Nice work today, fellas...

Is Miami Baseball getting 'hot' at the right time, or was tonight's 9-3 win over #3 Florida State just another high point for this sometimes "Jeckyl & Hyde" team? Time will tell. For now, let's bask in the glory of today's win until tomorrow night's do or die game.

Florida State beat Wake Forest a few days back and Miami beat Florida State today. Now Florida State will have to beat Clemson and Miami will have to beat Wake Forest to wind up in the ACC title game against either North Carolina or Virginia. Miami would own the tiebreaker against Florida State (both teams would be 2-1, with Clemson and Wake Forest eliminated) and would be one win away from winning the conference crown.

Congrats to the boys from The U today for sticking it to an arch rival. Bouncing back from a heartbreaker against Clemson (5-4 in 13 innings) with such a short turnaround time had to be a difficult feat. Still, you wouldn't have known it after today's pasting.

Curious to find out which Miami we see tomorrow evening. Can the Canes ride this wave of success and take out the Demon Deacons? Or was today a fluke, not a trend?

It's almost College World Series time. Here's hoping the Canes get red hot over the next few weeks. After 7-6 in football and the Heat's early exit from the Playoffs, South Florida needs something to root for. Give it to 'em, fellas.

.:Canes305:.

If you can't stand the heat...

It's on. There is going to be a quarterback competition at The U in the coming weeks. Bank on it. Robert Marve is headed to town and from everything I'm reading and hearing, this kid doesn't plan on playing the background for very long.

Chris Henry of the Orlando Sentinel wrote a solid piece on Marve today. Pretty pathetic that such a poignant piece came from a paper in Central Florida as opposed to from a local writer, but The U will take the good press anywhere they can get it.

For those too lazy to click on the link above, I'll summarize for you; Marve sounds like the real deal and the next great Miami quarterback. Sure, he has some of the on the field accolades and awards, like current QB Kyle Wright. But it also appears he possesses several of the intangibles the past few Miami quarterbacks have lacked.

Wright was the Gatorade National High School Football Player of the Year (2003) and Marve won Florida's Mr. Football honors for 2006. During last year's run, he set the state single-season mark with 48, one more than current Gator and former Mr. Football, Tim Tebow.

There's been some chatter regarding how much playing time Marve will see his freshman season at Miami. Wright is battling it out with back up Kirby Freeman entering fall, but new offensive coordinator Patrick Nix has verbalized that the job is open to all three quarterbacks.

Word is that Marve has been studying the playbook, has attended team meetings (during his spring break) and will be in Coral Gables a month before the rest of the freshmen, in an effort to get ahead.

Marve is also battle tested. This kid has been through the fire. From a slow start as a freshman, to losing his stepfather, to helping his family through the healing process, putting football aside during those tough times and then rededicating himself to the game through the help of his high school head coach, Robert Weiner, Marve isn't entering The U as your average, ordinary freshman. This kid appears to be something special.

I've read this article a few times and I recommend our fan base does the same. There's reason to be optimistic here. Marve won't be lining up behind center for the season opener against Marshall. But there's reason to believe that this kid is the real deal. This isn't some high school hype. Everything about this kid seems to scream, "winner".

Some things I took from Henry's article:

WHAT IT SAID: Marve led Plant High to 15-0 last season and put together the greatest individual season in Hillsborough County's football history. Right down to his final career touchdown pass, with :17 left on the clock in an upset of defending champs, Ponte Vedra Nease. The headline read, "MARVE-lous" and the city of Tampa had its first public school state football crown since before integration.

HOW I READ IT: Marve's former coach Weiner sums it up best: "Some guys just have it. I'm talking about that indescribable trait that summons charisma, rallied other people to greatness an uses talent to spark greatness in themselves." This kid is a gamer. He makes plays with the money on the table. He thrives on overcoming and beating the odds.

WHAT IT SAID: Marve set a goal of being the best player and person possible. To do this, a rigid schedule was implemented. Up at 5:30am and in bed by 11pm. School, studies, football drills, film, a rigorous eating schedule and even one good deed per day. Marve wasn't leaving his high school campus until 10pm.

HOW I READ IT: This kid is a tireless worker. He sets a goal and he achieves it. Marve isn't afraid of hard work and knows what it takes to be a winner and succeed at the highest level. He mentioned wanting to get Miami back to prominence. If his work ethic is mirrored by his teammates, the Canes will be back in the hunt in 2008.

WHAT IT SAID: Marve played behind an offensive line with a 180-pound center. "Didn't matter," Marve said. "Everybody we played was bigger and faster than we were, especially in the playoffs. But not once did we come up against a better team and I mean team than us."

