America this blog is for U.

For all of the courageous men and women who recognized that freedom isn't free and found it necessary to put themselves in harms way we thank U.

For all of those Army soldiers who have fearlessly risked their lives to defend our Country in World Wars, regional conflicts and in  battles against the war on terrorism, we honor U.

For all of those Navy sailors, who save the free world on the open seas, without concern for their own safety to defend the world's oceans we recognize U.

For all of those highly skilled Air Force pilots and their support crews who defend our airspace with their incredible talent and ability we salute U.

And for all of those who served as a Marine like my father who faught in Korea and served as a Staff Sargent in Camp LeJune, NC may God bless you and keep you safe and well. It's not easy being first in and last out.

We wish all American defense personnel and all U.S. citizens across our great Nation the peace, freedom and security that all sovereign Nations deserve.

We would like to take this opporuntity to recognize all who served and all who paid the ultimate sacrifice to defend our freedom. And we wish all of our bloggers, their families and friends a safe and happy Memorial Day.

Miami Hurricane fans salute the armed forces and ask that God Bless America!

Thank U For Your Service

Whether you’re an athlete or a professional, few people ever have their focus on the finality of their career. But eight Miami Hurricanes will be honored this Saturday as part of Senior Day festivities recognizing their contributions to the Hurricanes baseball program.

Spencer Bodanza, Christian Del Castillo, Daniel Federman, Raymond Gil, Tony Jenkins, Gabe Rivera, Alex Toral and Ben Wanger make up the first senior class in head coach Gino DiMare’s tenure leading the Hurricanes and they’re a group he will never forget.

“It flies by so fast,” DiMare said. “These guys come and they go. You turn your head and it’s like, ‘Oh my gosh! He was just a freshman here and now he’s getting ready to go.’ It’s certainly a class that I appreciate. It’s guys that I’m certainly happy that they came back.”

Much like DiMare will remember his players, the eight Canes have a bond with each other and their teammates that will last a lifetime.

“The bond we all share as Miami baseball players is special,” first baseman Alex Toral said. “There are guys that played here six or seven years before I even arrived here and I’ve been fortunate to connect with and build relationships with. Whether you played here a long time ago or just a few years ago, we all have great love and pride for The U and we all connect because of that.”

Federman, Gil, Jenkins, Rivera and Toral are four-year players that arrived at Miami together ahead of the 2018 season. The quintet has been through some highs and lows in their four seasons with the Canes and they hope to punctuate their fourth season on a high note.

“It means a lot to be part of that group,” Rivera said. “We came from our freshman year dealing with that adversity and bounced back in 2019 and obviously last year with the whole COVID situation, we’ve been through a lot. We’re a core group of guys and we’ve known each other even before we stepped on campus. Our relationships with each other have just gotten stronger and it’s been a joy to play with each other here after growing up playing with each other to now finishing our college career here. It’s been a blessing to play with those guys and they’ll be my close friends for the rest of my life.”

“It’s definitely incredible being with some of these guys for four years and knowing some of them even before that,” Jenkins added. “We’re obviously going to go our separate ways after our careers end here, but I know we are all going to keep in touch. These are my brothers and I’ll always stay close to them.”

Read more here: Senior Sendoff

The Few, The U, The Air Force

It was a conversation Marshall Few knew he had to have.

What the receiver didn’t know was how his message would be received. After all, not many coaches want to hear a veteran player say they’re stepping away from the game – even if their reason for doing so is to pursue a lifelong dream.

“To be honest, I was expecting a little bit different reaction,” Few said of the heart-to-heart he had with head coach Manny Diaz in early April. “I was expecting him to be upset and be like ‘Oh, man, are you sure?’ But he realized how big it was for me and he just said, ‘Dude, that’s freaking awesome.’”

For Few – a former walk-on who was put on scholarship shortly after Diaz was named coach – there aren’t very many good reasons to walk away from the game he’s loved all his life and the team he’s been a part of for four years.

