Tuesday, September 10, 2002
No question - 'Canes are tops
By Joe Biddle
The Tennessean
The season is young. The BCS computers haven't even been plugged in. Don't bother. Is there any doubt that Miami is the No. 1 team in the country?
No, not the Dolphins. They would rank somewhere in the top 10, however.
We're talking about the defending national champions. Miami Hurricanes. Ask any Florida player. No, scratch that idea. None of them could probably recite the license plate number after getting run over 41-16 Saturday.
Good thing for the Gators that the BCS no longer allows margin of victory to count in the equation.
More amazing than the unexpected lopsided score was that the game took place in the Swamp. Former Gators Coach Steve Spurrier had built a house of horrors for intruders. Miami turned it into a petting zoo.
“Steve Spurrier named this place the Swamp. It's not the Swamp anymore,” Miami center Brett Romberg sniffed to reporters. “We just call it Ben Griffin Field.”
What were they thinking in Las Vegas? The wiseguys had Florida favored by 21/2 points. Obviously, they believed in all that Swamp voodoo. Thanks goodness it wasn't played in Miami's backyard. The 'Canes would still be piling it on.
Miami has been touting quarterback Ken Dorsey for Heisman Trophy consideration. He may not even be the best player on the team.
Give Florida quarterback Rex Grossman a say-so in the matter and he may cast his Heisman vote for Miami's front seven. They ate his lunch, in the process tarnishing his Heisman hopes.
Ask Florida Coach Ron Zook, a former defensive coordinator under Spurrier. He would cast his vote for Miami's offensive line, which spent much of the day blowing the Gators over like inflatable dolls.
Zook has been lauded for his workaholic regimen. With him, sleeping is overrated. Zook better put on a pot of Columbia's strongest. With Tennessee on the schedule next week, the Gators coach runs the risk of starting 2-2.
Tennessee is one of those teams that could challenge Miami's national championship run. Certainly, the Vols will have a voice in the debate as they play Florida and Miami. Both of them visit Knoxville.
After beating MTSU in a game where his offense didn't score a point in the second half, Vols Coach Phillip Fulmer knows his team has to improve dramatically to play with a Miami. If it plays like it did against MTSU, Tennessee won't beat Florida, much less Miami.
If the Blue Raiders had not fumbled the ball away near Tennessee's goal line and taken it in for a touchdown, it would have been 17-10 at that point. It could have gotten interesting.
There is no doubt the Vols need a healthy Kelley Washington. Quarterback Casey Clausen repeatedly vowed it would be better when his favorite receiver returned.
Based on the carnage Miami created in the Swamp, I'm not convinced any college team can hang with Miami.
Everyone else could be playing for second.
——
Joe Biddle is a Tennessean sports columnist. He can be reached at 914-259-8255 or e-mail jbiddle@tennessean.com.
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No question - 'Canes are tops
