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Golden Takes Responsibility

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After a tremendous win over Georgia Tech one week and then a horrendous loss to Virginia the next week University of Miami head football coach Al Golden is taking responsibility.

He is taking responsibility for his team's inconsistent performance this season and ownership for the team's roller coaster like success and failure so far in 2011. One thing Golden is trying to emphasize and build into "The Process" is commitment, consistency and emotional stability among his players.

He has repeatedly said that he wants the players to approach every game with the same attitude, effort and work ethic and to maintain an even emotional level that prevents the team from getting to high or to low depending on outside influences (i.e. other teams, fans, media, etc.) or the outcomes of individual games.

Here is Golden's candid interview with the media at today's practice at UM:

Some Hurricane fans had hoped for and even expected Golden to have an immediate impact on the team this season. If Shannon had to go because coaching was not getting the job done then the new guy would certainly be expected to make good things happen and soon.

Yet most Miami fans realized the talent and depth deficiencies that existed on the current roster and knew that changing the coaching schemes and the culture of the UM football program would be a much slower and more gradual process than an instant overnight fix.

The Process would happen not like an light switch that is easily turned from off to on all of a sudden but more like a dimmer switch that allows the light to get brighter a little bit at a time over time.

How much time it will take to increase the talent and depth on the roster and to improve the coaching and the culture at Miami and is the only real question left.

And that is a question that Miami's fickle fan base is already asking of their new head coach just eight games into his first season in Coral Gables.

The Short List To The Superdome: Week 10

As the final month of the 2011 regular season gets underway, only 17 teams remain on the Shortlist in 2011, hoping to etch memories that will last a lifetime in their fans minds the rest of the way.

The teams are ranked by order of worthiness for one of two invites to the Superdome as follows:

Alabama, LSU, Oklahoma State, Stanford, Boise State, Houston, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Clemson, Nebraska, Kansas State, Penn State, Oregon, South Carolina, Michigan, Virginia Tech and Cincinnati.

Only one of the three teams I called for last week to fall off the Shortlist to the Superdome survived for another week, in bare-knuckled fashion:

1) South Carolina silences the Tennesse Volunteers in their overbuilt but under-filled stadium by a 14-3 final in Knoxville.  Steve Spurrier always delights in giving his native state another reminder of why he couldn't wait to get out of there as he keeps big orange in the basement and win-less in SEC play.  The level of competition increases several notches this week however as South Carolina travels to face their 1990's SEC expansion partner Arkansas in a de facto Shortlist Elimination Game on the under-card of conference play this week and the Gamecocks will have to deliver another surging defensive performance on the road to stay on the perimeter of the championship chase.

On the other end of the spectrum, one team falls from the Shortlist heights to off entirely in two straight weeks and watches a once limitless season of promise turn into a treacherous slog to the finish line in just 14 days:

1) Wisconsin finds a familiar way to lose late on the road in Columbus as they allow a final minute desperation heave to get reviewed onto the scoreboard again for the final margin of a 33-29 loss.  Having dropped back to back road games in conference play it's safe to say now that Bret Bielema's team has failed in their in-season major tests as they lose a game that in the preseason they weren't expected to win but half way through October, appeared to have no chance to lose.  At least his AD thinks he's just spiffy even if House of Pain will never make a cultural relevancy comeback so not all is lost at Camp Randall.

I expect almost a quarter of the teams on the Shortlist this week to be eliminated in one fell swoop as November begins to pare away the true contenders from both the lucky as well as the injury depleted in merciless fashion and the suspected prey are:

South Carolina, Michigan, Kansas State and Cincinnati.

With the predicted extinction of Wildcats, Wolverines and fighting chickens, the teams in contention draw three upsets near to being counted on two hands only in 2011. 

Enjoy the games this week and join me back here next week as The Shortlist to the Superdome will have a new pair of leaders guaranteed as the home stretch approaches and the pressure intensifies!

Copyright 2011 by Christopher Whelpton for Canespace.com

Miami Hurricanes Win The World Series!

Last night, not in Omaha but in the city of St. Louis, your Miami Hurricanes won the World Series.

Well, something like that.

Cardinals center fielder Jon Jay, a former UM baseball player and current Cardinal, played a major contributing role in his team's success this season and was on the field when Game 7 of the 2011 Major League Baseball championship series was decided.