The opportunity to join the U.S. Air Force Special Operations Command program, though, is one of those reasons.

Becoming an elite Airman has been one of Few’s goals for as long as he can remember. His father, Marshall Sr., is a 30-year Army veteran and Few grew up with a deep respect and appreciation for the military.

He considered attending one of the service academies after graduating from Ponte Vedra High School in 2017, but he landed at Miami, where he joined both the football team and UM’s Air Force ROTC program.

With help from his coaches and his commander, Few has been able to balance the demands of both playing high-level college football with his ROTC responsibilities. He is set to graduate next month as an Air Force officer and had expected to start graduate school and play one more season with the Hurricanes before truly beginning his military career.

But in March, Few took some time away from football to attend a special training session at Hurlburt Field, the home of Air Force Special Operations Command near Fort Walton Beach, Florida.

There, Few was one of 31 aspiring officers who went through a demanding one-week program that challenged participants both physically and mentally.

Of the 31 trainees who started the Phase II program, only 18 finished the week, which included everything from water confidence exercises to IQ testing and psychiatric evaluations. Only a handful of the applicants were selected for the special tactics officer program.

Few was among them. The time to start his military career had officially arrived. 

Read more here: Ready To Serve

Get Out Your Brooms!

Walk-off wins are always fun, but even better when they clinch a series sweep.

Sunday’s hero was Tony Jenkins, delivering the game-winning RBI in the bottom of the ninth to push the Canes past Clemson, 3-2, before a sold-out crowd of 620 fans inside Alex Rodriguez Park.

“Getting sweeps is not easy,” head coach Gino DiMare said. “We’ve had it done to us a few times and we need to obviously run some off ourselves here to make up [for it], but more importantly, just play good baseball. The last two games were obviously a little bit different where we opened the games up and had much bigger margins. Winning one-run games, those are very, very important. Those are going to be more the type of games you’re going to play later on in tournament time, so it was good to see.”

After a pair of lopsided losses in the first two games, the Tigers had built some momentum against the Canes by tying the game against Miami’s closer, Carson Palmquist. But Miami got some timely hitting to earn its second walk-off win of the week.

CJ Kayfus, who entered the game as a pinch runner in the bottom of the sixth, led off the ninth with a base hit up the middle. Two batters later, Dominic Pitelli ripped a double to right that put runners on second and third with one out, setting the stage for Jenkins to be a hero.

“It was just great to be in that position and that situation at the time and an even better feeling to get that done for the team,” Jenkins said. “I’ve just got to stay ready whenever my name gets called and I felt like I did that today. It felt really great celebrating with the guys. Everyone seemed very proud of me and I’m just thankful for my team.”

The fourth-year outfielder, which entered the game as a defensive replacement in the top of the seventh, lifted the first pitch he saw from Clemson closer Geoffrey Gilbert deep to center field, allowing Kayfus to tag up and score the winning run and set off a raucous celebration on Mark Light Field.

“I was so proud of him just being aggressive there,” DiMare said. “Come up first pitch, got a pitch he can drive to the outfield. He hasn’t done a very good job of being aggressive and in that situation, you’ve got to be aggressive, and he got a good pitch to drive.”

The victory was Miami’s eighth home win in a row over the Tigers. It also marked Miami’s second consecutive sweep of Clemson in Coral Gables and its fifth straight series win over the Tigers.

While it was a sacrifice fly that clinch the win, Miami got a major boost from the home run all weekend. Seven different players combined for nine homers against Clemson this weekend, with Yohandy Morales getting the bats going for the Hurricanes in the bottom of the first when he hit an opposite-field homer for the second consecutive day. The true freshman’s solo blast extended Miami’s home run streak to nine straight games dating back to April 4.

Spring Has Sprung: Final Spring Scrimmage In Photos

Here is a link to the photos from the UM web site hurricanesports.com from today's final Spring scrimmage:

https://miamihurricanes.com/news/2021/04/17/spring-game-photo-gallery/

Go Canes!

