Canespace: May 2014

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UM Sports Hall of Fame Lands A Big One

The University of Miami Sports Hall of Fame (UMSHoF) today announced the signing of Deep Impact Boats as the first-ever presenting sponsor of the 4th Annual Habitat for Humanity of the Upper Keys/UMSHoF Celebrity Dolphin Fishing Tournament.

The event activities this year are scheduled for June 27-28 at Founders Park at Mile Marker 87 and Coconut Cove Resort and Marina at Mile Marker 85 in the beautiful Florida Keys on the Overseas Highway in Islamorada.

This year's tournament will be hosted by Michael Irvin, a 2007 inductee into the Pro Football Hall of Fame and three-time Super Bowl Champion with the Dallas Cowboys. Irvin was a member of the Miami Hurricanes' 1987 National Championship team and still holds the UM record for most career receiving touchdowns with 26.

The tournament weekend will begin Friday evening with a kick-off party and captains' meeting followed on Saturday by a full day of fishing, awards dinner and live and silent auctions featuring unique sports memorabilia as well as a variety of gift packages. This is the only fishing event of its kind that matches participants with former Miami Hurricanes sports stars for the competition. Cash prizes and trophies will be presented to anglers in eight categories. A portion of the tournament proceeds will go to Habitat for Humanity of the Upper Keys,The Buoniconti Fund to Cure Paralysis and the UMSHoF.

"Our tournament committee is proud to welcome a Miami boat manufacturer as our event's first presenting sponsor," said K.C. Jones, president of the UMSHoF, a 2008 hall inductee, two-time Super Bowl winner with the Denver Broncos and founder of the tournament.

Jones also stated that, "Through Deep Impact Boats' support and that of our other sponsors, we have the opportunity to expand the size and scope of the tournament for the benefit of participants, the nonprofit organizations involved and the businesses in Islamorada.The tournament has become a can't miss event of the sportfishing calendar with teams competing on 100 boats set to take to the waters. For Hurricanes fans who don't want to fish, our line-up presents a full slate of activities on land."

Former Hurricanes sports stars scheduled to participate include NFL Hall of Famer and 2012 Tournament Host Warren Sapp (Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Oakland Raiders), NFL Hall of Famer Ted Hendricks (Baltimore Colts, Green Bay Packers, Oakland and Los Angeles Raiders), Clinton Portis (Denver Broncos, Washington Redskins), Brett Romberg (Jacksonville Jaguars, St. Louis Rams, Atlanta Falcons), Gary Dunn (Pittsburgh Steelers), Damione Lewis (St. Louis Rams, Carolina Panthers, New England Patriots, Houston Texans), Randal Hill (Miami Dolphins, Arizona Cardinals, New Orleans Saints) and 1992 Heisman Trophy winner Gino Torretta (Minnesota Vikings, Detroit Lions, San Francisco 49ers, Seattle Seahawks, Indianapolis Colts).

Tournament Information

The 4th Annual Habitat for Humanity of the Upper Keys/UMSHoF Celebrity Dolphin Fishing Tournament is presented by Deep Impact Boats and brought to participants by the Monroe County Tourist Development Council. For information about tournament participation, including boat entry or sponsorship opportunities, visit www.canesfish.com, call (305) 667-0399 or contact Tournament Director Judy Layne at [email protected]. Save $150 on tournament fees by registering online now until June 1. Follow the tournament on Facebook at www.facebook.com/canesfish.

Posted at 10:28 PM | Permalink | Comments (273)

UM Baseball Reaches The Post Season

#1 MIAMI HURRICANES (41-17, 24-6 ACC)

#2 Texas Tech Red Raiders (40-18, 14-10 Big 12)

#3 Columbia Lions (29-18, 15-5 Ivy)

#4 Bethune-Cookman Wildcats (26-31, 14-10 MEAC)

May 30:

#2 Texas Tech vs. # Columbia (2 p.m.) (Game 1)

#1 Miami vs. #4 Bethune-Cookman (7 p.m.) (Game 2)

May 31:
Game 1 Loser vs. Game 2 Loser (2 p.m.) (Game 3)

Game 1 Winner vs. Game 2 Winner (7 p.m.) (Game 4)

June 1:

Game 3 Winner vs. Game 4 Loser (2 p.m.) (Game 5)

Game 4 Winner vs. Game 5 Winner (7 p.m.) (Game 6)

June 2 (if necessary)
Game 6 Winner vs. Game 6 loser (7 p.m.)

