It's All In Your Head

How does the Hurricane defense show up rock hard and ready to play every game and the offense limps around in a constant state of Erectile Dysfunction?

I’ve given it a lot of thought the last couple seasons. I believe it is the defense hates to loose more than the offense loves to win.  The offense has sunk so low Shannon has to actually stick a defensive player next to an offensive player at every locker.  Kind of like a personal lifeguard.

But some of these offensive guys were the best players in the country in high school only a little while ago. What happened? How can you deteriorate from the best high school player in the country, to less than an average division one player in less than three years?  What goes on inside a players head to break his confidence in himself and his team? 

How can you catch every ball thrown your way on Friday nights and manage to drop routine passes at the next level?  What goes through your head as the ball is going through the air?  When the ball clanks against your hands, and falls to the ground, do you begin to doubt yourself and your own ability.

And yes, I know all about the claims of poor coaching, the infamous cancer, failing to develop players and all the rest. All legitimate points.  But if you were all everything in high school, it isn’t all coaching that brings you down to average in college. 

It’s all in your head…isn’t it?

SolarCane for Canespace 2007

Comments

[86Cane]

Nice work Solar! Keep 'em coming!

[darCANEgel]

this is amazing on all fronts, Solar...and this link can/ will go on lon into the night and day...

off the cuff remarks, but here are some:

Lebron is a Stud...but cannot win alone -- it's a TEAM game...it follows that when the players don't play as a team, they fail.

Next, it's gotta be the Shannon factor...MAYBE both sides of the ball (O and D) we're equally talented under Coker, but when one has a leader who fails and the other is a master, then there's gonna be unbalance...

And, to keep this short, many coaches come out of the locker room and get outmatched from the guy accross the field...the cliche is Butch getting schooled consistantly in the 3rd and 4th quarter...

so to boil it down:
Team mentality
Coaching
Adjustments

That's what coaches do on the gridiron to win...well that and have a fair share of luck...

We have no friggin idea if Shannon will win on offense or even call the plays...and luck is something left to the gods...

Better to be lucky than good, but lucky teams rarely win it all in a bowl-game driven football world...

CANES!

[CoCane]

Calvin,

I ain't trippin'. I'm just as crunk about the bball team as football. It's recruiting season for both so I'm on it.

HEAVY...

By the way, what up Cal?

86',

I appreciate you appreciatin' the real shyt. I'll bring it.

Can anybody post an article on Quincy Roberts?

[CoCane]

Solar,

Nice post. That shyt was on point.

[86Cane]

Solar ROCKS! Trust me he's got more where that came from. And Aqua is just getting warmed up. He's gonna bring it too. Just watch. He's up late tomorrow night...

[CaneVAstud]

Solar,
you are on a roll man. I would say a lot has to do with what happens everytime you jump from one level to another. For every Tom Brady (avg college, HoF Pro) there are 100s of Todd Marinoviches. Speed of the game changes. The hard work that was employed is no longer there after hearing how great they once were. The skills are still there, no doubt, but the comfort level is off. It could be the speed of the game and the complex defensive schemes and the difficult offensive schemes to offset it...or it could be something as simple as your teammates. Even our beloved Ken Dorsey isn't all world in the Pros...perhaps Kyle has the same growing pains here.
- CaneVA

[darCANEgel]

I dont want to harp on this too much, by how does a good coach go to a crappy program and make them better...or go to a program with great talent and make great players legends? It's because he is a motivator, a leader, a father, and a coach -- b/c they are dealing with children (granted old ones, but come on, MOST 20 y.o's are children)...

yes, the kid still is the one catching/ passing a ball--

but question: do you blame Kyle Wright for being slack about going to the film room every day or do you blame the coach who doesn't MAKE his starting QB watch film every day?

Marve -- IMO opinion -- is doing all the right preparations (film, weight room, play book) more b/c his coach drives him to it than b/c of who Marve -- a 19 y.o. kid -- is at this stage of his life...

