2001 Miami Hurricanes "Greatest Team Ever"
The 2001 Miami Hurricanes are considered one of the greatest teams in college football history, and some would argue the greatest.
In 2000, Miami was shut out of the Orange Bowl BCS National Championship Game by the BCS computers. Despite Miami beating Florida State head-to-head that season and being higher ranked in both human polls, it was Florida State, and not Miami, that BCS computers selected to challenge the Oklahoma Sooners for the National Championship (Oklahoma would win, 13-2). The experience led to alterations in the BCS rankings system to ensure that the situation would not repeat itself in the future. Nevertheless, Miami was left with a bitter sense of disappointment, believing they had been deprived of a national championship, and stewed over an early-season loss at Washington, 34-29, that was their only slipup in an 11-1 campaign. That off-season, the team resolved to take the matter entirely out of the discretion of the computers by going a perfect 12-0. However, they had to do so under a new head coach, Larry Coker, who was named to the post after Butch Davis left to become head coach of the NFL's Cleveland Browns.
University of Miami head coach Larry Coker hoisting the 2001 National Championship Trophy, Miami's 5th in a span of 18 years.Led by quarterback Ken Dorsey, running back Clinton Portis, free safety Ed Reed, tight end Jeremy Shockey, and offensive tackle Bryant McKinnie, Miami dominated the 2001 season from start to finish.
The Hurricanes began the season with a nationally televised primetime rout of Penn State in Beaver Stadium. After the Hurricanes put together a 30-0 halftime lead, coach Coker pulled his starters and Miami cruised in the second half to a 33-7 victory. The 26-point margin tied for Penn State's worst home loss under Joe Paterno. Miami followed up the victory with blowout wins over Rutgers, Pitt, and Troy State University. After building up a 4-0 record, the 'Canes defeated Florida State in Doak Campbell Stadium, 49-27, ending the Seminoles' 54-game home unbeaten streak and 37-game home winning streak. The 'Canes then defeated West Virginia, 45-3, and Temple, 38-0, before heading to Chestnut Hill to take on Boston College.
Miami was put to the test against Boston College. After jumping out to a 9-0 lead over the Eagles, Miami's offense began to sputter as Dorsey struggled with the swirling winds, throwing four interceptions. The Hurricane defense picked up the slack by limiting BC to just seven points. However, in the final minute of the fourth quarter, with Miami clinging to a 12-7 lead, BC quarterback Brian St. Pierre led the Eagles from their own 30-yard line all the way down to the Hurricanes' 9. With BC on the verge of a momentous upset, St. Pierre attempted to pass to receiver Ryan Read at the Miami 2-yard line. However, the ball ricocheted off the leg of Miami cornerback Mike Rumph, landing in the hands of defensive end Matt Walters. Walters ran ten yards with the ball before teammate Ed Reed grabbed the ball out of his hands at around the Miami 20-yard line and raced the remaining 80-yards for a touchdown, icing an 18-7 victory for the Hurricanes.
After surviving the scare from Boston College, Miami played inspired and utterly dominating football, demolishing #14 Syracuse, 59-0, and #12 Washington, 65-7, in consecutive weeks. The combined 124-7 score is an NCAA record for largest margin of victory over consecutive ranked opponents.
The final hurdle to the Rose Bowl BCS National Championship Game was at Virginia Tech. Miami jumped on Virginia Tech, leading 20-3 at halftime, 23-10 after three, and 26-10 midway through the fourth quarter. Virginia Tech added a couple of late touchdowns, but it was not enough against a stiffling Hurricane defense and an offense that outgained Virginia Tech by 134 yards, gained 12 more first downs, and controlled the ball for nearly 10-minutes more than Hokies. Miami's 26-24 victory earned the top-ranked Hurricanes an invitation to the Rose Bowl to take on BCS #2 Nebraska for the national championship.
Nebraska proved to be no competition for Miami. Miami roared to a 34-0 halftime lead and cruised to a 37-14 rout of the Huskers to capture Miami's fifth national championship and put the finishing touches on a perfect 12-0 season. Dorsey passed for 362-yards and 3 touchdowns, while receiver Andre Johnson caught 7 passes for 199 yards and 2 touchdowns. Meanwhile, the Miami defense shut down Heisman-winner Eric Crouch and the Huskers offense, holding Nebraska 200-yards below its season average. Dorsey and Johnson were named Rose Bowl co-MVPs.
