CoachesHotSeat.com calls for Canes to go 3-8…

According to the lame, aforementioned website, Randy Shannon should simply pack it in and not even have his Miami Hurricanes play the 2008 season. The pot stirrers at CoachesHotSeat.com are predicting a 3-8 campaign for the second year head coach, with wins over the three weakest teams on the schedule.

Of course anyone who can do some quick math realizes Miami is playing 12 games this year, so the 3-8 headline is rather generous. C.H.S. actually believes the Canes will go 3-9 this coming year.

Despite a top-ranked recruiting class, a new veteran defensive coordinator in the recently hired Bill Young and four of last year’s seven losses being a play or two from going the other way – C.H.S. still thinks The U will be two games worse this season than in 2007. 

Shannon is #15 with a bullet, regarding his spot on the hot seat – despite inheriting the worst Miami team since the late 1970s and barely getting a chance to right the ship in this “we wanted it fixed five minutes ago” society. 

C.H.S. has Miami beating Charleston Southern, Duke and Central Florida this upcoming season and losing their other eight contests. Nothing like some unbiased journalism from a site who begins their column stating, “We have to admit, we don’t know a lot about Randy Shannon.”

Ahh, nothing like a journalism community who refuses to do their homework and just throws everything at the wall, hoping something sticks. So much easier to drive traffic to your site being ‘edgy’ and calling for Miami’s first 3-8 season since 1977 instead of an attempt at optimism and reading up a little bit on the Canes second-year leader. 

For starters, what say the brain-trust at C.H.S. rewinds back to last September and check’s out a real writer’s take on Shannon; Gary Smith of Sports Illustrated.

Most missed Smith’s poignant piece, written days after Appalachian State’s upset of Michigan, which nabbed the cover. Those in that category, click here and take ten minutes to get a real breakdown of the man leading these Canes.

5-7 was an aberration. A blip on the radar. That sound you heard? The legacy of Larry Coker finally bottoming out. 

Just because the six-year head coach got the boot in November 2006, doesn’t mean a half decade of his style and imprint would disappear because a new sheriff was in town. The changing of the guard was that final rung on the way down, just before rock bottom. The ascension begins fall 2008.

Shannon failed year one, but has spent every moment since making the right decisions regarding the future. 

The firings of Tim Walton and Marquis Mosely were a strong starting point.  Shannon proved his loyalty to the program and winning ways by making those tough decisions after one season on the job.

A lesser coach gives his defensive coordinator and wide receivers coach a mulligan in an effort to be PC. A leader knows when it’s time to cut bait and rid of his weakest links. 

Many called for a lesser paid unknown to take over and run Shannon’s old defense. Hardly the case. Instead, Shannon reels in Bill Young of Kansas. A seasoned DC who’s always done a lot with a little, brings an aggressive style of play and is as hungry for his first national championship as his boss and his players. 

Miami product Aubrey Hill takes over coaching wide receivers. More proven than Mosely and with local ties that’ll help him recruit and rebuild one of most maligned positions of recent Canes teams.

With the staff in place, Shannon recruited his ass off and put up his fence around the Tri-City area – just as promised. Bringing back ‘The State of Miami’ gave the Canes a top-ranked class and reason for optimism entering spring ball.

One doesn’t have to be a Miami bleeding heart to beg the question; had C.H.S. done their due diligence on Shannon’s accomplishments since season’s end and read up a little on his character, game plan and approach regarding rebuilding – how could they logically call for 3-8? Who really believes Miami will take another step back after 5-7 based on what Shannon is showing? 

Can the redshirt freshman Robert Marve be considered anything but an upgrade from Kirby Freeman or Kyle Wright? 

Can the newbie really do much worse than a 1-of-14 performance in a 19-16 OT loss? When rallying back from a 27-0 halftime deficit, does he really have more than four interceptions in his arsenal?

Are the Canes really worse off with a talented crop of freshman receivers than guys like Lance Leggett, who never reached their potential?

It’s not time to preach about an overnight return to the glory days; but it’s alright to start believing again. Things are looking up, despite what some misinformed folk at a no-name site are saying. 

Those in the know. Those who follow this program have seen the cyclical nature of college football reward and punish Miami over the years. They know this isn’t the first time the Canes are rising.

Shannon is following the blueprint of mentor, coach and friend, Jimmy Johnson and sharpened his recruiting skills under former boss Butch Davis. Randy has the blueprint. He knows how to right this ship and deserves a bit more credit than and 3-8 sophomore jinx and accusation of hovering on the hot seat.

Then again, outlandish predictions like that just make it all the much better when Miami turns things around… again. Just ask Alexander Wolff how that crow tasted after he called for The U to drop football. A few years later, four straight BCS games, title and a 34-game win streak – done the right way, with class and without the thugs that some recent champs have boasted.

Trashing the Canes is good business for sports sites and a way to drive traffic. Everyone loves to kick The U when it’s down. Such is life. The believers just have to keep believing and enjoy the ride back to the top. It’s coming, despite was the uninformed are telling you.

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