Don't get me wrong, having issues off the field (kids/ loans/ posses/ girlfriends) will cloud the elite, student athlete's ability to catch the ball when it counts. But good coaches recruit the "right" kids in order to limit the potential of those problems affecting them (perhaps the best reason to give Shalala's new higher standards props). But more importantly, good coaches TEACH/ TRAIN/ DRILL/ their kids so well that they are able to put those (and any) problems -- no matter how big -- out of their minds when it counts...on the field in the forth qtr, w/ 1:54 left...third and 2.

Understood, there will ALWAYS be exceptions. Michael Jordan was perhaps the best talent ever to play the game...but he still practiced harder than ANYONE, listened to his coach (during the game anyway) and understood better than most that there are many great players, there are few great teams...

But he also had many great coaches, starting with his dad...

Lebron NEEDS a great coach team...so does Kyle...so do all the CANES.

I think NOW they've got both.

MJ had both...
AND 6 rings for his teams

5 Rings for us...so far...
---
One love
One Team
Dem CANES

[Big Moo]

Solar, Good Fckin Post!! I appreciate ya'll for putting this site together...Great work

[orange n' green in the vein]

Ultimately it comes down to the individual. Do you want to be the best and are you willing to do the work to achieve that. Marve's work habits remind me of Dorsey's. My favorite player run in at UM was on Cinco De Mayo in the Grove, I was charged with watching the exit at Iguana Cantina when the entire starting five offensive linemen came up and asked if I could let them in. I had to turn them down but told them to go to another entrance and have the guy look over to me so I could give him the ok to let them in for free. After, I wondered, "Where the hell's Dorsey?" Then it dawned on me, he was probably at home watching game tapes or studying the playbook or doing something to make him a better player. He damn sure wasn't online on his MySpace page or out living it up in the Grove with his linemen. Ken had that drive to maximize his talent with hard work. That, more than anything, made him the best QB to come through Miami. He was driven from within.

[Jake]

I am 24 today!!! I love the U! and all the die hard fans!

[Jake]

but OGV, u gotta love the OL...they have to drink like pirates!

[CoCane]

It's the coke hour...Blunts, lines or shots, it's aaaall good.

Clean ya nose, wipe ya lips & "chase" a lil' somethin' if it's too strong. Most importantly, get a sex life if you're still up readin' this shyt.

Whore-a-scope:
Pizz on yesterday, because tomorrow's the shyt. A new day. Sunshine or rain, no pain no gain but it all numb the same with a bump of me.

So, to all you canettes & canenites. Sweet hallucinations...

[Jake]

loooooooooooooooooooooooooool

[Jake]

U live up to the name

[Calvin]

Canevastud has summed up the ofense with this quote:

"The hard work that was employed is no longer there after hearing how great they once were"

I would like to add, the hard work needed was not employed on the offensive side of the ball by the non-headcoach or offensive coordinators.

So the first thing you kept hearing the defensie guys saying, the offensive players will be in for a shock when shannon takes over, WHY, because he was going to make them work harder than they ever had. During practices, if the defensive coordinator is the only competitve coach, that's pitiful. What true offensive coordinator wants to keep getting dominated in practice.

Another thing that was allowed to happen was, kyle wright was allowed to be interviewed to much before he did anything and worse, after he did nothing. This intern made he think he was more than he was, and didn't realize he needed to get better, you never heard kyle put things on his shoulders and take the blame properly. He was always pointing at other guys on the team.

So shannon understands that, and cut the interviews off quick, so it doesn't look as if kyle is bigger than the team. shannon has already instilled back TRUE CANE principles/CANE LAWS :NO ONE IS BIGGER THAN THE TEAM!

So when u ask about the offensive side of the ball, would you have any confidence when since you've been at UM, you didn't have to work hard on offense, and the play calling set you up to get killed by the other defense. Most of it is directly related to the 2 things shannon first talked about when he took over, competition and teaching.

