Monday Musings: 1990 NATIONAL CHAMPS!!!; All-Time Cane Squad

On with this week’s tripe…..

1. 1990 NATIONAL CHAMPIONS, BABY!!!!!!! Hey, don’t laugh. I’ve got something to hang my hat on for this one....kind of. The USA Today, in its College Football Encyclopedia, put out a “1990 top Performance Formula”, which can be seen here (someone on Twitter pointed this out, and I’m running with it). While Georgia Tech and Colorado split the title that year in the AP and coaches/UPI polls, the USA Today “Top Performance Formula” gives credence to the fact the Canes played a Top 5 schedule nationally based on overall opponent win percentage (.6318) beat then-#2 Florida State in convincing fashion, and committed the football equivalent of a pantsing-then-tar-and-feathering-then-first-degree-homicide in a 46-3 annihilation of the Texas Longhorns to cap a 10-2 season. Which, really, if you take a closer look at it, Colorado finished 11-1-1, but – had there been any level of competence at Faurot Field in Columbia, MO, such that the officials and lines crew could count to “4” – that record should really stand at 10-2-1. Georgia Tech is probably the harder argument, given the Jackets beat 4 then-ranked teams, didn’t lose a game, and impressed before the final poll with a 45-21 smacking of a ranked Nebraska team in the Citrus Bowl (man, wasn’t it nice when non-“BCS/New Year’s Day 6” bowls still had some say in deciding the national championship????!!!).

BUT…..this bit is nothing more than a love child between a poor attempt at comedy and a half-hearted argument. Kind of like UCF claiming a title by winning the Colley Matrix “poll”! But what the hell, if the Knights can go-cart themselves through AAC competition to the Peach Bowl, beat a then-three-loss Auburn team, and claim a title, why can’t a two-loss team that was loaded with NFL talent and two college football Hall of Famers with two of the most impressive wins of the season do the same?

2. All-time Canes offense: Someone asked Bomani Jones who he would include in an all-time Canes starting roster. The responses were interesting, but here are my offensive starters…..

QB: Ken Dorsey (come at me, bros….)

RB: Edgerrin James

FB: Frank Gore

TE: Jeremy Shockey

OT: Bryant McKinnie

OG: Dennis Harrah

C: Brett Romberg

OG: Vernon Carey

OT: Leon Searcy

WR: Andre Johnson

WR: Michael Irvin

3. All-time Canes defense: And on the other side of the ball…….

DE: Daniel Stubbs

DE: Ted Hendricks

DT: Warren Sapp (or Vince Wilfork, or Jerome Brown….very much torn)

DT: Russell Maryland (or Cortez Kennedy. As far as the glory years, DT is maybe Miami’s deepest, most talented position as far as top-flight talent)

LB: Dan Morgan

LB: Ray Lewis

LB: Jon Vilma

CB: Antrel Rolle

CB: Phillip Buchanon

S: Sean Taylor (duh)

S: Ed Reed (double duh)

Who are yours?

4. I’m buying stock in Ahmmon Richards as NCAA comeback player of the year. Yeah, he logged a significant amount of playing time last year, which might be detrimental to the argument (although my god, the guts of fighting through that hamstring injury…). But Richards had set the bar the highest of any sophomore WR in program history, having broken Irvin’s record for freshman receiving yards. As such, the drop off in production – although injury-related and just bad luck – was still noteworthy, given the incoming expectations and Miami’s need for an electric playmaker late in the season. Now that he’s been given a clean bill of health, and considering the departures of Chris Herndon and Braxton Berrios and the youth of Mark Pope, Brian Hightower, Brevin Jordan, and the rest of the talented-but-green receivers, Richards is primed for a huge bounce-back junior season.

5. Old game I’m watching this week – Miami 31, FSU 22; 10/6/90. Beating the Noles is always great. Beating them when they’re #2 in the country is even better. Beating them on the way to winning a share of the 1990 national championship is the best!!!!!!!!