Jay becomes the third former Hurricane to win Major League Baseball's championship in the last two years. Former UM players Pat Burrell and Aubrey Huff won the World Series last year with the Philadelphia Phillies.

Jay played under current UM head coach Jim Morris like other current MLB players such as Yonder Alonso, Ryan Braun and Gaby Sanchez (seen below at Center). Those Hurricane teams had some major star power!

Since 1973, the University of Miami's baseball program has been one of college baseball's elite with 23 College World Series appearances, winning four national championships (1982, 1985, 1999, 2001) and advancing to the NCAA regionals a record 39 consecutive years.

Along with the university's other athletic teams, the baseball team became a member of the Atlantic Coast Conference during the 2004–05 academic year. Miami won its first ever ACC championship in baseball when it captured the 2008 ACC Baseball Championship.

The Hurricanes play at Mark light Field at Alex Rodriguez Park, on the UM campus. Since 1994, the team has been under the leadership of head coach Jim Morris who led Miami to two National Championships in 1999 and 2001.

Jay was drafted by the Cardinals out of the University of Miami in the second round (74th overall) of the 2006 MLB Draft. A Miami native, he played high school baseball at Christopher Columbus Senior High School in Miami, Florida, where he won the state championship his senior year.

At Miami, Jay was a dominant college baseball player. Here is part of his bio from his days as a Hurricane courtesy of www.hurricanesports.com:

Jon Jay enters the 2006 season as one of the country's elite outfielders ... named the 2006 Brooks Wallace Award Preseason Watch list along with teammate Chris Perez ... preseason second team All-American by Baseball America, Louisville Slugger and the NCBWA ... spent the 2005 summer on the USA National Team with Perez, where he hit .262 and led the team with 15 runs scored as the team's leadoff hitter ... also led Team USA in stolen bases with ... First Team All-ACC selection as a sophomore and also a Louisville Slugger Third Team All-America ... led the team in hitting (.408) and on-base percentage (.490) ... posted two 17-game hitting streaks and the seventh-highest single-season batting average in UM history ... holds a career .387 batting average that ranks him fourth all-time at Miami ... solid all-around player with good speed and an accurate arm ... will play in center field after playing left field his first two seasons ... made an immediate impact in the Miami outfield and across the nation as a freshman ... earned freshman All-America honors from Baseball America and Collegiate Baseball after hitting .368 with six home runs and 56 RBI ... hits to all fields with excellent power to the opposite field ... a slick fielding outfielder with good range, quick breaks on the ball and an above average arm ... his play in the 2004 College World Series earned him All-Tournament honors ... rated the No. 3 prospect in the Valley Summer League by Baseball America ... a candidate for All-America and All-ACC honors in 2005.

Jay made his Major League debut on April 26, 2010. On July 27, 2011 starting center fielder Colby Rasmus was traded to the Toronto Blue Jays. Jay then took over for the recently traded Rasmus in center field.

In 2011, Jay was critical to St. Louis' success as he played in more games than any other Cardinal this season. His batting average hovered around the .300 mark for most of the season as he contributed 10 home runs, 37 RBI and 6 stolen bases to the Cardinals' offense this season.

Canespace wishes to congratulate Jay and his Cardinal teammates for winning the MLB World Series!

GO CANES, GO CARDS!!!

The Hurricane Express Gets Derailed

On Wednesday, if you looked hard enough and stared long enough somewhere off in the distance, the orange and green Hurricane Express could be seen coming around the bend and clearly into focus.

Driven by first year head coach Al Golden the train was clearly gaining speed and momentum as The Process appeared to be actually working for the 2011 Miami football team.

But by midnight on Thursday all that was left of the Hurricane Express was a heaping, steaming, smoldering pile of twisted metal and dreams after Miami ran into Virginia and lost another game they should have won by the score of 28-21.

Laying at the bottom of the pile of junk that is now the 2011 Miami Hurricane season was The Process, now flattened, unrecognizable and significantly damaged.

The Process did not help the UM offense which suffered from another slow start, some very questionable play calling and one of their poorest and least productive performances of the season. Sure Jacory Harris and his high school teammate Tommy Streeter put on a show for the 30,000 or so 'Canes fans at Sun Life Stadium but it was a little too little and a little too late for Miami.