[Esteban]

to me Kyle looks like a follower. If there are a lot of guys working hard and doing film study he'll be there with them doing that. But if they aren't then he ain't. Can tell from his interviews that he don't think for himself just regurgitates what others have told him. With that said with good coaching he still could have turned into something special on the college level - in the line of the Tedford QBs where they excel in college. Kyle (Boller?) Wright.

As for as LL, when he hurt his foot you can tell it just through him off. I'd say either he shouldn't have been playing to let it heal or it was a sign his mental toughness was low (I'd actually lean toward the 1st option). That made his sophomore year a wash and in the process saw his confidence level go way down. Now at this point I'm just not sure if he is what he is. He's Alvin Harper if used right, but will never be Michael Irvin. Alvin Harper was still pretty good when you played to his strengths. I think if we have LL doing what he can do well he could turn in a productive season.

[SuperCooper]

First of all, I like to say this is a great site. I need my Hurricane fix everyday. You guys are doing a great job

Second, can someone post the recruiting article from rivals about how good we are doing? Thanks

[pb]

I think most of us are way too hard on Kyle. He has been surrounded by mediocre talent, an atrocious offensive line and had three OCs since he got here.

For sure, he hasnt set the world on fire, but he has had moments he has been phenomenal when given time to throw.

I forsee a very solid year from him if the OL can somehow get it together which it should.

Rememeber Youngblood was hurt most of last year and they have all had a year to mature...

[HearAcane]

What went wrong with the offence the past four seasons? Simple (or maybe not), the coaching felt that they would put in offensive schemes that fit their philosophy of a “balanced offence” vs. looking at their talent and utilizing their strengths. Look at Brock, a very poor pocket quarterback, but an exceptional shotgun slinger. They insisted on making him a drop back type of guy. The past two years you have a quarterback and an offensive line that were not compatible, (incapable of protecting consistently on 5 to 7 step drops on pass plays.) But their main flaw was to dumb down the offence because they did not have faith in the quarterbacks in executing their schemes. Lets hope that confidence begins at the top with Nix. We have always had the talent, we just need to take advantage of what we have.

[86Cane]

Big Moo...welcome aboard buddy! Check here DAILY for new content and WEEKLY at www.canespace.com for new in depth articles (and soon to be interviews). See ya around...

[pb]

Agree with everything you said Hearacane, except for the part about the talent.

Our WRs have been horrible, but I think with Shields and some of the new talent coming in, we are finally over that mess as well.

[solarcane]

Thanks for the kind words, I really appreciate them.

Here is a piece from a sports psychology article I was reading a while back.

I'm at a construction site again today for a few hours I'll catch up in a while.
rock on ladies & gentlemen
peace