HOW I READ IT: No excuses. Find a way to win even if you're outnumbered or you lack playmakers. We also know Marve is a team player. He'll assume blame after a loss and he'll rally his teammates when a victory is on the line. Some guys rise to the occasion when it's crunch time and others fold. No mystery which best describes Marve.

WHAT IT SAID: Marve lost his stepfather during his high school years. He walked away from football a while to care for his family and take care of business. He came back when the time was right and in time became a superstar.

HOW I READ IT: This isn't your average, ordinary 18-year old. Marve's maturity is leaps and bounds ahead of his peers. Stepping up and being the man of the house was hard enough. Putting football on the back burner might been equally as impressive. Walking away from the game took balls. Marve isn't the type of kid who'd cheat his teammates and play when his heart wasn't in it.

Before reading the Marve piece today, I was going to write an open letter to #3. My two cents on some things I'd like to see Wright do this off season. Freeman as well, but mostly Wright as he has so much more to prove. He rode in on the white horse and was supposed to ball these past few years.

He hasn't.

In a throwback to the Ryan Clement era, Wright has been outspoken and made some guarantees he didn't back up with his play. Two years on the job, no signature win. Equally as disappointing, one signature loss - LSU 40, Miami 3.

All that said, I still haven't given up on the kid. Wright came into Miami a winner back in 2003. Like Clement before him, Wright got to The U on the downturn.

Instead of a Ken Dorsey-like, 38-2 run and NFL talent (two deep) at most of the skills positions, Wright has seen C-level offensive talent and is on his fourth offensive coordinator. He spent two years in a program with a loser's mentality; something Shannon vows to rid these kids of.

Many say Wright hasn't shown much. But it has to be acknowledged he hasn't had much to work with. This kid turned down USC and Texas to come to Miami. He'd have gotten a ring in '04 or '05 no matter which he chose. Better coaches. Playmakers at the skills positions. Two of the nation's best offensive lines.

Don't kid yourself thinking KW wouldn't have turned out a different player in either LA or Austin.

Is what it is. That's the past, just as much as 7-6 is the past. This is a new era. A new offensive coordinator. A few new receiving threats. Much more talent in the backfield. A fresh mindset for the program and one last chance for #3 to right some wrongs.

I for one am hoping this is Wright's year to shine. I want to see a turnaround similar to the one Carson Palmer experienced in 2002. Granted it was Norm Chow who came in and fixed Palmer's mistakes, the difference between 2001 and 2002 was night and day. Same quarterback, different scheme, different attitude and different results; including a Heisman Trophy and the top pick in the 2003 NFL Draft.

USC went from 6-6 in 2001 to 11-2 in 2002 and on the cusp of greatness. Palmer got his one last year to right the ship and the following season, the keys to the offense were turned over to Matt Leinart, much like Marve should inherit the job in 2008.

In 2001, Palmer threw for 2,717 yards, 13 touchdowns, 12 interceptions, averaged 226.4 yards per game and had an efficiency rating of 124.17 his junior year. As a senior in 2002, Palmer threw for 3,942 yards, 33 touchdowns, 10 interceptions, averaged 303.2 yards per game and had an efficiency rating of 149.09.

USC fans had written off the erratic yet highly touted recruit. Palmer ignored the critics and in his final act, put on one hell of a show.

Can Wright pull off a similar feat? I don't know, but we'll soon find out. The natural 'talent' is there, but at times the intangible seemed to be missing. Can Nix fix some of these things? Does Wright have the heart to go out and solidify the job?

Marve the Super Frosh has set the bar pretty high with his work ethic and desire to win the starting gig. How will Wright respond? Does he step up his game, realize this is the 'last hurrah' and work with the receivers this off season, in an effort become a team leader and finally live up to the hype? Or does Wright fold, pack it up an ride out his final year at The U status quo-style?

Anyone who loves this program, better hope Wright step up his game. Should Marve find himself starting in 2007, that's more of an indictment on The State of The U than it is a feather in the freshman quarterback's cap.

If the Canes start 'the rookie' get ready for a long year. While I hope he gets significant playing time this year, a la Tebow at Florida, be prepared for freshman mistakes with a freshman gunslinger behind center. Marve will be 'the guy' at some point, but regarding 2007 Miami needs Wright to step it up.

Programs long for the experience and savvy of a senior quarterback. Especially such a highly touted prospect. This has to be Wright's time to shine. If not, #3 need to watch his back. Marve is ready to steamroll Coral Gables and take over.

Hopefully that's the ultimate motivation for both Wright and Freeman as the new season approaches.


.:Canes305:.

