Remember that old UM football slogan back in the late nineties, “Full Force Football”? The slogan for mid-December should be “Take No Prisoners” football.
Saying newly-hired head coach Al Golden has hit the ground running is a gross understatement. This is undoubtedly a man on a mission.
Instead of easing in and resting up at one of South Florida’s swanky five-star spots, Golden chose to hunker down on campus, in the dorms. From there, numerous recruiting stops, the hiring of three assistant coaches, two staffers and appearances on just about every radio show from here to Zimbabwe.
On this week’s edition of allCanes Radio, long-time voice of the Temple Owls (and Philadelphia broadcast legend), Harry Donnahue shared that Golden regularly texted him at 4:30am – from the office. This is a hungry coach, no doubt about it.
After personally taking in a few Golden interviews, I’ve learned a few things. First off, he wanted this job badly. At one point he mentioned watching the South Florida game, as he had a feeling the head coaching position would soon be open.
You don’t throw together a 300-page, four-pound dissertation on Miami football over the weekend, so a safe bet that UM’s new coach realized a while back that it was time to make the leap to a higher-profile gig and started identifying potential opportunities. When realizing Randy Shannon might not survive, he went into “Golden Gear” (a phrase I’m coining), preparing for a possible interview.
Something else I quickly learned; Coach Golden knows more about UM history than the majority of this fan base. I’ve heard him talk about the defensive schemes Howard Schnellenberger ran and he’s mentioned players from decades back that didn’t even go on to the NFL. This is a guy that’s done his homework and his knowledge of Hurricane football doesn’t just show how hard he worked to get the job; it proves how much he respects this program and wants to sell it to prospective signees.
In the past day we’ve learned that we’ll have a new defensive staff at ‘The U’, which shouldn’t come as a surprise. Golden welcomed his defensive coordinator Mark D’Onofrio, defensive line coach Jethroe Franklin and defensive backs coach Paul Williams – meaning John Lovett, Rick Petri and Wesley McGriff will not be retained. I’ve heard that Micheal Barrow has a good chance of staying on, but if not, D’Onofrio could coach linebackers.
Things remain up in the air offensively, but I’ve been told that offensive line coach Jeff Stoutland and wide receivers coach Aubrey Hill could remain – Hill especially due to his title of recruiting coordinator, making him an invaluable asset to Golden and staff, who have very little experience recruiting in South Florida and Stoutland, as he and the new coach have history and a friendly relationship.
Offensive coordinator remains the million dollar question and while some might not want to hear it, there’s a chance Mark Whipple could remain that guy. Considering Golden wants to run a pro-style offense, he may not want to look too much further than that Miami’s current offensive play caller. Whipple has NFL experience and knows a ton about the type of offense Golden is looking to run, but there’s still a good chance he goes a different direction.
To Whipple’s credit, I still believe his offense can be productive at Miami, barring he’s working for a head coach that let’s him do his thing.
There have also been rumblings about Ken Dorsey returning to Coral Gables as a grad assistant, which I haven’t confirmed yet … but I know who I’m going to ring up in the next few days.
One last point to make. Donna Shalala, Kirby Hocutt and the rest of this administration heard your cries. The made a huge change and went out to get a guy on a mission to get this program back on top. They did their part and now it’s your turn.
Several big time donors stepped up, making sure that money will no longer be an issue preventing Miami from winning a championship and while not everyone has those deep pockets, we all have to do our part somehow.
Times are tough (believe me, I know) but there are things we can do, starting with going to games. Not just the marquee ones and not just football – but basketball, baseball and even the smaller sports. You’re not going to find better entertainment for your dollar and by going, you’re giving back to the athletic department that just did right by you.
Beyond that, donate. Even if it’s fifty bucks – give what you can and take some ownership of this program. Be a part of the resurrection. Especially now, knowing how serious your athletic department is about getting back to winning ways. These kids need the best resources to win and it’s on all of us to help make that happen.
(NOTE: For those of you writing in that want to give, please contact Jesse Marks at the Hurricane Club and let him know allCanesBlog.com sent you over! Email him or call 305.284.6699)
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