Manny Diaz walked into the head coaching job at the University of Miami with the love and support of an overwhelming majority of Hurricane fans. He was the hero of the UM defense that had re-invented aggressive swagger and even invented the creative turnover chain.
He was a made man who could do no wrong.
He worked the transfer portal like a dealer at a blackjack table.
He and the fans placed their bets and they were all in.
Of course, that was all before the season started.
Then things started to get twisted and go awry.
The defense wasn't so aggressive or effective under a new coordinator and the offense, the sore spot under former coach Mark Richt, seemed like they couldn't score to save their lives.
Losses to lesser teams started to happen (again) and wins seemed painfully difficult against weaker opponents (again). But, here we are and here's the deal we are willing to make with you Manny Diaz.
You have a mission, should you choose to accept it:
- Priority #1 is BEAT FSU.
- Win the remaining games in 2019.
- Show us that the team is improving late in the season.
- Give us hope for 2020.
- Don't screw this up.
Do this and maybe some other impressive things and all will be forgiven.
Fail and the wrath of Miami fans will fall on you like a anchor around your neck.
Or maybe a small plane with a large banner in the sky.
Until then, we wish you faith, hope and love.
And maybe even a little luck on the side.
The best AD Miami ever had.
Sad news.
Posted by: orange 'n green in the vein | October 30, 2019 at 01:45 PM
Alpine
Patke is a bad lb coach and a horrible ST coach
Pickney snd Shaq are average at best
Anybody who watches Shaq knows he’s overrated - I feel a big part of this is that he hasn’t been coached up and plays slow - I don’t think he per se is slow, but plays slow
I do like pickney but the same can be said of him
I feel Zach will be a huge upgrade over Shaq in the middle next year Jmo
Posted by: AeroCane | October 30, 2019 at 02:04 PM
Orange - sad and I agree
If he was our AD, I bet Coker doesn’t become HC and this 15 plus year trend of suckiness doesn’t happen
He would of gone out and found the next jimmy, Dennis etc
Jmo
Posted by: AeroCane | October 30, 2019 at 02:06 PM
Solar
Exactly
Why does it seem we are the only team who doesn’t change with the times?
Posted by: AeroCane | October 30, 2019 at 02:13 PM
A Winner
The Hurricanes won national championships in women’s golf (1984), baseball (1985), women’s tennis (doubles, 1986), men’s tennis (singles, 1987) and football (1987 and 1989) during Jankovich’s tenure.
Posted by: solarcane | October 30, 2019 at 02:13 PM
Posted by: AeroCane | October 30, 2019 at 02:04 PM
Aero,
I think you are right too. Shaq is good but that secondary that could tackle behind him for a couple years hid a lot of missteps and missed tackles.
Posted by: solarcane | October 30, 2019 at 02:17 PM
Solar
Exactly
Why does it seem we are the only team who doesn’t change with the times?
Posted by: AeroCane | October 30, 2019 at 02:13
Its a Canes thing?
Posted by: solarcane | October 30, 2019 at 02:21 PM
Ahmmon Richards putting a nole out of the game, remember this block?
https://twitter.com/i/status/1189346296114618369
Posted by: solarcane | October 30, 2019 at 02:29 PM
Posted by: solarcane | October 30, 2019 at 02:29 PM
good find!
reminds me, that being a miami sports fan has involved lots of ups
. . . but there's also been a feeling of "snakebit"
- several of our football players in the last 5 years had to quit football due to injuries
- there's the alonzo mourning episode
- followed by bosh
- along with jose fernandez' boat crash
- sean taylor
- and the ncaa canes-hazing, first in football; then in basketball
- both times the ncaa had to urgently take 15 around-the-world vacations before they could be bothered to make a ruling on our status . . . as bad as the football ruling was, the dewan hernandez ruling was absolute BS and killed an entire year of play + an entire recruiting year
- how many things am i missing here?
i wonder if every sports city has enough examples to feel the same way
Posted by: alpine | October 30, 2019 at 03:03 PM
Posted by: AeroCane | October 30, 2019 at 02:04 PM
regarding patke, my white flag is swaying in the breeze
. . . he wasn't necessarily in "glass 1/3 full" vision and hasn't done anything i'm aware of that would make me want to fight for him
i just felt that manny was really an excellent DC and so i trusted him somewhat in choosing his team
but it's entirely possible, that manny sees himself as the mentor of patke and so he has a blind spot there
Posted by: alpine | October 30, 2019 at 03:16 PM
Hope we win, but Manny is not the guy.
Lane Kiffin 2020
Posted by: Schnelly | October 30, 2019 at 04:51 PM
a little of the article on LSU and the HC that knew they needed the spread... you know the coach that wasnt good enough to be Miami's HC.
