It was about 1949, in fact it was 1949, when I started really following sports. I lived in Miami and became a Miami Hurricane fan. I attended my first game in 1949 when Miami hosted Kentucky when the Bear was the Head Coach and Babe Parilli was the kentucky QB. Kentucky was ranked very high, unbeaten I think, and Miami was a big underdog at home. Miami played their home games on Friday nights in those days. Miami scored first and led 6-0. The rest of the game belonged to Kenucky who eventually won 21 - 6. But I was hooked. The next season, 1950, Miami was unbeaten but had a 13 - 13 tie with heavy underdog Louisville. Earlier i the season Miami beat Purdue 20 - 14 at Purdue the week after Purdue had ended a long winning streak by Notre Dame. No tv in those days but I heard it on the radio. There was a major celebration at the airport when the team returned. I attended several games that year. The stars of the team were Jackie Hackett at QB and Frank Smith at running back. The team eventually went to the Orange Bowl and lost to Clemson 14 - 13. Between my first game in 1949 and 1955 when I went to Gainesville and became a Gator for life I had many great experiences in the Orange Bowl watching the Hurricanes in the years where they started rising to a competitive level.
Hello Bill, Thanks for the warm intro into the Hurricanes, you have seen a lot of great history with Miami. I know certain folks have built a reputation that Cane fans are spawned from hades but there are those of us that are living in the present. My father was a policeman for the City of Miami in the 60' & 70's and in those days the high schools had a bigger turnout than the U of Miami did. So he would take his son to the games and I got the chance to roam the sidelines and meet the team every year. I remember meeting Chuck Foreman and old Canes of yesteryear. I appreciate what we have done over the years and was taken back when we seemed to have lost our bearing in the 2live Crew era. I loved the wins don't get me wrong but the 200 plus yards in personal fouls was an embarassment. But as with all things in life it has it's cycles of ups and downs and hopefully we are working our way back up to respectability. I like Shannon and his stern leadership and great recruiting, I'm not sure if the current fan base will be patient enough to give him the chance but he has done wonders. I will miss the old Orange bowl of 1939 era and how it rocked beneath your feet until you feared for your life. But the bathroom trough was enough to wish for a newer stadium by itself. There are a lot of questions as always with this new team one being can our starting QB live up to his potential. He was Mr. Florida football out of Northwestern high school and played as a true freshman last year. With the talent that comes out of Florida every year being nominated Mr. Florida football does have some credit and pressure. Our two backup QB's decided to leave the team last week for more playing time and greener pastures and added the pressure to the current QB and head coach. I wish we could say we were opening with a less imposing team but here we are facing FSU our biggest rival for the first game of the year. All that being said lets get it on and play the game. I expect a lot of talent running around the stadium tonight and a lot of miscues with this being the first game of the season for both teams. I am excited to see what our new OC and DC have put together since this is their first game with the team as well. Ralph
Ralph, I went to Miami Edison High School and us along with Miami High and Jackson High played all of our home games in the Orange Bowl. On Thanksgiving day Edison played Miami High and the game came close to filling up the stadium. I sat though those games for a number of years also. When I went to the University of Florida I continued to follow both Miami and Florida for many years. That kind of ended with some of the fans you are talking about. I got tired of being around Miami fans when they spent so much time bad mouthing the Gators. Present company excluded of course. One game I remember, and I think it was 1950, was a game with Villanova which was played in a downpour. I went and sat through the whole game. Villanova was reasonably competitive in those days and the final score was 18-12. Five touchdowns and not a single extra point made because of the weather. Lot's of good memories of Miami, High School, the Hurricanes and the Orange Bowl from those days. So where did you go to high school and when did you leave Miami?
Wait just a dagum minute oops, that;s FSU isn't it... Since when did we allow CIVIL conversations about Miami Football??? :shock: Great to have you here Ralph!
Well so far it seems to be a good game with tit for tat...Christian Ponder for FSU looks pretty impressive... RC
Whoa what a game, big plays everywhere...when FSU got that last pick and Harris left the game holding his shoulder I figured turn out the lights the party's over....nope just begining.
Could someone remind this TV crew that when you miss a PAT and then go for and make 2 pt. conversion, you're back where you started from?
I know they just kept jabbering on and on about that. But actually I like Todd Blacklidge, he finds good places to eat and never seems to gain a pound. Great game though.
Very entertaining game. Neither team quit. I think we will have to wait a couple of weeks to see just how good either of these teams are, but I was impressed.
Wee what can happen when you have a Miami fan willing to respect others and carry on a conversation. You better stick around Ralph! Congratulations on a very good win. The announcer just said that the passing yardage was the most of any Miami QB ever against FSU. That is saying a lot.
Great game....welcome back to both of these teams. This rivalry game has been very lackluster for the last several years but last night's game was much more like the games of the early 90s.