You Always Remember Your First Time

The University of Miami football program was mired in mediocrity for the longest time. Previous coaches names Tate, Curci, Elliott, Selmer and Saban tried to make it work but couldn't get it done.

And then, all of a sudden, it happened.

Along came a coach with a really long last name that was really hard to spell.

That name was Schnellenberger.

That name changed everything that has to do with University of Miami football.

That name changed my life. And most likely yours too if you are reading this.

He coached guys named Kelly, Kosar and Testaverde who made Miami QB U.

Most importantly, he brought us our first National Championship in 1983.

To Schnellenberger we owe our history, our fandom and our incredible success.

There is only one first time. In any thing, at any time. Howard was that guy.

Howard Schellenerger gave us a dream that lives on and that's all because of that pipe smoking, tie wearing, bear of a man.

And for that we will forever and eternally be grateful.

Thanks Howard and rest in peace.

Seminoles Spear Hurricanes

The No. 5 Canes fell to Florida State, 13-1, in the opening contest of this weekend’s three-game set at Alex Rodriguez Park at Mark Light Field.

“It is one game. We’ve got to be able to turn the page and get right back at it,” head coach Gino DiMare said. “The opening game against NC State, we played the worst game of the year, I think, and then we came back and were able to turn it around. We have lost the opening game of the series but were still able to come back. It’s just one of those things. It’s tough when you fall that far behind. Their pitcher is good and we knew he was going to be tough. You’re kind of in an uphill battle.:

The game got off to a tough start for the Hurricanes (9-5, 5-4 ACC), as the Seminoles put together a three-run rally in the opening inning against starter Alejandro Rosario. The runs snapped a 14-inning home scoreless streak for the true freshman, who entered the game with a 2-0 record and a 0.00 ERA at Mark Light Field.

“It was his worst outing as a Cane and his balls were up,” DiMare said of Rosario. “I think his composure maybe, too. He didn’t settle down and he was a little hyped up when they got some runs on him, big runs there. He’s got to learn from this experience and understand that he’s got to make adjustments, and he’s got to be able to relax and pitch.”

“They played good defense when they had to make plays and they swung the bat,” DiMare said. “We didn’t play well. They executed everything they did. Drag bunts, moved guys over, scored with less than two outs and a man on third, they double cut and they threw us out there on a big play. Everything on our side, we couldn’t execute double cuts, we were throwing balls around, dropping them, letting them on the ground, letting guys take extra bases and didn’t play good defense and obviously didn’t swing the bat well. FSU, I thought played very well and we just didn’t play. So, we’ve got to turn the page and be ready to go tomorrow. Still can win the series. Baseball is a crazy game. We’ve got to be mentally tough to be able to turn the page.”

The Seminoles (8-6, 5-5 ACC) continued their success against Rosario in the second, plating four more runs before DiMare called for right-hander Jordan Dubberly out of Miami’s bullpen with runners on second and third and one out. Crowell hit a sacrifice fly to push home Nelson, capping a five-run second.

“I expect him to be fine,” DiMare said of Rosario. “This is part of baseball. He’s not going to go out every outing and dominate. That’s just not how it works. I expect him to be fine. He’s still our guy. I think this is a very good learning experience for him, and moving forward, he’ll be our guy next week on Friday.”

Read more at hurricanesports.com

Canes Crash ACC Party

The University of Miami men’s basketball team edged Pittsburgh, 79-73, Tuesday afternoon at the Greensboro Coliseum to begin ACC Tournament action.

The No. 13-seeded Hurricanes, despite playing with only six available scholarship student-athletes, used a balanced scoring attack to defeat the No. 12-seeded Panthers. All five starters scored 12-plus points, led by 20 from sophomore guard Isaiah Wong.

“I’m just really proud of our guys for the energy and effort they brought to the game,” Miami head coach Jim Larrañaga said. “They played with a great deal of confidence. They executed the game plan extremely well. Probably the most impressive thing is they shared the ball so well; we scored 79 points and had 17 assists, which really hasn’t been there all year.”