The 4C's
Concentration, confidence, control and commitment (the 4C's) are generally considered the main mental qualities that are important for successful performance in most sports.
• Concentration - ability to maintain focus
• Confidence - believe in one's abilities
• Control - ability to maintain emotional control regardless of distraction
• Commitment - ability to continue working to agreed goals
The techniques of relaxation, centering and mental imagery can assist an athlete to achieve the 4C's.
Concentration
This is the mental quality to focus on the task in hand. If the athlete lacks concentration then their athletic abilities will not be effectively or efficiently applied to the task. Research has identified the following types of attention focus:
• Broad Narrow continuum - the athlete focuses on a large or small number of stimuli
• Internal External continuum - the athlete focuses on internal stimuli (feelings) or external stimuli (ball)
The demand for concentration varies with the sport:
• Sustained concentration - distance running, cycling, tennis, squash
• Short bursts of concentration - cricket, golf, shooting, athletic field events
• Intense concentration - sprinting events, bobsleigh, skiing
Common distractions are: anxiety, mistakes, fatigue, weather, public announcements, coach, manager, opponent, negative thoughts etc.
Strategies to improve concentration are very personal. One way to maintain focus is to set process goals for each session or competition. The athlete will have an overall goal for which the athlete will identify a number of process goals that help focus on specific aspects of the task. For each of these goals the athlete can use a trigger word (a word which instantly refocuses the athlete's concentration to the goal) e.g. sprinting technique requires the athlete to focus on being tall, relaxed, smooth and to drive with the elbows - trigger word could be "technique"
Athletes will develop a routine for competition that may include the night before, the morning, pre competition, competition and post competition routines. If these routines are appropriately structured then they can prove a useful aid to concentration.
Confidence
Confidence results from the comparison an athlete makes between the goal and their ability. The athlete will have self-confidence if they believe they can achieve their goal. (Comes back to a quote of mine - "You only achieve what you believe").
When an athlete has self confidence they will tend to: persevere even when things are not going to plan, show enthusiasm, be positive in their approach and take their share of the responsibility in success and fail.
To improve their self confidence, an athlete can use mental imagery to:
• visualise previous good performance to remind them of the look and feel
• imagine various scenarios and how they will cope with them
Control
Identifying when an athlete feels a particular emotion and understanding the reason for the feelings is an important stage of helping an athlete gain emotional control. An athlete's ability to maintain control of their emotions in the face of adversity and remain positive is essential to successful performance. Two emotions that are often associated with poor performance are anxiety and anger.
Anxiety comes in two forms - Physical (butterflies, sweating, nausea, needing the toilet) and Mental (worry, negative thoughts, confusion, lack of concentration). Relaxation is a technique that can be used to reduce anxiety.
When an athlete becomes angry, the cause of the anger often becomes the focus of attention. This then leads to a lack of concentration on the task, performance deteriorates and confidence in ability is lost which fuels the anger - a slippery slope to failure.
Commitment
Sports performance depends on the athlete being fully committed to numerous goals over many years. In competition with these goals the athlete will have many aspects of daily life to manage. The many competing interests and commitments include work, studies, family/partner, friends, social life and other hobbies/sports
Within the athlete's sport, commitment can be undermined by:
• a perceived lack of progress or improvement
• not being sufficiently involved in developing the training program
• not understanding the objectives of the training program
• injury
• lack of enjoyment
• anxiety about performance - competition
• becoming bored
• coach athlete not working as a team

[roachcane77]

Nice job Solar.

I agree with HearAcane, the coaches MUST find a way to better utilize the talent they have to work with, NOT force players into schemes that they may not be suited for.

My BIGGEST fear, (after the offensive line), is that we make second half adjustments this year. It was the one area Coach Shannon seemed a little reluctant to address last year.

Overall, (other than a lackluster offensive performance at the Spring Game), we seem right on track for #6. I'm psyched for this season to get going.

[Esteban]

a two year starter at QB (at UM especially) that hasn't done anything special during those two years is gonna have people being hard on him. whether there was poor coaching or not. it comes with the territory. as far as not having WRs...he didn't have UM level of the past WRs but still had better WRs than a lot of QBs. One 2nd rounder at WR (moss), one 1st rounder at TE (olsen), Ryan Moore, Lance Leggett, Sam Shields. That's more than enough talent at WR/TE for a QB to be successful with. The line didn't do its job but his 1st year it was the same line that did a lot better job protecting Brock the year before. And then the line did a lot better job of protecting Kirby (i'm going by the numbers in each case). So 3 QBs, only 1 has gotten sacked like crazy. i'm hard on him, but would it be better to pull a Coker? The main thing that i give him is that he had coker as head coach. coker didn't demand anything from him and he didn't feel compelled to do anything beyond what was necessary.

[LyquidEnigma]

Great post Solar!
And to the Legion...YOU GUYS ARE TRULY DIEHARD!!! 3am in the morning and people were still posting...keep doing it. You guy rock.
Also, have you all seen the video on SS Cane's page????? It's gotten so lame that they have a video about how people drive.