Canes Baseball representing in black at ACC Tourney

Miami Baseball will be a #5 seed in this week's ACC tourney in Jacksonville. In an effort to spruce up the Canes for the affair, Nike is releasing the black SwooshFlex hat and a black t-shirt which looks like the black baseball jersey show in the pic above. Both the hat and shirt will ship May 25th and we'll have in stock soon thereafter.

The SwooshFlex hats will retail for $19.99 and the new tee will be available in Small through XXLarge and wil retail for $17.99.

Now that's what I love to hear....

I read in the Herald today that head coach Randy Shannon has raised upwards of $300,000 for The U's athletic facilities.

Since assuming head coaching duties back in January, Shannon has been on a tear. A very solid recruiting class (assembled with an incomplete staff) after only one month on the job. Capable, experienced and hungry assistant coaches hired. A handful of 2008 recruits ready to sign on the dotted line next Februray. If he can turn this offense around come fall, that's as impressive to this fan base as turning water to wine.

I heard a lot of talk during the hiring process that the knock on Shannon was an inability to gladhand, fundraise and 'play the game' of a head coach regarding booster events and speaking engagements.

How are the haters liking Randy now?

I was raised a 'bottom line' kind of guy. The proof is in the results; not the efforts or excuses why the job didn't get done. Folks have been ranting and raving about Miami's facilities, so coach Shannon decided to start fixing that situation his way. I like that. Get it done. Find a way.

This is the first time the Canes have a head coach who was a player during the glory days. When Randy calls, his former teammates, players he coached and other football alumni listen. It's no mystery that The U's athletic department can't hang with the highly funded state schools across this nation. It never has and never will. Private school. Just about 10,000 undergrads.

To succeed in this modern era of college football, Miami will continue having to shuck and jive a bit. Think outside the box. Find a way to go above, around, underneath or though. A poignant letter to past Miami football players is just that. To date, upwards of 38 players have responded to raise over a quarter of a million dollars in a four month span. I believe that's just the beginning.

So far we know that Edgerrin James plunked down $50,000. New linebacker coach and former Miami linebacker Micheal Barrow? $33,000. Cortez Kennedy was good for $25,000. Jon Vilma kicked in $10,000 and it's been reported that Darrin Smith and Jessie Armstead are looking to each match Barrow's amount. That's $99,000 from the Bermuda Triangle alone.

Also note that Russell Maryland, Kelly Jennings, Don Bailey Jr. and Kenard Lang have contributed as well and many expect a big time donation from Michael Irvin after he gets his post-ESPN affairs settled. The cherry on top? A local businessman and die hard Cane has agreed to match the grand total.

In an effort to call some folks out, I am really hoping that Warren Sapp and Ray Lewis step up here and give something back. Both guys seem to disappear when it comes time to pony up some cash for this beloved program. Seems we're always hearing from the same guys like EJ who are always giving back. Time for some other greats to step up and do the same. Both Sapp and Lewis have made damn nice livings in the NFL and neither would be where they are today if The U wasn't their platform to showcase themselves in the early 90s.

On a side note, who else thinks Drew Rosenhaus is due for a donation? Drew-boy got his degree from The U and consistently swoops down on our underclassmen with no remorse. Don't be afraid to kick down a few duckets to the hometown program which lined your pockets, D-Ro.

When we say stuff like "it's a Canes thing" or create a shirt like "U FAMILY" this is exactly what we're talking about. Whether it's the program rallying around the murder of a beloved player, setting the bar high, demanding excellence or seeing former players put their money where their mouths are, it just drives the point home that it's all about The U.

Great work, coach Shannon. Keep it up and ignore the critics. And to all the Cane moms out there, a very happy mothers' day.


.:Canes305:.

Paul Dee era coming to a close...

Miami athletic director Paul Dee announced his retirement this week. He will be stepping down from his perch in June 2008 and plans to teach law at The U.

Rumors of Dee's pending retirement have been swirling for months now. I first caught wind back in December through a family friend who worked in Miami's athletic department years ago and is currently an AD for another Division-I program. He mentioned that Dee's health has been on the decline and that the retirement would be announced this spring after the Larry Coker to Randy Shannon transition was in the books and after some fundraising issues were up and running.

Dee has been Miami's athletic director since 1993. Over the past fourteen years, he's seen a lot of ups and downs and in the past few seasons, Dee has been under fire and a target for message board trash talking. We're living in a "what have you done for me lately" type world and it's much easier to focus on some of Dee's more recent mistakes than to remember moves he made years ago which set the Canes up to become The U since the turn of the century.

