2001 Canes

In my opinion and in the opinion of many others,the 2001 Hurricanes are the greatest college team ever and greatest team ever assembled in general.If you don't believe me,here are my ten reasons why they are the greatest,after reading this,you let me know what your opinion may be.

#1.The Obvious:Not only did they produce sixteen first round draft picks,but at least seven pro bowl players,who arguably happen to be the best at their respective positions.Clinton Portis,Frank Gore,Bryant McKinnie,Andre Johnson,Ed Reed,Jeremy Shockey,and Sean Taylor.

#2.Phenominal Protection:Our offensive line was led by All Americans,Bryant McKinnie,Joaquin Gonzalez,and Brett Romberg were dominant and considered the best in the nation.McKinnie never allowed a sack in his college career.In fact,Ken Dorsey,was only sacked five times the entire season.

#3.Poetry In Motion:The running backs featured Clinton Portis,but also included Frank Gore,Najeh Davenport,and Willis McGahee.The receiving corp included the exceptional receiver Andre Johnson,who was backed by Roscoe Parrish,Kevin Beard,Jeremy Shockey and Kellen Winslow Jr.Miami averaged 43 points per game.

#4.Line Of Defense:The defense was ridicolously fast and hard hitting.They only allowed 9.4 points per game and led the nation with 45 takeaways.The defensive line featured Jerome McDougle,Vince Wilfork,William Joseph,and Andrew Johnson,whom are all in the NFL.

#5.The linebackers and the secondary:Johnathan Vilma,D.J. Williams,Chris Campbell,Darell McClover,and Rocky McIntosh,were among the best in the nation.The secondary included Ed Reed,Sean Taylor,Antrel Rolle,Kelley Jennings,Philip Buchanon,and Mike Rumph.One of the best units of all time,if not,the best.Which included 6 NFL starters on it's roster.

#6.The special teams was exceptional and possessed great speed:Philip Buchanon and Roscoe Parrish were the most dangerous in the nation.And Miami blocked kicks exceptionally well.The place kicker,Todd Sievers was an All American and connected on 21 field goals and 60 extra points.Also,Freddie Capshaw,the punter,was on the 1st team All Big Ten.

#7.Overall Dominance:Miami was a very dominant and overall complete football team.On successive weeks they crushed 13th ranked Syracuse and 11th ranked Washington by scores of 59-0 and 65-7 respectively.This was an NCAA record for margin of victory over consecutive ranked opponents.

#8.Men Amongst Boys:The Canes crushed opposition at the Orange Bowl by an average of 51-3.And outscored their competition 512-117,so for those who argue that we had a soft schedule,we sure did not play down to our so called "inferior competition".They also dominated arguably,the second best team in the nation,which had the Heisman Trophy winning quarterback at the healm.And the Canes led Nebraska in the BCS championship game 34-0 at the half,and cruised to victory 37-14.

#9.Ridicolous:A spectacular statistic about the 2001 Canes is the fact that they scored 11 non offensive touchdowns while their defense allowed only 13 touchdowns.It was a truly amazing display of dominance for a team to score within a couple of touchdowns of what their defense allowed for the entire season without their explosive and talented offense ever taking the field.

#10.If what you have read is not enough to convince you,then you are in denial or you flat out despise the Miami Hurricanes.I dare you to find a better roster or all around team in this lifetime.I've mentioned their credentials in the pros,so for those who think they did not produce in college,here is a little something for your nit picking ways:statistics:

Ken Dorsey: 207/354(58%)3,029 yards 26td's and 10 int's
Clinton Portis:240 carries 1,304 yards(5 yd avg)11 td's 16 catches 1 td
Frank Gore:64 carries 565 yards(9 yd avg) 5 td's
Willis McGahee:69 carries 321 yards(5 yd avg) 3 td's
Andre Johnson:44 catches 881 yards(20 yd avg) 12 td's
Jeremy Shockey:45 catches 604 yards(13 yd avg) 8 td's
Kevin Beard:29 catches 450 yards(16 yd avg) 2 td's
Todd Sievers:22 field goals made,60 extra points made

1st Team All Americans

Philip Buchanon,PR
Joaquin Gonzalez,RT
Bryant McKinnie,LT
Ed Reed,SS
Jeremy Shockey,TE
Todd Sievers,K

All Conference 1st Team

Martin Bibla,LG
Philip Buchanon,CB
Freddie Capshaw,P
Ken Dorsey,QB
Joaquin Gonzalez,RT
Jerome McDougle,DE
Bryant McKinnie,LT
Clinton Portis,RB
Ed Reed,SS
Brett Romberg,C
Jeremy Shockey,TE
Todd Sievers,K
Johnathan Vilma,MLB

Award Winners

Larry Coker-Bear Bryant Award
Ken Dorsey-Maxwell Award
Joaquin Gonzalez-Academic Heisman
Bryant McKinnie-Outland Trophy Award

10 Award's Finalists

Team PLayers Drafted Into The NFL

Bryant McKinnie 1st Round Pick#7 Minnesota Vikings
Jeremy Shockey 1st Round Pick#14 New York Giants
Philip Buchanon 1st Round Pick#17 Oakland Raiders
Ed Reed 1st Round Pick#24 Baltimore Ravens
Mike Rumph 1st Round Pick#27 San Fransisco 49ers
Clinton Portis 2nd Round Pick#51 Denver Broncos
Martin Bibla 4th Round Pick#116 Atlanta Falcons
Najeh Davenport 4th Round Pick#135 Green Bay Packers
James Lewis 6th Round Pick#183 Indianapolis Colts
Daryl Jones 7th Round Pick#226 New York Giants
Joaquin Gonzalez 7th Round Pick#227 Cleveland Browns

Ed Reed:2 time All American Strong Safety,led nation in interceptions with 9 and 3 defensive touchdowns,earned co-defensive player of the year.Holds record for career interceptions with 21 and 5 touchdowns,and also blocked 4 punts in his college career.So,if anyone asks you who the greatest team to ever lace up the cleets and play was,you tell them it was the 2001 Miami Hurricanes.If they blindly argue,you redirect them to this blog entry,tell them Mr. Fatal Content aka Miami Cane said so,they will understand after reading this,give me some feedback and opinions,1.