The Process did not help the infamous Swiss Cheese Hurricane defense that gave up way too may yards and four touchdowns to what had been an anemic Cavalier offense. Of course as they have been known to do on too many occasions the UM defense made an very below average college offense look like the New England Patriots being led by Tom Brady.

The Process did not help Al Golden and the UM coaching staff who got out-coached all evening by Mike London and his UVA staff. London caught the Miami staff off guard on several occasions as he dialed up several trick plays and a few big play calls that led to long TDs for the Cavaliers.

The Hurricane Express was derailed on Thurday night just as it was gaining speed and momentum as it jumped the tracks of The Process and crumbled into a heaping, steaming, smoldering pile of junk.

The 2011 season has turned into just another year in which your Miami Hurricane now have absolutely no chance at winning an ACC title that has eluded them since joining the conference seven years ago.

But I guess there is always next year, right?

Game Day Blog: UM vs UVA

Tonight at 8 PM on ESPN the entire Nation will be watching as your University of Miami Hurricanes take on the Virginia Cavaliers at Sun Life Stadium in another Atlantic Coast Conference game that will help determine the ACC Champion.

Miami enters the game on a roll after beating North Carolina on the road at Chapel Hill and then Georgia Tech at home the following week for back to back ACC wins that makes even the doubters like Canechic and OGV happy enough to smile even if just for a brief moment.

The confident and optimistic UM fans are already solidly behind their new charismatic and articulate leader and the obviously improving Miami football team.  The Hurricane's defensive performance against Georgia Tech had even the most pessimistic UM fans drunk with positive thoughts. 

The doubters however are NOT yet completely convinced or satisfied with the 2011 Hurricanes and will not rest easy until when or if Miami beats Virginia tonight on national TV.  And who can really blame them?

Hurricane fans have been down this road before several times over the last few seasons and are now holding their cards and their emotions close to the vest after being burned emotionally in the past. 

In fact, if this were a game of Texas hold 'em, some fans would almost certainly fold before going "all in" for the Hurricanes.

This time there is no doubt that some of the more conservative members of the UM faithful are being cautious before falling head over heels for Al Golden and the 2011 version of the Miami football team.

There are simply two possible outcomes to Thursday night's ACC contest:

1. After Miami beats Virginia tonight by the score of 34-20 at Sun Life Stadium there will be little room left on the bandwagon for Hurricane fans to get on board the love train that has already formed around Al Golden and the Hurricane football program.

2. If Hurricanes lose to the Cavaliers 27-24 then UM fans will once again begin to doubt and criticize their coaches, players and program heading forward and into the remaining four games of the season. 

We will be on hand to personally witness the game and the outcome of the event as it unfolds.

We wish you could be there with us too.

The Short List To The Superdome: Week 9

October comes to a close with only 20 teams remaining on "The Short List" having survived so far this season whereas the other 100 teams have fallen by the wayside. 

The survivors still on the list are ranked in order of BCS championship contention worthiness as follows:

Alabama, LSU, Clemson, Oklahoma State, Stanford, Kansas State, Boise State, Houston, Michigan State, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Wisconsin, Penn State, Oregon, South Carolina, Michigan, Nebraska, Virginia Tech, Southern Cal and Cincinnati.

Two teams won games last week in almost diametric opposite fashions to stay on the Shortlist despite me calling for them to fall off and they were:

1) Michigan State avoids overtime with a last second batted ball Hail Mary touchdown that is reviewed onto the final scoreboard tally 37-31 in East Lansing against Wisconsin.  Now if only they could have played like mythical Trojans instead of mere factual Spartans earlier this year against mythical Irish tending the end of the rainbow, they'd be at the top of the Shortlist instead of trailing the leaders.

2) Southern Cal wins a game that thanks to NCAA sanctions has absolutely no impact on the BCS but does keep them on the Shortlist for another week as they outpace the Irish in South Bend 31-17 for Lane Kiffen's signature win in his head coaching career to date.  Yes, he's still that under-qualified for the positions he's had so far, no wonder there's an outcry on Wall Street over economic injustice going on in this country right now.

Two Big East teams lost last week without me calling for them to fall from Shortlist contention and the two programs were:

1) West Virginia gets completely exposed by an improving Syracuse team on Friday on the road 49-23.  Being overrated is a Big 12 necessity for member institutions, they'll fit right in replacing Missouri.