Renewing Coker's contract entering the 2005 football season was a definite blunder fans haven't let go of. Fresh off a 9-3 season where the Canes underachieved their way through year one in the ACC, the fourth year head coach was rewarded with a new deal. Miami progressively got worse under Coker, recruiting took a step back and Miami's offensive output was, well... offensive.

Toss in the fact that no other Division I programs were courting Coker and the fact that the NFL wasn't beating down his door and Dee's decision to renew Coker's contract was a definite mistake.

That said, if not for some of Dee's decisions in the mid nineties, 9-3 seasons might've been the norm for this program, if not worse. Miami was slapped with probation in late 1994 and felt the effects until the 1999 football season. Dee was behind the scenes and instrumental in helping right a lot of wrongs which took place on former athletic director Dave Maggard's watch. Dee's legal expertise helped this university overcome some incredible feats. Many fail to realize he's been on staff at The U since 1981, where he served as a vice president and provided legal counsel.

Anyone ready to chastise Dee for Coker's contract renewal must also praise him for what good he's done. Most notably, the hirings of Jim Morris and Butch Davis. Morris kept the Canes' great baseball tradition alive after the legendary Ron Fraser retired and Davis was the architect for Miami's resurgence and negotiating the rocky probation terrain. Morris brought home the baseball title in 1999 and 2001 while Davis spent six years cleaning up the football program. His efforts directly impacted Miami's four straight BCS berths, two title games, one title, a 34-game win streak and a few dozen first round NFL Draft picks.

With Dee making this life changing move, the question remains, what's next for the University of Miami?

We'll see. Rumors are swirling this week. Will president Donna Shalala finally convince friend and former coworker Barry Alvarez to leave his AD perch at Wisconsin and head south?

Do the Canes pursue former assistant athletic directors? Pete Garcia left for FIU last year and seems comfortable there, but could a return be in the cards? What about Patrick Nero, the former assistant who is currently the AD at Maine? Rumors have also swirled about former quarterback Bernie Kosar as the next AD. Kosar threw his name in the hat regarding the open head coaching position last December. He loves the Canes and is a financial whiz. Fundraising efforts would improve and there's no mystery that football would be a priority to this "Ring of Honor" former quarterback.

Does Miami "keep it in the family" here - as they did with in house hirings of Coker and Shannon - or does The U open up a nationwide search and find the best available?

Personally, I hope we get someone youthful, energetic and an individual who not only understands the Miami culture, but also the fact that this football program is the life's blood of this university. We need an athletic director who 'get it'.

I want to see a guy like Tom Jurich, the AD at Louisville. Jurich has spent the past nine seasons making a contender out of this former pretender. Regarding coaches, he always gets his guy. He brought the great Rick Pitino to UL. Something Miami had a shot to do and failed years back. Regarding football he went from John L. Smith to Bobby Petrino to Steve Kragthorpe.

Kragthorpe, the recent Tulsa coach, is the guy former Miami AD Sam Jankovich dubbed the next Jimmy Johnson. He was a guy I hoped Miami would interview after Coker's firing, but never did. Weeks later when Petrino accepted the head coaching gig with the Atlanta Falcons, Jurich had Kragthorpe locked down within a week. Jurich also had his hand in getting Louisville in the Big East, a conference they can be a force in for years to come. BCS dollars are now a reality for a program which that was a pipe dream for years ago.

Jurich's resume and list of accomplishments of is impressive. I could go on, but that's not the point. I bring this up to drive it home that The U needs a guy like a Tom Jurich. There has to be another 'diamond in the rough' type guy like that and I pray this administration has the wherewithal to find him (or her). Jurich was dubbed an up and comer twenty years ago at Northern Arizona University, did some good things at Colorado State before landing at Louisville.

We'll see how this all plays out. Either way, this is a good time for The U. The hiring of Shannon and the Dee era coming to a close after the ship has been righted. Should coach Shannon turn out to be the success we expect, that'll be another feather in Dee's cap down the road. For now, he'll ride out his final year and my only hope is that we bring in a mover and shaker after Mr. Dee has moved on.


.:Canes305:.

Bryan Pata to receive degree...

Bryan Pata was murdered November 7th, 2006. On Friday May 11th, 2007 Pata will be one of 63 student-athletes at The U to receive their degree. #95 was one semester shy of his degree in criminology so his family will receive his degree posthumously.

UM president Donna Shalala will award the Pata family a degree at UM's College of Arts and Sciences ceremony at 5pm this friday a the BankUnited Center.

We also want to note that six months after this tragic murder there have still been no arrests in the case. There is a $25,000 reward for tips leading to an arrest. Information can anonymously be reported to Crime Stoppers at 305-471-TIPS (8477).