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BREAKING NEWS: NCAA DECISION ON UM PLAYERS

CORAL GABLES, Fla. –  The University of Miami has been notified of the actions taken by the NCAA student-athlete reinstatement staff.

“The NCAA has informed the University of Miami of their decisions regarding the reinstatement of eight student-athletes who were declared ineligible by the University last week, “ said UM Director of Athletics Shawn Eichorst. “The student-athletes involved have acknowledged receiving improper benefits and will now be responsible for restitution and, in some cases, the student-athletes will also serve game suspensions.  They understand that their actions demand consequences.

“This university has the highest standards in all of our academic and athletic endeavors.  We will remain steadfast in our commitment to continue to build winning programs with the utmost of integrity.  We will be more vigilant in our compliance and continue to work with the NCAA on the joint investigation to determine the facts.

“We appreciate the diligence and understanding of the NCAA staff and its handling of the student-athlete eligibility issues in an expeditious manner.  I would also like to thank Coach Golden and his staff for their professionalism and leadership over the past few weeks.”

Additionally, the following football student-athletes have been cleared by the NCAA to participate in all competition though each must make repayment in the amount of less than $100 for receiving impermissible benefits: Brandon McGee, JoJo Nicholas, Micanor Regis and Vaughn Telemaque.

Senior Marcus Robinson has been cleared of any NCAA violations and will not face any penalties.

Finally, UM head coach Al Golden announced that senior wide receiver Aldarius Johnson has been suspended indefinitely for a violation of team rules. 

Chris Freet
Associate AD for Communications | University of Miami Athletics

NCAA Investigation Update

University of Miami President Donna Shalala posted this video update today about the on-going NCAA investigation into UM athletics. 

Unfortunately, there is still no word from the NCAA on their decision on whether to reinstate the eligibility for the 8-12 players declared ineligible by Miami. 

Hopefully on Tuesday or even as late as Wednesday afternoon we will learn more about their status for the Maryland game next Monday on Labor Day.

Mike James for President!  James or "Smiley" as he is better known along with his videographer partner AJ Highsmith had a ball during the recent  CanesFest event on campus. 

The media savvy duo turned the tables on reporters and UM players and coaches alike and did the interviewing instead of being the interviewee.  Here are two short clips with:

Miami Hurricanes' Offensive Coordinator Jedd Fisch:

And another with UM Safety RayRay Armstrong:

Who is faster: Travis Benjamin vs Brandon McGHee? Who wins their 1:1 match ups in practice and scrimmages?  Who is a likely starter and who is not?

Watch this video and U just might learn some things that U did NOT know... 

All In The Family

On Friday night I had the opportunity to visit cozy little Denison Field in downtown Winter Haven (FL) to see the Winter Haven High School Blue Devils face off in their annual Pre-Season Classic football game against the Ridge Community High School Bolts from Davenport (FL).

 
If you haven't been to a high school football game in many years (like myself) I highly recommend that you take the time to visit one of your local stadiums and check out what may be the last place that you can find real, pure football still being played. 

 
With all the scandal and apparent corruption in college football and even talk about paying college football players gaining momentum, I think it is safe to say that at least most high school football players are still playing simply for the love of the game or the simple respect and admiration of the family, friends and neighbors.

 
But what really interested me on this local high school football game was not so much the players on the field but the coaches on the sidelines.  Before we get into that let me first give you a little history lesson about Winter Haven High School from the schools web site:

In 1886 the first school was started on the second floor of Boyd's Hall, which is the site of the present-day City Hall. Then, in 1890 a frame school building was built at the corner of Central Avenue and First Street. More space was added in 1912 for the 200 pupils now going to school. Three years later a brick building replaced the frame ones, making room for twelve grades. All elementary and high school grades were accommodated in the twenty-two classrooms of this building until 1922-23. An eight-room structure for the high school was erected on Fourth Street, this is the present annex at Denison Junior High School. In 1925 a large stucco structure (two stories plus an above-ground basement) was erected on the adjacent lot for the high school, and the smaller building became a junior high school.

 
If you have followed University of Miami football for the last 40 years like I have (It's a family tradition that started with my father and dates back to the early 1970s) then the last name of "Tate" may mean something to you.