WHERE TO WATCH & LISTEN

TV: ESPN3 (all games) | Talent: Doug Sherman (pbp), Leland Maddox (color)

Flagship Radio: WQAM 560, WQAM.com (all games) | Joe Zagacki, Mike Levine

Student Radio: WVUM 90.5 FM, WVUM.org (all games) | AJ Ricketts, Jorge Salas

PROJECTED STARTERS

Game One: TTU LHP Chris Sadberry (4-2, 3.45 ERA) vs. CU RHP George Thanopoulos (5-2, 2.81 ERA)
Game Two: MIAMI LHP Andrew Suarez (5-2, 3.22 ERA) vs. B-CU RHP Montana Durapau (11-1, 1.71 ERA)

NCAA REGIONAL NEWS AND NOTES

DEATH, TAXES AND THE POSTSEASON...

• After posting a 41-17 overall record (including its run at the 2014 ACC Championship in Greensboro, N.C.), as well as a24-6 mark in ACC play and an ACC Regular Season Championship, Miami was named one of 16 Regional host sites for the 2014 NCAA postseason.

• The Coral Gables Regional will mark Miami’s 25th time as host in the postseason, and its 42nd consecutive postseason trip - the longest active streak in Division I athletics. Miami’s 43 total NCAA appearances is the third-most of any program nationwide (Texas - 56, Florida State - 52).

• Miami has an all-time record of 117-43 (.731) in the Regional round, including a 1-2 mark in the Louisville Regional in 2013. Miami’s all-time mark in the postseason stands at an impressive 178-91 (.662).

CONFERENCE CROWN...

• Miami ended the season as the hottest college baseball team in the nation - with wins in 27 of its last 30 regular season games - and captured its second ACC Regular Season Championship by defeating North Carolina in two of three games in its final home set.

• By winning two of three games against the Tar Heels, the Hurricanes set a new program record for ACC victories (24) and tied the all-time ACC record in the same category. Only three other ACC teams had ever won 24 league games in a season: Florida State twice (2008, 2012) and Clemson (2006).

• Miami earned two top conference awards: catcher Zack Collins was named 2014 ACC Freshman of the Year and starterChris Diaz was named ACC Co-Pitcher of the Year. In addition, seven players earned 2014 All-ACC recognition.

TALE OF TWO SEASONS...

• Miami went 13-12 (.520) in its first 25 games of the regular season, including just a 5-4 mark (.555) in its first three ACC series.

• The Hurricanes reeled off wins in 27 of its last 30 in the regular season, including a 19-2 mark in its final seven conference weekends. The impressive stretch also included four ACC three-game road sweeps - the first time since 2005 the feat has been accomplished.

• Miami did not lose an ACC series after dropping two of three at home to Virginia (March 22-24). The Hurricanes captured 10 ACC wins in a row during its overall 14-game winning streak - a new record.

• The Hurricanes’ previous best record in league play came in 2008, when it finished 23-5 and earned a No. 1 seed at the ACC Championship in Jacksonville, Fla.

Posted at 11:09 PM | Permalink | Comments (73)

U Can't Handle The Truth

This article was written for Canespace by blogger TonyCane...

Historically, the University of Miami football team has had at least 40 four-star players until the combination of graduations, early departures, and transfers plummeted that total in year one of Golden's tenure.

That combination of factors dropped the number of four-star players on the UM active roster to an all-time low of just 23 last season.