"During the 2018 offseason, Orgeron asked several New Orleans assistants to give presentations to the Tigers’ offensive staff. Brady did a segment on the RPO. A few months later Orgeron turned to his offensive coordinator with a plea. “We’ve got to go spread,” he told Ensminger. This was a vision Orgeron held since taking over for Miles. But having inherited a team built for the run, he knew it was going to take time. The roster had eight fullbacks. At one point in ’17, LSU had as few as eight healthy scholarship receivers. “It was painstaking,” Orgeron says. “I would look at the offense and say, ‘This is not what it is supposed to look like.’”
In addition to a QB and a deep group of receivers, he needed Brady. In 2017 he’d taken his first trip to Louisiana—on Valentine's Day, as luck would have it—to interview with the Saints, whose assistant offensive line coach, Brendan Nugent, had coached Brady at William & Mary. Days later Brady found himself in some awe-inspiring situations: seated next to Drew Brees or listening to Sean Payton construct plays. He spent long days and nights poring over game film. He would have done it for free. Two years later he’s gone from making five figures to pulling in $400,000 a year while scheming the offense of the fourth-ranked team in the country.
“Lucked out with all that,” Brady says. He’s humble. It is not his offense, he says, but is instead a conglomeration of ideas from the staff organized by Ensminger. He’s too modest to tell you that many of the ideas are his, the drop-back passing concepts from Payton and the RPO game from Moorhead. “The majority of stuff I brought is from New Orleans,” he says, but there are other schemes weaved in, including wrinkles from the Kansas City Chiefs. LSU players spent the offseason watching film of the Saints and Penn State.
Ensminger and Brady, separated by more than 30 years in age, work in tandem to create the game plan and call the plays. Ensminger decides when Brady gets the call. “Hey, you got it on this one!” the 61-year-old will say. “It’s all predicated on how he’s feeling and if he’s in a groove,” Brady says. Sometimes Brady gets a third-down play. Other times he calls an entire drive.
No matter who makes the call, it’s usually aggressive. Late in the Texas game, LSU was leading by six points at its own 39-yard line with less than three minutes left. Facing third-and-17, Orgeron asked Ensminger through the headsets, “What you think about a four-minute offense?”
“Nope. We’re going to pass the ball and go down there and score,” Ensminger told him.
Orgeron’s reply: “Go ahead.”
For Brady, it was an easy call. “It’s all I really know. I’ve been with Sean Payton for two years, there’s nothing that he’s scared of. We had a good bead on Texas. They’re a pressure football team. In a critical situation, they’re going to want to send the house and knock you back even more, force you into a turnover.”
Ensminger called four vertical routes and kept the running back, Clyde Edwards-Helaire, in the backfield as a sixth pass protector. In a collapsing pocket, Edwards-Helaire made the saving block to provide Burrow with enough time to find receiver Justin Jefferson, who broke a tackle and jaunted 61 yards for the game-securing touchdown. “Last year,” Burrow said, “we’d have pounded the run game.”
Posted by: solarcane | October 30, 2019 at 05:46 PM
The entire LSU spread article
https://www.si.com/college-football/2019/09/17/lsu-spread-offense-joe-burrow-ed-orgeron?utm_source=si.com&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=social-share-article&utm_content=20191030
Posted by: solarcane | October 30, 2019 at 05:49 PM
I may have 3 free tickets for the Louisville game. Recently had a family tragedy with a young lady now on life support with no brain activity, so may not be making the trip down. If we don't make it I would prefer to give them away to some spacers then sell them. They are upper deck end zone seats.
Posted by: UMike | October 30, 2019 at 06:22 PM
Mike sorry to hear that, you are in our families prayers
Posted by: solarcane | October 30, 2019 at 06:52 PM
As per Canes Women’s Basketball:
@CanesWBB
Our highest preseason ranking since 2016... Canes come in at No. 18!
🗞: gocan.es/2NCNhSX
Posted by: BigWindyCane1 | October 30, 2019 at 06:54 PM
What's The Herb been saying on here for the last 2 months, SPaaaaaRED! The change wouldn't be that hard for us to convert too. Obviously our offensive linemen are all former spread guys. We have seen their pro style capabilities. Our Qb's are former spread guys. We've seen enough of there pro style insufficient capabilities. We may have to send a couple TE's packing and hand out a couple more offers to WR's. The RB's we have.
It's almost like we signed so.e grandfather clause that we have to have some for of pro style. For a progressive city, the U sure us stuck In a time warp.
Posted by: Herbieibis | October 30, 2019 at 08:25 PM
Prayers for U UMike and your family Brotha!
Posted by: Terrance M Sullivan | October 30, 2019 at 08:51 PM
Mike sorry to hear that, you are in our families prayers
Posted by: solarcane | October 30, 2019 at 06:52 PM
Prayers for U UMike and your family Brotha!