Charlie Tate was the head coach of the Miami Hurricanes from 1964 to 1970.  In six seasons and part of a seventh, he compiled an overall win-loss record of 34–27–3. His best season with the Hurricanes came in 1966, when his team went 8–2–1 and won the Liberty Bowl against Virginia Tech. Tate also served as the Athletic Director at Miami from 1969-1970 when he abruptly resigned as the Hurricanes' AD and head coach after the second game of the 1970 football season.

Chuck Foreman was Tate's most famous recruit in the late 1960s. When interviewed at the ESPN Club, Foreman, who went on to a great career in the NFL for the Minnesota Vikings, said of Tate, "He had faith in me, as a black athlete in the South during that tumultuous time, and I will never forget him. He was a great, generous man."

Charlie Tate was inducted into the Florida Sports Hall of Fame in 1988.

His sons Charlie Tate Jr., Richard Tate and Robert Tate, can all currently be found coaching high school football in Central Florida.  Charlie Tate Jr., who can be seen below (at Center) coaching up his team on the sidelines during Friday's game, is the head Coach for the Winter Haven Blue Devils.

 
His brother  Richard Tate is the Head Coach for the Ridge Community High School Bolts while his brother Robert Tate serves as the Offensive Coordinator .

Got all that?  Yes indeed, for the Tate's, coaching high school football is a family affair!

The game was a blowout with Winter Haven racing out to a 37-0 first half advantage. 

Tate had his Blue Devils operating with precision in this pre-season match-up as they displayed what seemed to be an obvious advantage of speed and talent advantage over the seemingly lifeless Bolts.

In the first half the Blue Devils had their balanced offense on display as they rushed for 119 yards and passed for 119 yards while racking up five touchdowns. The defense also forced a safety on a bad snap.

Senior quarterback Levi Borders helped the Blue Devils racked 297 total yards.  Borders tossed touchdown strikes of 19 yards to Luke Ewles, 15 yards to Fred Rhone and 10 yards to Jontrell Hawkins and the rout was clearly on.

With starting running back Adam Lane sidelined with a broken ankle Winter Haven's Walter Bridges filled in admirably and managed to to gain 86 yards on 14 carries with two touchdowns.

 
The Ridge offense could not get un-tracked and their special teams made several major miscues that resulted in Winter Haven finding themselves in scoring position of which they took advantage for most of the first half.

 
The Winter Haven cheerleaders stayed interested in the game despite the lopsided score but the Blue Devil's marching band appeared to get bored of playing their school fight song after every score.

 
The game ended with the Blue Devils romping over the Bolts by the same first half score of 37-0.

Feeling Festive

Today on the beautiful University of Miami campus in lovely Coral Gables your Miami Hurricanes held the annual CanesFest day to celebrate UM Athletics.

Here are some videos from www.hurricanesports.com from today's event:

By Tuesday, the starting rosters and eligible players should be announced to Hurricane fans following the NCAA investigation into UM players possibly receiving potentially illegal benefits.

GO CANES!!!

IMPACT: The 2012 Recruiting Race

Yes, I know that the 2011 college football season is about to get started and many meaningless NFL pre-season games have already been all over our television screens these past few weekends. 

Football fans all across the Country are focused on the here and now and can be found getting their swag on as they cling to their irrefutable belief that THEIR team is the one that will go undefeated and bring home the big prize this season: A BCS Championship and the respect and glory that accompanies it.

 
After all every team is still undefeated in August, right? 

Still, the college football recruiting race never sleeps and keeps running full speed ahead even as a new football season full of hope and promise is just getting started.

Now that your Miami Hurricanes may be facing some potentially serious NCAA sanctions for past sins committed by former and current UM players who were alleged to receive extra benefits from booster Nevin Shapiro everyone is wondering what impact the NCAA investigation and possible penalties will have on next year's recruiting class.

The Florida HS Football (FHSF) web site is one of the best sites on the Internet for following prep sports action and keeping up to date with the college football recruiting game all across the Sunshine State.