Hurricanes (4 and 5 star player totals):

2006: 46
2007: 45
2008: 42
2009: 42
2010: 40
2011: 28
2012: 28
2013: 23
2014: 27

Having 40 or more 4 and 5 star players is of course not a guarantee for success. For example, the University of Texas has easily had over 40 four star players each year for a decade and has not produced much in the way of results while Miami did not go under the 40 player threshold until Shannon's reign. But having highly rated players certainly raises the odds of success.

For a quick further comparison of roster strength in during 2006 and 2013 (the lowest year), let's look at the number of 4 and 5 star players by position. And I'll throw in 2014 as well just for fun:

Quarterback:
2006: (2) Freeman, Wright
2013: (1) Olsen
2014: (2) KAYAA, Olsen

Wide Receiver:
2006: (4) Moore, Jenkins, Leggett, Shields
2013: (2) Coley, Lewis
2014: (3) BERRIOS, Coley, Lewis

Tight End:
2006: (5) Epps, Farr, Fox, Gordon, Olsen
2013: (1) Sandland
2014: (1) Sandland

Running Back:
2006: (4) Moss, J James, Johnson, Jones
2013: (2) Clements, Johnson
2014: (2) Johnson, YEARBY

Offensive Line:
2006: (5) Pou, Brain, Barney, Trump, Youngblood
2013: (4) Bunche, Flowers, Henderson, Linder
2014: (5) Bunche, DARLING, GIBBONS, Flowers, MCDERMOTT

Defensive Line:
2006: (11) Abdallah, Anderson, Brown, Campbell, Dixon, Franklin, Harris, Hendricks, Holmes, Moncur, Pata
2013: (5) Chickillo, Hamilton, McCord, Muhammad, L Robinson
2014: (7) Chickillo, Hamilton, JACKSON, McCord, MOTEN, Muhammad, C THOMAS

Linebacker:
2006: (5) Adkins, Beason, Bryant, Gooden, Robinson
2013: (2) Grace, Kirby
2014: (2) Grace, Kirby

Defensive Backs:
2006: (6) Cooper, Johnson, K Philips, R Philips, Sharpe, Walden
2013: (5) Burns, Bush, Carter, Elder, Howard
2014: (6) Burns, Bush, Carter, Elder, HESTER, Howard

Special Teams:
2006: (1) Peattie
2013: none
2014: none

The 2006 season might be considered the last great Canes defense, which allowed only 15 points a game. We can see that "on paper", the Miami defense of 2013 is far weaker at defensive line and linebacker.

On offense the difference is even greater, although the 2013 Canes clearly outperformed the 2006 version (thanks to better overall roster depth).

Fortunately 2014 is the year where the trend begins to reverse itself. With only one 4 star player leaving after the 2014 season (barring early departures by Duke, Howard, and others), the opportunity exists for Miami to jump from the 20s into the mid 30s in 2015.

So, if U can handle it, the truth hurts: Numbers don't lie.

Miami has not been very good lately simply because the talent on the roster has not been as good as it was in the past. And that is just the truth.

Posted at 10:27 PM | Permalink | Comments (226)

The Long And Winding Road

For the 25th time in program history, the University of Miami has been selected to host one of 16 Regional sites for the NCAA Division I Baseball Championship.

Miami (41-17) will be making its NCAA-record 42nd consecutive postseason appearance this week when play at the Coral Gables Regional begins Friday, May 30 at Alex Rodriguez Park at Mark Light Field. Miami is one of just three ACC schools to host the Regional Round, joining Virginia and Florida State.

The 16 Regional Round sites, with host institutions and records are as follows: Miami (41-17, 24-6 ACC), Coral Gables, Fla.; Virginia (44-13, 22-8 ACC), Charlottesville, Va.; Florida State (43-15, 21-9 ACC), Tallahassee, Fla.; Florida (40-21, 21-9 SEC), Gainesville, Fla.; Indiana (42-13, 21-3 Big Ten), Bloomington, Ind.; Louisiana-Lafayette (53-7, 26-4 Sun Belt), Lafayette, La.; Oregon State (42-11, 23-6 Pac-12), Corvallis, Ore.; Vanderbilt (41-18, 17-13 SEC), Nashville, Tenn.; Ole Miss (41-18, 19-11 SEC), Oxford, Miss.; TCU (41-15, 17-7 Big 12), Fort Worth, Texas; Louisiana State (44-14-1, 17-11-1 SEC), Baton Rouge, La; Oklahoma State (45-15, 18-6 Big 12), Stillwater, Okla; Cal Poly (45-10, 19-5 Big West), San Luis Obispo, Calif; Rice (40-18, 23-7 C-USA), Houston, Texas; South Carolina (42-16, 18-3 SEC), Columbia, S.C. and Louisville (45-15, 19-5 The American), KY.

