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Sunday, November 5
The swagger and title hopes are back in Miami

By Bob Harig
Special to ESPN.com

MIAMI -- Al Blades grew up with the history, lived it and talked it. His brothers, Brian and Bennie, were University of Miami stars when being a Hurricane meant being reviled. They didn't hope to win big games, but expected to. And so they were a part of a championship era.

The stage occupied by UM teams of the past is now clearly in sight. It is there to be stomped and strutted on, to be taken over as their own, just like the old days.

Fans pelted the field with oranges in the waning seconds, and the Orange Bowl once again shook with glee on Saturday. The Hurricanes had a 41-21 victory over Virginia Tech secured, along with a rise in the polls and the dreams that go with it.


	Butch Davis has Miami ranked No. 2 and primed for an Orange Bowl bid.

The Hurricanes are now in command of the Big East race and in position to contend for the national championship with victories in their remaining three games. Playing for the national title is now worthy of discussion.

It's been a long-time coming for a program that used to expect such success.

"I watched it all my life," said Blades, a fifth-year senior safety. "To finally be a part of a team that is going out and winning big games, it's like a dream come true."

After five straight seasons of losing to state rival Florida State and conference rival Virginia Tech, the Hurricanes (7-1, 4-0) have knocked off both the Seminoles and the Hokies (8-1, 6-1) in the span of a month.

For those computer gurus who man the complicated Bowl Championship Series standings, the Hurricanes stand by this fact: They defeated the Seminoles when they were ranked No. 1, the Hokies at No. 2.

"It's great, you can't ask for any more," said UM senior receiver Santana Moss, who caught four passes for 154 yards and two touchdowns. "To play football for four years at the University of Miami, and not beat those guys for three years. . . then the last year you come up big against both of those teams, it's a great feeling."

How much impact the victory will have in the next Bowl Championship Series standings remains to be seen. The Hurricanes moved up to No. 2 in both the ESPN/USA Today and Associated Press polls.

But last week they dropped from fourth to fifth in the BCS standings after a lackluster showing against Louisiana Tech. UM fans and players were perplexed: two spots ahead of them were the Seminoles, the same team they had defeated 27-24 on Oct. 7. Both teams had one loss, but UM won the head-to-head matchup. What gives?

Even Florida State coach Bobby Bowden acknowledged last week that he was surprised to be in front of the Hurricanes, that he understood their dismay.

But after a 54-7 dismantling of Clemson on Saturday, Bowden was less sympathetic.

"I have no idea what it will mean," Bowden said. "But I'll bet you Clemson is similar to Virginia Tech. . . If we win our next two games, I'd be surprised if we're not (in the championship game.)"

The gap is significant because only the top two teams in the standings will play for the national championship. Could the Hurricanes really win their next three games against Pittsburgh, Syracuse and Boston College and be denied that chance on Jan. 3 at Pro Player Stadium?

"There's a formula, and the criteria is you have to beat highly ranked teams to move up," said UM coach Butch Davis. "We feel we've done that."

The swagger is back, and so are the big victories. The Hurricanes keep moving toward that stage, nine years removed from their last national championship, six years from playing for it.

In fact, all but one thing is missing, said fullback Najeh Davenport.

"Just the ring."

Just wondering
If Miami is upset about falling behind Florida State in the BCS standings, what about Washington. The Huskies also have just one defeat. And they beat the Hurricanes. Yet Washington was eighth in the latest BCS standings.

No mercy
Bowden Bowl II in Tallahassee was not nearly the nail-biter of a year ago, when Bobby Bowden and Tommy Bowden met for the first time. The younger Bowden nearly derailed his dad's perfect season in a 17-14 defeat at Clemson. This time, however, the Seminoles pulled away for a big 54-7 victory that no doubt had something to do with the BCS standings.

"We were playing against a top-10 team and our goal was to win and win convincingly and prove to people that we belong up there," said quarterback Chris Weinke. "And we did that."

Weinke threw for 521 yards and now has 3,490 this season, breaking the FSU single-season record. The Seminoles amassed 771 total yards and improved their home winning streak to 34 games while clinching their ninth consecutive ACC title.

"The only thing I could tell Tommy was I've been through it too," Bobby Bowden said after his 313th career victory. "We just had 'em outmanned. I told Tommy to recruit hard.

"We really got on them. If we play as well as we can, we think we're going to win. Sometimes you don't play as well as you can, but we nearly did tonight."

So long, TCU
The BCS will no longer have to worry the Horned Frogs. Texas Christian was upset by San Jose State 27-24, stopping TCU's winning streak at 12 and ending any hope of the Horned Frogs earnings a spot in one of the BCS games. Had they risen to sixth or higher in the final standings, the Horned Frogs were guaranteed a spot in one of the BCS bowls. They were ninth before the defeat.

"I'm not sure if we had a lot of focus," said TCU tailback LaDainian Tomlinson, who rushed for 155 yards in the defeat. "There were a bunch of things that kept us from rolling."

Bob Harig covers college football for the St. Petersburg Times.

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AUDIO/VIDEO
video

Florida State's Marvin Minnis scores on a 98-yard pass from Chris Weinke in the first quarter.
avi: 1860 k
RealVideo: 56.6 | ISDN | T1

Marvin Minnis dodges several tacklers helping set up another Seminole score.
avi: 1470 k
RealVideo: 56.6 | ISDN | T1

Atrews Bell makes a spectacular catch, leading to another Seminole touchdown.
avi: 1310 k
RealVideo: 56.6 | ISDN | T1

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