The FHSF web site can be found here: http://www.floridahsfootball.com/

Here is a list of the 19 recruits (of the Hurricanes' 22 total verbal commits so far) who are from Florida that are verbally committed to Miami for the 2012 class according to FHSF:

#	POS	NAME	HT	WT	40	SCHOOL		DATE
1	OLB	Keith Brown	6'1	215	4.50		OLB #27	9/3/10
2	ATH	Randy "Duke" Johnson	5'9	180	4.40		ATH #10	9/16/10
3	CB	AJ. Leggett	5'11	175	--		CB #8	2/9/11
4	QB	Gray Crow	6'4	220	--		QB #34	2/13/11
5	QB	David Thompson	6'1	195	--		QB #89	2/17/11
6	DT	Trenton Taylor	6'3	250	4.70		DT #26	2/20/11
7	WR	Angelo Jean-Louis	6'0	185	--		WR #7	4/28/11
8	OT	Ereck Flowers	6'6	288	--		OT #61	5/28/11
9	CB	Larry Hope	5'10	160	--		CB #50	6/3/11
10	CB	Vernon Davis	5'9	170	4.5		CB #47	6/12/11
11	DE	Dewayne Hoilett	6'3	212	--		DE #64	6/16/11
12	DE	Jelani Hamilton	6'4	235	--		DE #35	6/21/11
13	WR	D'Mauri Jones	6'3	185	--		--	6/21/11
14	TE	Brandon Hollifield	6'6	220	--		--	6/28/11
15	OLB	Reggie Northrup	6'2	215	--		OLB #26	6/28/11
16	OLB	Josh Witt	6'1	215	--		OLB #47	7/1/11
17	OLB	James Burges	6'0	196	--		OLB #35	710/11
18	WR	Herb Waters	6'0	173	--		--	7/10/11
19	CB	Nathan Dortch	5'11	170	--		CB #34	8/2/11

The FHSF site also lists 8 players from Florida that have signed with the Florida Gators and 7 players from the Sunshine State who have signed with the Florida State Seminoles.  Those combined numbers do not equal the total of 19 players that are verbally committed to the Miami Hurricanes.

The entire list of Florida high school football players who have verbally committed to NCAA schools can be found here: http://floridahsfootball.com/recruiting/commitments/2012/index.html

Expect Miami to sign the maxium number of players in 2012 as the large and highly acclaimed yet underachieving #1 ranked 2008 class graduates after this season and Hurricane head coach Al Golden looks to restock the roster with local South Florida bred talent.

Let The Festivities Begin!

The 2011 BankUnited CanesFest is going back to its roots and will be better than ever when it returns to the University of Miami's campus on Saturday, August 27. The event, which will run from 3-6 p.m., will be held inside the BankUnited Center and the adjacent Field House. 

Thousands of orange and green clad Hurricane fans are expected to be on hand to celebrate University of Miami athletics.

 
Fans will enjoy an afternoon of family fun with the Miami Hurricanes. Activities will include interactive activities with student-athletes, inflatable games, face painting and a Q&A session with the Hurricane coaches.

Many UM fan favorites, Sebastian the Ibis, University of Miami cheerleaders and the Sunsations will be on hand to greet fans and take photos.

 
Season ticket holders will receive EXCLUSIVE ACCESS to a football autograph session from 4-5 p.m. in the Field House with their invitation. Only one autograph item person will be permitted. Season tickets can be purchased on-site to receive access to the autograph session.

General Information
Date: Saturday, August 27
Time: 3-6 p.m.
Admission: Free
Location: BankUnited Center and adjacent Field House

Featured Events
3 p.m. - Doors open
3-5:15 p.m. - Interactive sports activities with Miami Hurricanes student-athletes and coaches
4-5 p.m. - Season Ticket Holder Autograph Session
5:30-6 p.m. – It's All About the U Question and Answer Session

Team Activities
Try your hand at pitching with Baseball 
 
Shoot hoops with Men's and Women's Basketball
Go the distance with Men's and Women's Cross Country and Track and Field
Putt around with Golf
Test the waters on an Erg with Rowing
Splash around in the dunk tank with Swimming and Diving
Serve up some fun with Men's and Women's Tennis
 
Have your face painted with the Cheerleaders & Sunsations
Take your photo with Sebastian the Ibis

 
So please come join us and take advantage of this unique opportunity to see the beautiful UM campus in lovely Coral Gables and interact with UM athletes and coaches!