Posted by: Terrance M Sullivan | October 30, 2019 at 08:51 PM
There IT is right there.
Posted by: 58 Straight | October 30, 2019 at 09:21 PM
I cant wait to see our defensive backs on this one
https://twitter.com/i/status/1188203265994956800
Posted by: solarcane | October 30, 2019 at 10:36 PM
What we been saying all along
Herald
One NFL executive said this will be a weak group of Hurricanes draft prospects, even if defensive end Jon Garvin, running back DeeJay Dallas and cornerback Trajan Bandy bypass their senior years and turn pro.
That executive considers Dallas, who is a junior, to be the Canes’ best draft-eligible prospect and said he could be a fourth-rounder. Dallas must decide whether to turn pro after the season.
He said senior linebackers Shaq Quarterman and Mike Pinckney are late-round players, with speed the concern with Quarterman.
Posted by: solarcane | October 30, 2019 at 10:42 PM
this
"I never thought I would see the day where an SMU-Memphis game was chosen over UM-FSU for ABC’s marquee prime time slot, as will be the case this weekend.
That’s a byproduct of the state of the UM and FSU programs, combined with the fact that SMU is 8-0 and Memphis is 7-1."
Posted by: solarcane | October 30, 2019 at 10:44 PM
More stuff that pisses The Herb and Windy off no end.
The snap counts at defensive end have changed considerably since the season started. Rousseau played 53 snaps against Pittsburgh, while Scott Patchan (who was the starter for the first month) logged just 19. Garvin played 49 and Hill 37.
Posted by: solarcane | October 30, 2019 at 10:49 PM
Herb is right about the spread offense. These players all played in spread offenses in high school, and it is tailored to their skill sets. The winning TD pass from Williams to Osborne in Pittsburgh was an RPO, and the big second half that Perry had in the VT game was in the shotgun and spread. Everyone is doing it. Even LSU and Alabama have gone to spread offenses, and many NFL offensive coordinators are incorporating spread offenses or spread concepts.
With this offensive line and QBs, spread offenses are tailored to fit their skill sets.
Posted by: BigWindyCane1 | October 30, 2019 at 10:52 PM
@smillerdegnan
NEW: I just spoke with Dennis Erickson, who was close friends with Sam Jankovich: 'He and I talked many, many times that both of us should have stayed at UM forever."
all I got for now
Posted by: solarcane | October 30, 2019 at 10:53 PM
Solar,
Don’t get me started about the ACC leader in sacks, Rousseau, who couldn’t get on the field in the first few games due to coaches decision!
I do like Patchan, just as I like Garvin and Hill. No knock on them, as they all are great Canes, but it appears that Rousseau is rare and as a coach, you are highly paid to recognize that rare talent before every Canes fan with an IQ above 60 recognizes it.
Posted by: BigWindyCane1 | October 30, 2019 at 11:02 PM
Solar,
If Dennis had stayed at UM (and kept a little more control over compliance issues), he might be threatening Bobby Bowden’s win record right now.
Dennis was a great Coach.
Posted by: BigWindyCane1 | October 30, 2019 at 11:06 PM
NEW: I just spoke with Dennis Erickson, who was close friends with Sam Jankovich: 'He and I talked many, many times that both of us should have stayed at UM forever."
Posted by: solarcane | October 30, 2019 at 10:53 PM
Imagine if Jimmy doesn't leave until 1989 and Erickson comes in from 1990 until 1995.
We have 8 maybe 9 championships.
Posted by: 58 Straight | October 30, 2019 at 11:10 PM
Any coach who plays Patchan over Rousseau should be brought in for questioning and/or fired.
Posted by: 58 Straight | October 30, 2019 at 11:12 PM
Here is a very rare coaching clinic with Dennis Erickson explaining Miami's ( Ericksons spread offense ) 16 years ago.
Note Dennis may have had a coctail before this clinic. I also loved to hear him dog the Miami fans lol The guys offense was 20 years ahead of everybody else at the time.
https://youtu.be/hAPQUpF0Km4
Posted by: solarcane | October 31, 2019 at 12:42 AM
Wrong Erickson link try this one LOL
the guy laying blocks in Miami isnt really Dennis but this is the clinic
https://youtu.be/V5qBJ4C1j6I
Posted by: solarcane | October 31, 2019 at 12:45 AM
Imagine if Jimmy doesn't leave until 1989 and Erickson comes in from 1990 until 1995.
We have 8 maybe 9 championships.
Posted by: 58 Straight | October 30, 2019 at 11:10 PM
soup,
think of the recruiting classes and QBs that would have come through here.