The 2001 Miami Hurricanes scored 512 (42.6 ppg) points while yielding only 117 (9.75 papg). The Hurricanes beat opponents by an average of 32.9 points per game, the largest margin in the school's history, and set the NCAA record for largest margin of victory over consecutive ranked teams (124-7). The offense set the school scoring record, while the stout defense led the nation in scoring defense (fewest points allowed), pass defense, and turnover margin. Additionally, the Hurricane D scored eight touchdowns of its own. Six players earned All-American status and six players were finalists for National Awards, including Maxwell Award winner, Ken Dorsey, and Outland Trophy winner, Bryant McKinnie. Dorsey was also a Heisman Finalist, finishing 3rd.
Among the numerous stars on the 2001 Miami squad were: Dorsey; running backs Clinton Portis, Willis McGahee, Najeh Davenport, and Frank Gore; tight end Jeremy Shockey; wide receiver Andre Johnson; tackles Bryant McKinnie and Joaquin Gonzalez; defensive linemen Jerome McDougle, William Joseph, and Vince Wilfork; linebackers Jonathan Vilma and D.J. Williams; and defensive backs Ed Reed, Mike Rumph, and Phillip Buchanon. Additional contributors included future stars Kellen Winslow II, Sean Taylor, Antrel Rolle, Vernon Carey, and Eric Winston. In all, an extraordinary 16 players from the 2001 Miami football team were drafted in the First-Round of the NFL Draft (5 in the 2002 NFL Draft: Buchannon, McKinnie, Reed, Rumph, and Shockey; 4 in 2003: Johnson, Joseph, McDougle, and McGahee; 6 in 2004: Carey, Taylor, Vilma, Wilfork, Williams, and Winslow; and 1 in 2005: Rolle).
The Scores From The Miami Hurricane's 2001 National Championship Season
9-1-01 at Penn State WON 33-7
9-8-01 RUTGERS WON 61-0
9-15-01 WASHINGTON** **postponed (due to 9/11)
9-27-01 at Pittsburgh (Thur.) WON 43-21
10-6-01 TROY STATE WON 38-7
10-13-01 at Florida State WON 49-27
10-25-01 WEST VIRGINIA (Thur.) WON 45-3
11-3-01 TEMPLE (HC) WON 38-0
11-10-01 at Boston College WON 18-7
11-17-01 SYRACUSE WON 59-0
11-24-01 WASHINGTON** WON 65-7
12-1-01 at Virginia Tech WON 26-24
ROSE BOWL @Pasadena, CA
1-3-02 Nebraska WON 37-14
In 2000, Miami was shut out of the Orange Bowl BCS National Championship Game by the BCS computers. Despite Miami beating Florida State head-to-head that season and being higher ranked in both human polls, it was Florida State, and not Miami, that BCS computers selected to challenge the Oklahoma Sooners for the National Championship (Oklahoma would win, 13-2). The experience led to alterations in the BCS rankings system to ensure that the situation would not repeat itself in the future. Nevertheless, Miami was left with a bitter sense of disappointment, believing they had been deprived of a national championship, and stewed over an early-season loss at Washington, 34-29, that was their only slipup in an 11-1 campaign. That off-season, the team resolved to take the matter entirely out of the discretion of the computers by going a perfect 12-0. However, they had to do so under a new head coach, Larry Coker, who was named to the post after Butch Davis left to become head coach of the NFL's Cleveland Browns.
University of Miami head coach Larry Coker hoisting the 2001 National Championship Trophy, Miami's 5th in a span of 18 years.Led by quarterback Ken Dorsey, running back Clinton Portis, free safety Ed Reed, tight end Jeremy Shockey, and offensive tackle Bryant McKinnie, Miami dominated the 2001 season from start to finish.
The Hurricanes began the season with a nationally televised primetime rout of Penn State in Beaver Stadium. After the Hurricanes put together a 30-0 halftime lead, coach Coker pulled his starters and Miami cruised in the second half to a 33-7 victory. The 26-point margin tied for Penn State's worst home loss under Joe Paterno. Miami followed up the victory with blowout wins over Rutgers, Pitt, and Troy State University. After building up a 4-0 record, the 'Canes defeated Florida State in Doak Campbell Stadium, 49-27, ending the Seminoles' 54-game home unbeaten streak and 37-game home winning streak. The 'Canes then defeated West Virginia, 45-3, and Temple, 38-0, before heading to Chestnut Hill to take on Boston College.