The last season Miami hosted a regional was 2012, when second-seeded UCF, third-seeded Missouri State and fourth-seeded Stony Brook visited Alex Rodriguez Park in early June. Stony Brook came away winners in the bracket before an eventual trip to Omaha, Neb., and a berth in the College World Series.

The Coral Gables Regional field, as well as the entire field of 64, will be announced Monday at 12 p.m. on ESPNU’s Division I Baseball Selection Show “The Road to Omaha.”

Posted at 10:04 PM | Permalink | Comments (19)

We Remember U

We interrupt our normal blogging on this Memorial Day 2014 to offer a very sincere THANK U to all of the men and women who defend freedom!

For all of those incredibly brave 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 other military battles against terrorists 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 wish all of our armed forces and all of our Canespace Nation family and friends a safe, happy and fun Memorial Day.

Miami Hurricane fans salute U and ask that God Bless America!

Posted at 11:33 PM | Permalink | Comments (126)

Most People #LoveMiami

Miami’s 8th-ranked doubles team of Monique Albuquerque and Clementina Riobueno will play 10th-ranked Kristie Ahn and Carol Zhao of Stanford in the NCAA Doubles Round of 16 on Friday at 3 PM, it was announced late Thursday.

Zhao and Ahn defeated Louisville’s No. 21 Julia Fellerhoff and Rebecca Shine in three sets this afternoon to advance, while Albuquerque and Riobueno rolled past Georgia’s No. 19 Kate Fuller and Silvia Garcia. On the season, Stanford’s top doubles pair went 28-5 with seven wins against ranked opponents.

In other news around the courts...

No. 29 Stephanie Wagner was eliminated from the NCAA Singles Championship on Thursday morning after suffering a 7-6(3), 6-4 loss to No. 5 Beatrice Capra in the second round.

"Stephanie had an amazing season," head coach Paige Yaroshuk-Tews said. "Unfortunately, she didn't end it playing her best tennis today. I'm really proud of the progress that's taken place this season"

"Were really looking forward to see her take the next step in these next two years," Yaroshuk-Tews said. "With the necessary work, Wagner will develop into one of the premier players in the country."

Every match remaining in the tournament can be watched live HERE. For more information on Albuquerque and Riobueno throughout the tournament, follow @HurricaneTennis on Twitter.

Posted at 11:36 PM | Permalink | Comments (54)

A Closer Look At ACC Stadiums

After a recent article posted here on Canespace exposed the fallacy of the idea of UM football sharing a soccer stadium and playing in a venue that seats only 40,000 people we thought it might be a good idea to do a comparison of ACC football stadiums around the conference.

So we did some basic research to find out the seating capacities of the 14 ACC football stadiums and the year they were first built to see how Sun Life Stadium (SLS) stacks up and compares to other facilities in the ACC.

(Please Note: We did not factor in or include any recent upgrades as there are too many to mention, including some that have been made at SLS and several more that are scheduled for next year.)

