Miami football: 5 best seasons in program history
By John Buhler
Pick Analysis. 2001 (12-0). player. 1. 834. Scouting Report. National Champions/Big East Champions. No. 1 Coaches/No. 1 AP
The 2001 Miami Hurricanes are among the greatest college football teams in recent memory, right up there with the 1995 Nebraska Cornhuskers and the 2019 LSU Tigers. Miami may have won four national titles before this one, but the second wave of “The U” gave us one of the best college rosters we’ve ever seen. Their run to perfection in 2001 was incredible.
Miami went 12-0 overall and 7-0 in Big East play. The Canes beat five ranked teams that year, including four in a row at season’s end. Though they only beat one top-10 team all year, that came in the Rose Bowl vs. No. 4 Nebraska. Prior to putting Nebraska in its place, Miami had big road wins over No. 13 Florida State and No. 14 Virginia Tech in competitive rivalry series.
What people always go back to with this team is the jaw-dropping amount of talent it had at its disposal. For example, here is who played running back for this team: Najeh Davenport, Clinton Portis, Jarrett Payton, Willis McGahee and Frank Gore. Andre Johnson, Jeremy Shockey and Kellen Winslow II all caught passes from Ken Dorsey that season. What a tremendous offense!
Players of note on defense include Ed Reed, Sean Taylor, Antrel Rolle, Phillip Buchanon, Jonathan Vilma and Vince Wilfork. Reed is already a Pro Football Hall of Famer. Gore, Johnson and Wilfork will be one day. Taylor would have joined them if he wasn’t tragically murdered. The only thing holding this team back was head coach Larry Coker. Butch Davis deserved to coach this team.
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