2) Rutgers makes it two for two for Big East conference Friday Shortlist eliminations as they fall in Louisville to the Cardinals 16-14.  Never one to miss an opportunity to use one of my favorite college football cliches when thoroughly appropriate I'll just sum it up with, "That's why you're Rutgers," and move on.

Only three teams this week should find themselves beaten off the Shortlist to the Superdome, they are:

South Carolina, Michigan State and Southern Cal.

As November dawns on 2011's college football season, the short list to the Superdome becomes more and more exclusive each week as elimination showdowns begin to develop for the teams listed on it. 

Michigan State has a major bell to answer this week as they go from facing one loaded team to another on the road and will now have to win without the raucous home crowd that helped spur them on to upset victory just seven days ago. 

Enjoy the games this week and join me back here next week as what is done in November will most certainly be remembered for a long time to come here on the Shortlist to the Superdome.

Copyright 2011 by Christopher Whelpton for Canespace.com

Golden Presses Forward With The Process

Today UM Head Coach Al Golden held his weekly press conference with the media. 

During the 15 minute Q&A event Golden addressed several topics ranging from how some fans are now imitating his now famous sideline attire to the most recently updated injury report for this week's game Thursday night at Sun Life Stadium against Virginia (ESPN @ 8 PM). 

He also mentioned "The Process" eight times or about once every two minutes which according to our statistics is clearly well below his previous average and certainly below his personal best.

Here is Golden live, unplugged and unfiltered today from Coral Gables: 

Superman Wears Sean Spence Underwear

On the same day that UM linebacker Sean Spence was named ACC Linebacker of the week for the third straight time, the senior from Miami was named as one of 12 finalists for the 27th Annual Butkus Award honoring the nation’s top college linebackers.

It marks the second consecutive season that Spence (seen below as a Freshman with 86Cane) has been a Butkus semifinalist. But this year his results have been better than ever and his coaches are heaping tremendous praise on the highly skilled quarterback of their defense.

Spence leads the ACC in tackles for loss per game (1.58), is third among linebackers nationally and 7th overall among all NCAA players. Spence is also second among all active NCAA players in career tackles for loss with 41.5. He only trails Vincent Curry of Marshall (44). He also ranks

His leadership has been so good, that normally guarded UM coaches have been quick to praise his work this season.

More Spence News: Spence Earns Third Straight ACC Weekly Award
UM Butkus Winner: Dan Morgan in 2000
UM Record Books: Every Canes National Award Winner

UM head coach Al Golden said following the Georgia Tech game when the Spence-led defense held the Yellow Jackets to a season low 134 yards rushing, "There are good years, there are great years and there are special years. Right now, he's having a special year."

His position coach, former UM great at LB himself Michael Barrow, who has played with and coached some of the greatest UM defensive players, compared him to a future NFL Hall of Famer saying, "See what Peyton Manning means to the Colts? That's what Sean means to our defense."

Canes Nation is hoping that Spence (seen below with MNWHS and UM teammate Jacory Harris) can follow in the footsteps of UM Hall of Famer Dan Morgan, who won the Butkus Award in 2000.

The 12 collegiate semi-finalists include five returning nominees and two from the University of Alabama.  The Award was expanded in 2008 to honor linebackers at three levels while helping spread the word about Butkus’ I Play Clean™ initiative, which encourages teens to eat well, train hard, and play with attitude, instead of resorting to steroids and related drugs.

“This Award is about honoring linebackers at all levels, and reminding them that they have a responsibility to serve as role models and to give back to society,” said Dick Butkus, the legendary Pro Football Hall of Fame linebacker.

Collegiate 2011 Butkus Award Semi-Finalists:
Zach Brown -- University of North Carolina
Vontaze Burfict -- Arizona State University
Audie Cole -- North Carolina State University
Lavonte David -- University of Nebraska
Dont’a Hightower* -- University of Alabama
Luke Kuechly -- Boston College
Travis Lewis* -- University of Oklahoma
Keenan Robinson* -- University of Texas
Sean Spence* -- University of Miami (Fla.)
Manti Te’o* -- University of Notre Dame
Courtney Upshaw -- University of Alabama
Jarvis Jones -- University of Georgia

Intense Hurricanes Wreck Georgia Tech

Most Miami Hurricane football fans feel that games on Saturdays in South Florida start with the new tradition of the Hurricane Walk. 

Here are the 'Canes arriving for this week's game against Georgia Tech:

But clearly success on the field on the weekend all starts with "The Process" during the week.  And The Process appears to be working.