To our pleasant surprise here is what we found:

BB&T Field Wake Forest / Capacity: 31,500 / Built: 1968

Wallace Wade Stadium Duke / Capacity: 33,941 / Built: 1929

Alumni Stadium Boston College / Capacity: 44,500 / Built: 1957

Carrier Dome Syracuse / Capacity: 49,250 / Built: 1980

Byrd Stadium Maryland / Capacity: 54,000 / Built: 1950

Bobby Dodd Stadium Georgia Tech / Capacity: 55,000 / Built: 1913

Carter Finley Stadium NC State / Capacity: 57,583 / Built: 1966

Scott Stadium Virginia /Capacity: 61,500 / Built: 1931

Kenan Stadium North Carolina /Capacity: 62,980 / Built: 1927

Heinz Field Pittsburgh / Capacity: 65,050 / Built: 2001

Lane Stadium Virginia Tech / Capacity: 66,233 / Built: 1965

Sun Life Stadium Miami / Capacity: 75,504 / Built: 1987

Memorial Stadium Clemson / Capacity: 81,500 / Built: 1942

Doak Campbell Stadium Florida State / Capacity: 82,300 / Built: 1950

Source: http://www.collegegridirons.com/comparisons.htm#sthash.0ehTKrAY.dpuf

To summarize the statistics above here are the facts and our findings:

Only two teams play in what would be considered small college stadiums with 40,000 seats or less: Wake Forest and Duke.
Only two teams play in what would be considered large college stadiums with 80,000 seats or more: FSU and Clemson.
The average size of all 14 ACC stadiums is a capacity of 54,770 seats.
Only three stadiums were built after 1980: The Carrier Dome (Syracuse/1980), Sun Life Stadium (Miami/1987) and Heinz Field (Pittsburgh/2001).

So we would suggest that you be thankful for what you have Hurricane fans.

Sun Life Stadium is the second most modern facility and has the third largest capacity of all ACC football stadiums. It is one of only two stadiums that currently is home to an NFL team and is the only stadium in the ACC where NFL Super Bowls (5) and BCS Championships (4) have been played.

Yes, be thankful 'Canes fans. Be very, very thankful indeed for Sun Life Stadium.

Posted at 07:00 PM | Permalink | Comments (261)

We Are The Champions!

Atlantic Coast Conference Regular Season Champion Miami is the top seed for the 2014 ACC Baseball Championship, which gets underway Tuesday at NewBridge Bank Park in Greensboro, N.C.

Miami (40-15, 24-6) clinched the No. 1 overall seed Saturday with a 2-0 victory against North Carolina, and will head up Pool A. The Hurricanes will be joined by fourth-seeded Duke (32-23, 16-14) and fifth-seeded Clemson (34-22, 15-14), while No. 8 Wake Forest (30-25, 15-15) and No. 9 Georgia Tech (32-24, 14-16) will play on Tuesday to join the pool.

Florida State earned the No. 2 seed and will lead Pool B with third-seeded Virginia (43-11, 22-8) and sixth-seeded Maryland (34-19, 15-14). The fourth spot in the pool will go to the winner of Tuesday’s game between seventh-seeded North Carolina (32-23, 15-15) and NC State (32-22, 13-17).

The tournament will get underway Tuesday with the two play-in games. The Tar Heels and Wolfpack will play at 11 a.m., followed by the Demon Deacons and Yellow Jackets at 3 p.m.

Under the pool-play format, each team will play one game against each of the other three opponents in its pool Wednesday through Saturday (May 21-24). The two teams with the best records within their respective pools will advance to the title game on Sunday, May 25, with the winner earning the ACC’s automatic berth into the NCAA Tournament.

Game times Wednesday through Saturday are set for 11 a.m., 3 p.m. and 7 p.m. Sunday’s championship game will begin at 1 p.m. Complete pairings, dates and game times for the 2014 ACC Baseball Championship will be released Sunday morning (May 18). Visit theACC.com for more information.

Posted at 12:28 AM | Permalink | Comments (174)

Much Ado About Nothing

Recently there have been many rumors and much specualtion about soccer mega-star turned business mogul David Beckham and his desire to build a new multi-use stadium for his new and fledgling soccer team in Miami.

The rumors and specualtion center on the crazy idea being floated around by some that the stadium would also serve as a potential home to the University of Miami Hurricanes football team.

The soccer stadium, for which Beckham has yet to find an acceptable site to build on, would tranform from it's original 25,000 seat configuration into a 40,000 seat venue that theoretically at least would also be able to host football games.