[CoCane]

Wake n bake, then a gigantic bowl of frosted flakes.

I got the early bird catchin' my "worm".

How ya feel legion?

Good mornin'.

I hope you ain't on the wrong side of the bed. If so, roll to the right side, take that azz back to sleep & dream of past "U" glory. God might grant you a deja vu of the next reign. Filled with orange & green. Those mighty colors representin' the citrus juicy azzes of these South Florida hoz & MONEY, MONEY, MONEY, MONEY, MONEY! MOOONEEY!!!

GET RICH, BIATCH!!!

Have a nice day! ;-)

[CoCane]

86Cane,

I've been wonderin', what does 86 represent?

[Zakkee]

Hearacane is correct. The Cavs weren't able to adjust when Popavich (a championship coach) and the Spurs schemed Lebron with that bow and 1 defense. Mike Brown is not a championship coach (yet) so he couldn't adjust. We (I'm a Clevelander) stuck to our guns (what got us to that point) and got swept. So whomever (darCANEgel) said that you need both coaching and a confident team is correct.

pb, you say we haven't had talent at wideout? LL, Ryan Moore, Akeem Jolla, Jenkins, Sinorice Moss (NFL), Sam Shields, etc...were all 4 & 5 star players coming out of high school. Why are other teams who got 3 star WRs ballin like WVU, Hawaii, Cal, Texas Tech etc...? THEIR SYSTEM *MAXIMIZES* THEIR TALENT AND THE KIDS *BELIEVE* IN THE SYSTEM. What worked for our All-World 2000, 2001 & 2002 teams wasn't going to work for our 2004, 2005, & 2006 teams...because the roster had changed. Those were senior-laden and led teams, you can't expect the ball to keep rolling with different players...you gotta adjust. We've been stubborn when the whole college nation studies us and can't wait to face our 10 year old playbook.

[Zakkee]

CoCane, It's the year he graduated from UM..I believe.

[Zakkee]

I meant box and 1 defense.

[HearAcane]

To answer CoCane
Multiple Choice:

“86”

1. I.Q.
2. Restaurant jargon for discard, or reject
3. Year graduated from UM
4. The goal for setting a new NCAA home winning streak.
5. All the above
6. None of the above

[Esteban]

what worked for the 2000, 2001, 2002 teams works today, too. it doesn't work if the guys are out of shape though. doesn't work if they aren't focused. doesn't work if they don't execute the plays correctly. doesn't work when confidence is low. and definitely doesn't work when its a trimmed down version of the old offenses (which they did cause Brock couldn't handle the complete playbook).

i was against doing the shotgun with Brock as the full time offense cause I thought Crudup could run our regular offense - plus i didn't think brock was good enough to merit a whole change in systems. i still think Crudup got short changed in the game he did start in since they called it extremely conservative basically giving him no chance to show he could do better than what Brock was doing - you gotta let a guy make mistakes and bounce back from them for him to develop and to show his true ability. if nothing else we knew Brock had a thick skin and could bounce back from mistakes, but we wouldn't have known that if they didn't give him the opportunity to make those mistakes in the first place.

[CoCane]

Lets simplify things. Some coaching, some themselves. If thier is dramatic improvement in performance this year, it was more coaching. If not, it's on them.

I'd bet on coaching, because kids need direction on & off the field. In both areas the team was in shambles.

PERSPECTIVE...

[Esteban]

and Zakkee, i thought the defense you meant was the Bowen and 1.

[Zakkee]

That too Este...lol!

[HearAcane]

Winkie sucked but could throw from the shotgun. Even chew and spit Bobby realized he could win if he played to his strength.
Enough said.

[dj moonbat]

OGV expressed something I've heard from others:

"Ultimately it comes down to the individual."

