Can Miami Pull A Colorado In The Rose Bowl?
Jan. 1, 2002
By RICHARD ROSENBLATT
AP Football Writer
LOS ANGELES (AP) – The biggest player in the Rose Bowl figures if Coloradowas able to run it up on Nebraska, so can No. 1 Miami.
Bryant McKinnie, the Hurricanes’ 6-foot-9, 336-pound left tackle, wasn’tbashful in assessing the Huskers’ humiliating 62-36 loss to the Buffaloes onNov. 23.
“Once you get through their front seven, the secondary looked like it hadtrouble tackling,” McKinnie said on the final day of player interviewsbefore Thursday’s Rose Bowl. “We’re going to open some holes, there’s goingto be some big plays made. … Our backs, Frank Gore and Clint Portis, willhave fun.”
These days, it’s easy to bash the Blackshirts, the name given to Nebraska’sstarting defensive players.
Rolling to 11 straight wins by an average margin of nearly 29 points, theHuskers broke down in Boulder. The 62 points were the most allowed by aNebraska defense, with Colorado piling up 592 total yards, 380 on theground, and reserve Chris Brown running for six touchdowns.
It’s been a humbling experience for a proud program.
“To be a part of that is disappointing and embarrassing to an extent,”defensive end Chris Kelsay said. “We have guys all over the nation watchingevery game we play. We let them down, we let ourselves down, it’s a hugedisappointment.”
“I don’t think most people on this team can get over the loss until afterthis game,” cornerback Keyuo Craver said.
Portis, who ran for 1,200 yards and 10 touchdowns, says going against theBlackshirts is “scary and exciting.” Scary because he knows adjustments havebeen made and he doesn’t know what they are, exciting because “maybe we cando what Colorado did and expose them.”
Thanks to the wacky world of the Bowl Championship Series, at least Nebraskahas a chance at redemption, and “what better way to get out the bitter tastewe have right now than to beat the No. 1 team in the land,” Craver said.
After the loss to Colorado, the Huskers appeared out of the national titlechase. But an extraordinary string of upsets allowed them to end up secondbehind Miami in the final BCS standings, just five hundredths of a pointahead of Colorado. Oregon, which played Colorado in the Fiesta Bowl onTuesday, was fourth.
If the Huskers win, there’s s strong chance the Fiesta winner will grab ashare of the national title by finishing first in the AP media poll.
In the two polls that crown champions, the top four teams are Miami, Oregon,Colorado and Nebraska. The Fiesta winner could win the AP media poll’snational title, while the Rose winner is automatically crowned champions inthe USA Today/ESPN coaches poll. AP voters are free to vote for any teamwith their final ballot.
“Right now, we’ve got a lot to prove to the nation,” Kelsay said. “We’ve gotto show them the type of team we really have.”
The task is formidable, as coach Frank Solich knows all too well. As aNebraska assistant under Tom Osborne, he watched Miami win two nationaltitles with Orange Bowl wins over the Huskers – 31-30 in the ’84 game, and22-0 in the ’92 OB.
“Miami’s not an easy team to play, they generally move the ball againstanybody they play,” Solich said. “The idea is to slow them down, not letthem get out of control.”
While the Huskers hope their defense rebounds, Heisman Trophy winner EricCrouch must to find ways to score on Miami’s ultra-aggressive defense. Ledby All-American safety Ed Reed, the ‘Canes held opponents to a nation-low9.4 points per game, and finished first in turnovers (45) and interceptions(27).
“They react pretty fast to pretty much everything,” Crouch said. “Thebiggest thing we have to do is get bodies on bodies and not miss blocks. Bephysical, make contact. That’s the biggest way to attack their speed.”
Crouch is certainly capable. He ran for 1,115 yards and 18 TDs, and threwfor 1,510 yards and seven more scores. The option quarterback also knowsReed and fellow safety James Lewis will be waiting for those play-actionpasses.
“They put those seven guys in the box, they put the corners up tight andtheir safeties are roaming around back there and intercepting balls,” hesaid. “That poses a problem if we can’t run on them.”
Like Solich, Miami’s offensive line coach Art Kehoe has been around for allfour Hurricane-Husker Orange bowls. He said the Huskers’ defense is similarto Florida State’s.
“Not a lot of gimmicks, just ends that are fast and put pressure on thequarterback and tough tackles insides,” Kehoe said. “Then they move up withthe strong safety or the free safety. We’ve had a lot of work on it againstFlorida State, and hopefully we’ll be ready for it.”