The way some people are spinning it is that the Hurricanes, who still have over a decade left on their long-term lease at Sun Life Stadium, would somehow drop several million dollars in cash (that they don't have) to buy out of their lease at Sun Life and move into a cozy little 40,000 seat stadium possibly near the Port of Miami.

Surprisingly, even reputable sports writers have reported on these unfolding events as though they were legitimate stories worthy of coverage and the paper and ink they are written on or with. They apparently have tried to lend creedance to this possibility as though it had legitimate legs to stand on.

I can summarize my view of these rumors in one word: nonsense.

Taking the 14 teams in the ACC, including recent additions in Syracuse and Pittsburgh, the total capacity of ACC stadiums on any given Saturday is 766,841.

Divided by 14 teams that comes to an average size of 54,774 seats per stadium. And Miami is going to play in a 40,000 seat stadium? Yeah, so that's not going to happen!

The only teams that play in stadiums that have 40,000 seats or less are Wake Forest and Duke, while teams like FSU and Clemson play in stadiums that can hold over 80,000 screaming fans.

To address these rumors, here are the facts:

UM does not have the money to buy out of its lease at Sun Life. Period.
UM would never leave 75,000 seat Sun Life for a 40,000 seat stadium built anywhere.
UM has not complained about or expressed any desire to leave Sun Life Stadium, home to five NFL Super Bowls (1989, '95, '99, 2007, 2010) four BCS National Championship games (2001, '05, '09, '13) and a facility that is scheduled for major renovations to continue to attract major events like these.
The site at the Port of Miami is very likely never going to happen, is not significantly closer to the UM campus and is a terrible location for traffic and access from Miami-Dade, Broward and Palm Beach Counties.
Not one of the articles written about this supposed "interest" by UM contains an official public quote from UM president Donna Shalala, UM AD Blake James or UM head coach Al Golden about their desire to change stadiums or play in a limited 40,000 seat venue.

So stop with the nonsense, stop the presses and stop spreading false rumors and speculation about this story. Because, in fact, there is not story here at all.

Sun Life Stadium is and will be the home of your Miami Hurricanes for many more years to come. And speaking for myself I am just perfectly fine and happy with that.

Now everyone move along, there's nothing to see here.

No seriously, move along, nothing to see here, move along...

Posted at 10:53 AM | Permalink | Comments (142)

The ACC In The 2014 NFL Draft

The Atlantic Coast Conference had 10 players selected on the second day in the rounds of the 2014 National Football League Draft Friday night at the Radio City Music Hall in New York City.

Three players from 2013 National Champion Florida State were chosen starting with CB Lamarcus Joyner at No. 41 by the St. Louis Rams, DT Timmy Jernigan tabbed No. 48 by the Balitmore Ravens and S Terrence Brooks, taken No. 79 by the Baltimore Ravens.

The three selections gave Florida State four players taken on the first two days of the draft, as WR Kelvin Benjamin was also chosen 28th overall on the first round Thursday night. A year ago, the Seminoles led all schools with 11 players selected.

Miami, which had G Brandon Linder chosen 93rd overall by the Jacksonville Jaguars, extended their consecutive streak to 41 straight years as the Hurricanes have now had at least one player chosen every year since 1974.

Three ACC schools saw significant draft streaks continue. Both FSU and Virginia, which saw Morgan Moses taken 66th by the Washington Redskins, extended their streaks to 32 consecutive years with at least one player taken in the NFL Draft. Both Florida State and Virginia have had at least one player chosen every year since 1983.

At the conclusion of Friday night’s session 10 ACC schools had at least one of their players chosen in the NFL Draft as the ACC had 15 players drafted. In all, the ACC had three players drafted in the second round and seven in the third.

Rounding out the ACC selections on Day Two of the NFL Draft were Georgia Tech DE Jeremiah Attaochu, who was selected 50th overall by the San Diego Chargers; Syracuse DT Jay Bromley, who was tabbed 74th overall by the New York Giants; Maryland CB Dexter McDougle, chosen 80th by the New York Jets and Clemson T Brandon Thomas, who was taken No. 100 by the San Francisco 49ers.