When It Rains, It Pours

University of Miami senior Julian Gamble tore the Anterior Cruciate Ligament (ACL) in his left leg and will likely miss the entire 2011-12 men's basketball season. A team leader, Gamble started 13 games in 2010-11 and averaged 3.8 points, 4.0 rebounds and 0.8 blocks per game.

Here is a video interview with Gamble after last year's big come from behind win over Virginia in the ACC tourney:

"We feel awful for Julian Gamble," said UM head coach Jim Larranaga. "Tearing your ACL is a devastating injury at any time in your career, but particularly in your fifth year of eligibility."

"Julian is a bright, hard working and competitive athlete. We will do everything we can to support him in his efforts to rehabilitate this injury. We know he will also be there supporting his teammates, becuase that is just the kind of person he is."

His fellow big-man Reggie Johnson underwent surgery on June 30 to repair a torn meniscus in his right knee. Johnson was expected to be sidelined for 5-6 months from the date of the surgery.

 
The 6-10, 305-pound center from Winston-Salem, N.C., tested the waters of the NBA Draft last spring and elected to return to the Hurricanes for his junior season in 2011-12. As a sophomore in 2011, Johnson was Miami's leading rebounder and third-leading scorer, nearly averaging a double-double with 11.9 points and 9.6 rebounds per game.

The Canes now have two post players injured as the college hoop season quickly approaches. UM will rely heavily on redshirt-sophomore center Kenny Kadji, who will be eligible to play this season after transferring from the University of Florida. 

Chris Freet
Associate AD for Communications | University of Miami Athletics

Shalala Speaks Out

This afternoon, even as the Miami Hurricane football team was wrapping up their second scrimmage of Fall training camp to determine starting positions and establish the depth chart for this coming season, University of Miami President Donna Shalala was speaking out about the current NCAA investigation involving the UM Athletic Department, several former Hurricane coaches and players and fifteen current student-athletes at UM.

While President Shalala was limted in what she could say due to restrictions put in place by the NCAA on commenting on specifics of the investigation, she was forthright and candid in her six minute appeal to the University community and Hurricane fans to remain supportive of the school administration, the athletic department and all of the current student-athletes at UM.

Here is the video of President Shalala's brief yet powerful statement today: 

Canespace supports the University of Miami and President Shalala.

We stand United and we stand with The U!

Hurricane Watch Is In Effect

Here is our Hurricanes Watch report for this week with some random facts...

Kickin' It: One of the pleasant surprises of Fall training camp has been the positive play of the new Hurricane kicking crew at both punter and place kicker.  The emergence of Freshman kicker Matt Goudis and junior college transfer punter Dalton Botts have been reassuring to UM coaches and fans as they look for a replacement for the talented and tough Matt Bosher who graduated and is currently playing for the Atlanta Falcons in the NFLU. 

 
How Bizarre, How Bizarre: Although only a tropical storm at the current time, Irene is projected to strengthen into a hurricane, head towards South Florida and possibly make landfall in the greater Miami area sometime early Friday morning.  Talk about ironic, just how bizarre would it be for a weather hurricane to impact the Miami Hurricanes given the recent storm of NCAA controversy blowing around Coral Gables over the last week?  Miami fans are holding on to hope that the NCAA investigation does not prove as devastating to the University as Hurricane Andrew was to southern Dade County back in August of 1992.  I guess it really is time for Hurricane fans to stand united and hunker down in the 305.

Practice Makes Perfect: On Saturday the Hurricanes held their final practice of fall camp that included a special teams session and field goal competition between Goudis and Wieclaw. The mano-a-mano matchup of kickers who each were drafted to represent the orange or white teams turned out to be a draw.  But the really good news is that both players made all 5 of the 5 kicks attempted in spite of the whooping and hollering of attempted intimidation by the opposing team's players. The only question now is can either one tackle as well as Matt Bosher or look as cool as OcalaCane in his Canespace ST#26 T-shirt?  Yeah, you are right, probably NOT on both accounts.

 
Special Teams: Watch out for DB Andrew Swasey on special teams this season.  We were told that he has already blocked two FG attempts in practice and plans to make his presence felt, literally, on special teams this season.  We hope Swasey can learn to channel his inner Tremaine Mack while returners Travis Benjamin and Lamar Miller channel their inner Devin Hester and return the UM special teams to truly being "special" once again.