Miami was put to the test against Boston College. After jumping out to a 9-0 lead over the Eagles, Miami's offense began to sputter as Dorsey struggled with the swirling winds, throwing four interceptions. The Hurricane defense picked up the slack by limiting BC to just seven points. However, in the final minute of the fourth quarter, with Miami clinging to a 12-7 lead, BC quarterback Brian St. Pierre led the Eagles from their own 30-yard line all the way down to the Hurricanes' 9. With BC on the verge of a momentous upset, St. Pierre attempted to pass to receiver Ryan Read at the Miami 2-yard line. However, the ball ricocheted off the leg of Miami cornerback Mike Rumph, landing in the hands of defensive end Matt Walters. Walters ran ten yards with the ball before teammate Ed Reed grabbed the ball out of his hands at around the Miami 20-yard line and raced the remaining 80-yards for a touchdown, icing an 18-7 victory for the Hurricanes.
After surviving the scare from Boston College, Miami played inspired and utterly dominating football, demolishing #14 Syracuse, 59-0, and #12 Washington, 65-7, in consecutive weeks. The combined 124-7 score is an NCAA record for largest margin of victory over consecutive ranked opponents.
The final hurdle to the Rose Bowl BCS National Championship Game was at Virginia Tech. Miami jumped on Virginia Tech, leading 20-3 at halftime, 23-10 after three, and 26-10 midway through the fourth quarter. Virginia Tech added a couple of late touchdowns, but it was not enough against a stiffling Hurricane defense and an offense that outgained Virginia Tech by 134 yards, gained 12 more first downs, and controlled the ball for nearly 10-minutes more than Hokies. Miami's 26-24 victory earned the top-ranked Hurricanes an invitation to the Rose Bowl to take on BCS #2 Nebraska for the national championship.
Nebraska proved to be no competition for Miami. Miami roared to a 34-0 halftime lead and cruised to a 37-14 rout of the Huskers to capture Miami's fifth national championship and put the finishing touches on a perfect 12-0 season. Dorsey passed for 362-yards and 3 touchdowns, while receiver Andre Johnson caught 7 passes for 199 yards and 2 touchdowns. Meanwhile, the Miami defense shut down Heisman-winner Eric Crouch and the Huskers offense, holding Nebraska 200-yards below its season average. Dorsey and Johnson were named Rose Bowl co-MVPs.
The 2001 Miami Hurricanes scored 512 (42.6 ppg) points while yielding only 117 (9.75 papg). The Hurricanes beat opponents by an average of 32.9 points per game, the largest margin in the school's history, and set the NCAA record for largest margin of victory over consecutive ranked teams (124-7). The offense set the school scoring record, while the stout defense led the nation in scoring defense (fewest points allowed), pass defense, and turnover margin. Additionally, the Hurricane D scored eight touchdowns of its own. Six players earned All-American status and six players were finalists for National Awards, including Maxwell Award winner, Ken Dorsey, and Outland Trophy winner, Bryant McKinnie. Dorsey was also a Heisman Finalist, finishing 3rd.
Among the numerous stars on the 2001 Miami squad were: Dorsey; running backs Clinton Portis, Willis McGahee, Najeh Davenport, and Frank Gore; tight end Jeremy Shockey; wide receiver Andre Johnson; tackles Bryant McKinnie and Joaquin Gonzalez; defensive linemen Jerome McDougle, William Joseph, and Vince Wilfork; linebackers Jonathan Vilma and D.J. Williams; and defensive backs Ed Reed, Mike Rumph, and Phillip Buchanon. Additional contributors included future stars Kellen Winslow II, Sean Taylor, Antrel Rolle, Vernon Carey, and Eric Winston. In all, an extraordinary 16 players from the 2001 Miami football team were drafted in the First-Round of the NFL Draft (5 in the 2002 NFL Draft: Buchannon, McKinnie, Reed, Rumph, and Shockey; 4 in 2003: Johnson, Joseph, McDougle, and McGahee; 6 in 2004: Carey, Taylor, Vilma, Wilfork, Williams, and Winslow; and 1 in 2005: Rolle).
The Scores From The Miami Hurricane's 2001 National Championship Season
9-1-01 at Penn State WON 33-7
9-8-01 RUTGERS WON 61-0
9-15-01 WASHINGTON** **postponed (due to 9/11)
9-27-01 at Pittsburgh (Thur.) WON 43-21
10-6-01 TROY STATE WON 38-7
10-13-01 at Florida State WON 49-27
10-25-01 WEST VIRGINIA (Thur.) WON 45-3
11-3-01 TEMPLE (HC) WON 38-0
11-10-01 at Boston College WON 18-7
11-17-01 SYRACUSE WON 59-0
11-24-01 WASHINGTON** WON 65-7
12-1-01 at Virginia Tech WON 26-24
ROSE BOWL @Pasadena, CA
1-3-02 Nebraska WON 37-14
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