There are, I think, 85 individuals on a college football team. If a coach expects to have a high-level program, he can't stop at just finding the "individuals" who are going to put in the work to be the best.

Coaches have to nurture the desire to win that their players already have. And even more importantly, like other teachers, coaches must create STRUCTURES that give players' talent and desire an opportunity to flourish.

The previous era was insufficiently driven, and insufficiently structured. Every single thing I read about Shannon leads me to believe that he's the man to fix that.

[vince]

The immediate thing I can point a finger at under Onions regime is the team looked to be in much better shape during the spring game. The exection of the offense still sucked but it was good to see college kids (football) players looking like athletes rather than overweight fat guys trying to be athletic.

[HearAcane]

Scratch that I.Q. answer for 86.

He's the man (only wish my I.Q. could hit double digits.

[rebirth]

Thats what they always say happens....When you fire a "players coach" or a coach who isnt too strict, you always replace him with a coach that has the reputation of a disciplinarian. (I hope I didnt butcher that word too badly)

The entire culture of the program was too lax under the former regime. The former coach won early and probably felt he go win like that every year and in turn began slacking. Players came in probably thinking all they had to do was put the uniform on and they would win National Titles and be first round picks, they didnt put in the same ammount of work as previous players.

Reaching this low point was clearly a "group effort" and it will take another one to bring it back up.

[Jcanes]

Does anyone have the new rivals article? BTW great website 86

[Esteban]

FSU already ran the shotgun offense when Weinke got there. Wasn't about playing to his strength cause he fit their offense as it already was. Charlie Ward is why they went to the shotgun. But that offense exploded once they did that cause Ward was a great QB for that style. Brock was better in the shotgun but he still wasn't close to great - would have gone from below average to average that year. The next year he did a lot better without totally changing the offense (just gutted the playbook - which makes you think he wasn't putting in enough time for film study).

[Esteban]

and plus Brock Berlin while with UF played in the shotgun and he did the same things there that he did his first year with UM. He threw INTs, that's why he couldn't win the starting job up there and ended up transferring in the first place. Remember the bowl game against maryland? came out looking great and before you knew it he had 3 INTs and a spot on the bench.

[KillerBeez41]

Cocane is right, it was a bit of both, coaching and players. For one there wasnt any competition for positions and that caused the downward spiral. Players didnt have to worry about looking over their shoulders b/c for one they werent held ACCOUTABLE for their mistakes. That caused the "OH WELL" attidude with both the first and second team. The second teamer probably said "OH WELL" and didnt try as hard b/c he knew he wasnt going to get a fair shot at playing. So why bust your ass if you're not going to reap the rewards? The first teamer said "OH WELL" b/c he knew he didnt have to worry about shi+.

[hurricanedave]

If the offense was as committed to excellence in their performance as the posters on this blog---you could order ring #6. We lost our coach (Big O)but the leaders of this blog would not let it fail. Sometimes you just have to make things happen, regardless of the barriers put in front of you. That is the sign that you have what it takes to be a winner. You just have to make happen. Respect to all the Legion. You are winners, that's why you demand excellence!

[RayChanCaneFan]

I know I juggle on the offensive leadership, but I really believe Kirby though less polished as a QB is more respected and is a better leader than Kyle...I like Shields more than Leggett, Shields just has that upside to him..And I think the line may go back to the glory days of Dorsey and only allow 3 sacks I believe in a season...Weren't those the days guys...Ahhhh that would be great..

[Canez 1]

I heard this kid was the shyt in the MNW scrimmage. Blazing fast!
Gary Ferman, CaneSport Magazine

Belle Glade (Fla.) Glades Central High School WR Travis Benjamin doesn't list many scholarship offers.

But some of the ones he has are impressive.

"I have six offers," the 6-foot-0, 170-pounder said. "They're from Miami, Ohio State, UCF, LSU, USF and Ole Miss."

Benjamin says he received a Cane offer two weeks ago.