And clearly Al Golden (seen below) will do whatever it takes, including standing on the roof of a pick-up truck in the Sun Life Stadium parking lot at the Canespace tailgate party to make sure that the players and the fans do not stray from The Process.

Just kidding!  OK, so maybe the REAL Al Golden did not actually show up at our tailgate party but his look alike was doing a pretty good job of imitating the UM Coach and getting the crowd whipped into a frenzy.

At last count the Miami Hurricanes head football coach had repeated the term "The Process" a total of 1,387 times during media interviews in just his first year in Coral Gables.

Finally, seven games into the 2011 season it appears that those words are sinking into the collective mentality of even the most resistant or hard-headed football players with "The U" on their helmets.

On a relatively cool, breezy and simply spectacular October day in South Florida your Miami Hurricanes beat the Ramblin' Wreck of Georgia Tech 24-7. 

The margin of victory could easily have been much more than the 17 point difference at the end of the contest.  It certainly did not reflect the complete domination of the Yellow Jackets in front of a decent sized and lively crowd at Sun life Stadium. 

The Hurricanes could easily have put 35 points on the board had their offense been just a bit more efficient on a few possessions in the second half.

It was a game in which the 'Canes never trailed and played with a comfortable lead through the day.  And while the UM offense may not have had their most productive day of the season the Hurricanes defense certainly played their best game of the 2011 campaign by far.

In fact, Miami may have played their most complete game from start to finish over four quarters this year as the Hurricane were in control of the game throughout the day.  

Even the famed University of Miami Band of the Hour sounded good and marched in perfect formation before during and after the game.

The much maligned UM defense absolutely smothered the vaunted GT triple option by stuffing the middle and playing smart, disciplined football on the edges to prevent the Jackets from breaking any of the long runs from scrimmage for which they are known. 

With Sean Spence at middle linebacker for most of the game and defensive tackles Darius Smith, Adawale Ojomo, Jalen Grimble and others clogging the middle, Tech was forced to the sidelines where the Miami defense swarmed to the ball like, well like yellow jackets to their hive.

UM defensive coordinator Mark D'Onofrio, who has received his fair share of criticism this year to date, was simply magnificent in preparing and coaching the Hurricane defense against GT.  His efforts this week did not go unnoticed by the UM players as it earned him a much deserved and welcomed Gatorade bath at the end of the game.

He also earned the praise of UM head coach Al Golden in his post game interview:

Now Miami has a short week to prepare for another ACC showdown with the Virginia Cavaliers on Thursday night (on ESPN @ 8 PM). 

If the Hurricanes can simply manage to stick to "The Process" they could win their third consecutive conference game in a row after dispatching of North Carolina and Georgia Tech over the last two weeks.

We look forward to seeing you at Sun Life Stadium on Thursday night.

And now, with a new and improved UM defense behind us, we can't wait!

Game Day Blog: UM vs GT

This week your Miami Hurricanes take on the Ramblin' Wreck of Georgia Tech in another ACC match-up that could decide the conference title for 2011. 

Miami is coming off a meaningful if not impressive win over North Carolina at Chapel Hill.  The Hurricanes streaked out to an early lead against the Tar Heels and then managed to hold on to an important win in a ACC road game. 

As you all know Tech makes their living on running Paul Johnson's antiquated yet effective triple option while Miami makes their living on running Jedd Fisch's pro-style offense.

To be honest we expect GT to run all over Miami's defense.  There is nothing to indicate that Miami can stop any team's running game much less the GT dynamic and creative emphasis on the run game. The Jackets will almost certainly control the ball and the clock and score at least 30 points against the porous 2011 Hurricane defense.

Still we also expect Jacory Harris to execute Miami's pro-style offense efficiently and score more than the Yellow Jackets by posting more than 40 points.  The emergence of UM WR's Streeter, Hurns and Dorsett to go along with Travis Benjamin have the 'Canes offense running on high octane gasoline. 

That and the continued progression of running backs Lamar Miller and Mike James have the Hurricanes headed to success on the offensive side of the ball.

The only real question Miami Hurricanes fans have heading into every game is can the UM defense hold their part of the deal?  This week we believe they can.

Here is Chris Whelpton's weekly segment on how the Canes will win or lose this game:

Canespace Prediction: UM 41, GT 31