Posted by: solarcane | October 31, 2019 at 12:47 AM
Imagine if Jimmy doesn't leave until 1989 and Erickson comes in from 1990 until 1995.
We have 8 maybe 9 championships.
Posted by: 58 Straight | October 30, 2019 at 11:10 PM
now that's a fantasy!
. . . giving all canespace a johnson
Posted by: alpine | October 31, 2019 at 03:38 AM
. . . giving all canespace a johnson
Posted by: alpine | October 31, 2019 at 03:38 AM
Good one Al
Posted by: Old Skool | October 31, 2019 at 08:41 AM
WOW - TAGGART HAS A $17 MILLION BUYOUT
. . . dude has an excellent agent!
(maybe he's semi-tanking so he can retire on the buyout)
Posted by: alpine | October 31, 2019 at 08:46 AM
next time you play jeopardy:
"This is a golden age of the big boot: A decade ago, only one player averaged 46 yards or more per punt; this year, 15 players are topping that mark, led by Texas A&M's Braden Mann, who leads the nation (48.9 yards)". SI
Posted by: alpine | October 31, 2019 at 08:49 AM
WOW - TAGGART HAS A $17 MILLION BUYOUT
. . . dude has an excellent agent!
(maybe he's semi-tanking so he can retire on the buyout)
Posted by: alpine | October 31, 2019 at 08:46 AM
Manny Basically Would Cost us The Same Thing. Lawd Miami and FSU Stuck with 2 Sad Sack Suckas(In My Stevie Ray Voice from Harlem Heat) Both programs are screwed.
Posted by: Terrance M Sullivan | October 31, 2019 at 11:02 AM
Acting like your are 80 when you are 60 is like waiting for the first shovel of dirt to land on your face.
Posted by: solarcane | October 29, 2019 at 08:04 PM
And that is why it is great to have you hear Solar. Made me LOL!
UMike - prayers for you and your family.
RIP Sam Jankovich, you are/were greatly missed
Posted by: CGNC | October 31, 2019 at 01:57 PM
here^
Posted by: CGNC | October 31, 2019 at 01:58 PM
As bad as things are I will say this: I would NOT trade Manny for Taggert. So I guess things are bad, but not THAT bad.
Posted by: 58 Straight | October 31, 2019 at 03:22 PM
He's baaaaack
Penn State investigating new Jerry Sandusky Allegations
https://www.cnn.com/2019/10/31/us/sandusky-new-allegation/index.html
Posted by: Old Skool | October 31, 2019 at 05:31 PM
i see canespacers took the day off to get their costumes ready for the big night
have fun, stay safe, remember the midnight rule
Posted by: alpine | October 31, 2019 at 05:55 PM
Thank you CG the feeling is mutual
Posted by: solarcane | October 31, 2019 at 06:01 PM
"Nothing good happens after midnight."
Posted by: 58 Straight | October 31, 2019 at 06:05 PM
"Nothing good happens after midnight."
Posted by: 58 Straight | October 31, 2019 at 06:05 PM
"It takes two to get one in trouble" Mae West
Posted by: Old Skool | October 31, 2019 at 06:23 PM
NEW: I just spoke with Dennis Erickson, who was close friends with Sam Jankovich: 'He and I talked many, many times that both of us should have stayed at UM forever."
Posted by: solarcane | October 30, 2019 at 10:53 PM
Erickson would have died from the stress if he had stayed any longer than 1994. The program was also regressing under his watch.
Aside from JJ, the real what-if would of course be what if Butch had stayed through the 2000s. We might be Alabama now.
Posted by: TonyCane | October 31, 2019 at 08:51 PM
Tony I think Erickson was an innovative coach. He inherited a great roster. He never seemed to take the discipline part of coaching as serious ad he could have. I think the lights were a little to bright for him here.
Posted by: solarcane | October 31, 2019 at 09:57 PM
Aside from JJ, the real what-if would of course be what if Butch had stayed through the 2000s. We might be Alabama now.
Posted by: TonyCane | October 31, 2019 at 08:51 PM
U really know how to hurt a guy.
Posted by: 58 Straight | October 31, 2019 at 10:36 PM
U really know how to hurt a guy.
Posted by: 58 Straight | October 31, 2019 at 10:36 PM
Butch has one 10 win season in 20 years as a head coach.
What’s the morel likely scenario, he at struck lightning in a bottle with that 2000 team or he would have created and maintained some sort of dynasty?
Look back and objectively remember what an average fame day was under his tenure as far as game planners and clock management.
Posted by: Go Canes!! | October 31, 2019 at 11:24 PM
250 top college football coaches all time records
# 48 Mark Richt .728 win pct
# 70 Jimmy Johnson .669
# 95 Larry Coker .667
#120 Butch Davis .641
Posted by: solarcane | November 01, 2019 at 12:48 AM