"I was surprised to get it," he said. "The coach, (Marques) Mosely, told me I have an offer. I talk to him most every day. We just talk about football. He told me to make good decisions on what school I pick.

"He said that I fit in great there with the offense they have."

Benjamin lists a top five of UM, FSU, UF, LSU and Ohio State.

"They're all even," he says. "I'm looking for a good program, good academic school, and a hard-working team."

Last season Benjamin finished with 25 receptions for 700 yards with 15 touchdowns.

He says he hopes to make a final decision by the middle of his senior season.

His cousin is former Cane Alfonso Marshall.

"He tells me it's a good school and that they're a hard-working team and that it's a good school to go and compete at," Benjamin said.

[Canez 1]

"We're going to shock the NCAA." Gotta love that quote!!!

Matt Shodell, CaneSport Magazine

Randy Shannon has already landed 10 commitments for the Class of 2008.

And two of the more recent commits – Jordan Futch and Jacory Harris – are working together to make sure the rest of the class fills out as strongly as possible.

Futch says he is working hard on 10 recruits to try and get them to UM
"I just got off the phone with Jordan," Harris said. "We're trying to get guys to come to Miami with us. We just talk about how great things are in the future, how everything's going to turn out good if all of us decide to go to this one place, how we can bring Miami back to the old days."

For his part, Futch says he's after 10 recruits to choose UM. And he says there are "three top, top playes from right here down in Miami" that he thinks are already planning to come.

He's not identifying the players to preserve their right to announce when they are ready.

"I'm working pretty strong, telling guys to come along with me," Futch said. "The selling point is that family environment where everyone's together. It's not only just one offense and one defense; it's a whole family-oriented team."

What kind of feedback is Futch getting when he sells fellow recruits on the Miami program?

"It looks like everyone wants to come on board," Futch said. "It's just a case of people keeping their options open right now. There's a lot of great programs out there. At the same time a lot of them are very, very interested in us."

He says, of the 10 recruits he's working on hardest, "I'd say eight for sure come to Miami."

If you played the `Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon' game with Futch or Harris, about every top player in Broward and Dade County would be represented.

"My mom's best friend is Jacory's aunt, and I played on the same Optimist team with Aldarius (Johnson)," Futch said. "I played against Brandon Harris, Davon Johnson, all those guys. Even up to Palm Beach, I know people up there from my family, and Jacory knows people there, too."

For his part, Jacory Harris is getting ready to work hard on landing other offensive playmakers.

"I texted DJ [Davon Johnson] and said `Whenever you feel like you want to make that choice, that's your decision, go with it wherever you want to go,'" Harris said. "I'm not going to say `Just come to Miami, come to Miami.' It's where you feel comfortable."

But Harris says he'll take a different approach with a handful of his teammates that have UM offers.

"I'm just telling them to come to Miami with me," he said. "Most likely they'll be coming with me. I'm not too much worried about it. They're going to come."

Harris says he'll "personally drive" teammate Aldarius Johnson to UM if the receiver isn't publicly committed soon.

For his part, Futch sees this recruiting class as a turning point for UM's program.

"I would say this class is the key to UM's success in the future," he said. "This class right here, being that it's coach (Randy) Shannon's first class as head coach, this is an important, key class that will set Miami up to be like the old Miami teams and better. That's the goal. And this class is what needs to happen.

"We have guys like Kayne (Farquharson), Demarcus (VanDyke), key players, a quarterback like Robert Marve this year, but this class is the backdrop that will set that initial punch. It's up to us to turn it around."

What will happen if this class turns out the way Futch and Harris envision?

"Coach Shannon said if we get all the guys from Pahokee down, who can stop us?" Futch said. "We get all those guys, the U can't lose.

"We're going to shock the NCAA."

[aqua]

"We're going to own the NCAA."

I fixed it.

[Canez 1]

Aqua even better!!!

GO CANEZ!!!!!