 
Special Forces: Speaking of things that are "special" we would like to give a shout out to Canespacers who are currently serving in the U.S. Armed Forces: CaneSniper, IraqiCane and CanesSince1982 are all protecting our freedom and keeping us safe here at home.  All of us at Canespace would like to take this opportunity to thank U for your service to our Country.

 
Still Life At Sun Life: On Friday night I had the chance to visit the familiar stomping grounds of Sun Life Stadium just to make sure football is still being played there.  The Miami Dolphins played surprisingly well in beating the Carolina Panthers 20-10 in their first home appearance of the NFLU pre-season.  The 'Fins Chad Henne actually looked like a pro QB for once and the Dolphins defense stifled rookie QB Cam Newton who started for the Panthers and led his team on five drives which resulted in four punts and zero points while proving that the NFLU is not the same as the NCAA.

 
Second scrimmage set for Monday: The UM players will not practice on Sunday in an effort to give their tired bodies a rest before the final scrimmage on Monday.  Hurricane head coach Al Golden has stated in several interviews that the depth chart will be released soon after Monday's scrimmage, probably on Tuesday or Wednesday.  With only 60 players slated to make the travel roster there are still several heated position battles and plenty to play for in the second and final scrimmage of the Fall.

 
Let The Festivities Begin: The 2011 BankUnited CanesFest is going back to its roots and will be better than ever when it returns to the University of Miami's campus on Saturday, Aug. 27.  The event, which will run from 3-6 p.m., will be held inside the BankUnited Center and the adjacent Field House. The event is free and open to all Canes fans, yes that even includes Canechic (seen below).

 
We will keep watching the Hurricanes, you just keep paying attention, deal?

Staying On Message

Today was another day of staying on message for the University of Miami. 

After several days of hearing from Hurricanes head coach Al Golden, UM Athletic Director Shawn Eichorst and University President Donna Shalala today the message was bumped up the chain of command all the way to the top and the Chairman of the UM Board of Trustees.

A letter from University of Miami Board of Trustees Chairman Leonard Abess to the community

"For more than eight decades, our community has embraced the Miami Hurricanes through both celebrations and commiserations. This devotion is not limited to University of Miami students and alumni—the ranks of past and present fans swells to include thousands of adopted ’Canes, many of whom have never even set foot on UM’s Coral Gables campus.

This is why it is understandable that recent news of potential NCAA violations committed by current and former University of Miami student-athletes and staff have aroused such strong emotions in our community and the greater “U” family.

Without a doubt these allegations are troubling and demand a thorough and honest evaluation of Hurricane Athletics. President Shalala has taken a strong position, insisting on full cooperation with the ongoing NCAA investigation. The process will be long, and in the ensuing months the Board of Trustees and the university administration will provide both leadership and unwavering support for our great institution, which we all care so deeply about.

While attention has been rightly focused on the allegations this week, during the same time, the University has also welcomed the finest ever incoming freshman class, and campus is in the midst of the wonderful excitement surrounding move-in day and the beginning of the academic year. We must not allow our current crisis in athletics to diminish the excellence and hard work of generations in the UM family. 

It is especially important that the alleged misconduct not overshadow our current leadership and institutional values. Moving forward, I ask for your support in helping to ensure that the University of Miami and Hurricane Athletics come out stronger in our continued commitment to excellence in every endeavor. 

Rest assured, ultimate responsibility for the conduct of the overall athletics department lies with the UM leadership, which includes President Shalala, the Board of Trustees, and the Athletics Director.  

With everyone’s support, the University of Miami will continue to be a community leader and an invaluable resource to all of us."

__________________________________________________________________________________

In addition, UM allowed two players to talk to the media today for the first time since the news of the current scandal broke on Tuesday.  OL Tyler Horn and RB Mike James stayed on message during their brief interviews before practice at Greentree Field on Friday morning.

Here is the interview with UM offensive lineman Tyler Horn:

Here is the interview with UM running back Mike James:

Staying on message may not be easy but it is definitely the task for the Miami Hurricanes right now.