The Hurricanes used a 19-7 run during which they made 7-of-10 field goals to take a seven-point lead, 31-24, with 4:04 remaining in the first half. Pittsburgh (10-12, 6-10 ACC) pulled back within two, but a jump-shot by Wong in the closing seconds gave Miami (9-16, 4-15 ACC) a 40-36 edge at the break.

Both sides shot well from 3-point range in the opening 20 minutes, with the Panthers posting a 6-of-14 (42.9 percent) mark, including a 3-of-4 clip from senior guard Nike Sibande, and the Hurricanes notching 5-of-13 (38.5 percent).

Early in the second half, Pittsburgh went on a 16-8 run during which it made three 3-pointers in under three minutes, to take the lead, 55-52 with 11:42 to play. Miami answered right back with a 10-3 burst to go in front, 62-58, with 5:33 remaining, but the Panthers surged back 66-64, with 3:36 on the clock.

Once again, though, the Hurricanes countered. Miami scored nine straight points—three each from Wong, redshirt senior center Nysier Brooks and redshirt senior guard Kameron McGusty—and took a game-high seven-point advantage, 73-66, with just 55 seconds to play.

The Panthers did not get any closer than four down the stretch, as Miami held on for the victory. The Hurricanes made five of their seven field-goal attempts and Wong connected on four straight free throws in the last 30 seconds.

Wong, who now co-leads the ACC with 10 20-point games, shot 9-of-10 from the stripe setting a new season high and finishing one shy of his top mark in attempts. Sophomore forward Anthony Walker posted 14 points and a team-high nine rebounds in a career-best 39 minutes, while McGusty also notched 14 points. All of them dished out four assists, tying a career high for Walker.

Senior guard Elijah Olaniyi also recorded 14 points, adding six rebounds and a season-high-tying three assists, while Brooks finished with 12 points and a career-high-tying three steals.

“All five starters really executed their role extremely well,” Larra؜ñaga said. “We got some good interior baskets from Nysier Brooks and Anthony Walker. We had some nice threes from Kam, Isaiah and Elijah.”

Freshman guard Femi Odukale paced the Panthers with a career-high 28 points. He shot 11-of-16 from the floor, including 4-of-8 from deep. Sibande finished with a season-best 24 points, logging a 9-of-15 clip from the field and a 5-of-8 mark beyond the arc. Redshirt sophomore guard Ithiel Horton added 10 points.

Sophomore forward Justin Champagnie, a First Team All-ACC performer who is second in the ACC in scoring and first in rebounding, totaled 10 points and 11 rebounds. However, Miami held him to just 5-of-20 shooting, including 1-of-8 on 3-pointers. He made just three of his first 17 attempts through 37 minutes.

“You’ve got to give Anthony Walker a lot of credit because he was really the only one that guarded him,” Larrañaga said. “Justin Chanmpagnie is a dynamic player offensively. He can do a lot of different things. He’s a terrific offensive rebounder, but today was not his today. Today was our day.”

Free-throw shooting proved to be the difference in the game, as Miami finished 22-of-28 (78.6 percent) to tie a season best in makes. The Hurricanes made 11 of their first 12 attempts from the line. Meanwhile, the Panthers registered a 5-of-14 (35.7 percent) mark at the stripe after opening just 1-of-6.

In addition, Miami had 17 assists, its second-most ever in an ACC Tournament outing, and just six turnovers, while Pittsburgh notched nine assists and 14 turnovers. The Hurricanes logged a 22-6 edge in points off giveaways, as well as 19-4 cushion in fast-break points.

Miami now takes on fifth-seeded Clemson Wednesday at 2:30 p.m., live on ACC Network from the Greensboro Coliseum, in the second round of the ACC Tournament.

To keep up with the University of Miami men’s basketball team on social media, follow @CanesHoops on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.