The Miami Hurricanes brought home five national championships over the past three decades, and a swarming, hard-hitting defense deserves most of the credit for that success.
Al Golden knows that the path back to the top begins with a solid defense. Now the third-year UM head coach finally has the proper personnel falling into place, enabling his program to resemble the Miami of old.
UM had its share of quality quarterbacks, wide receivers and running backs over the years, and many went on to be NFL greats, but it was on the other side of the ball where “The U” truly built its legacy.
The list of greats is long and storied. Jerome Brown. Russell Maryland. Bennie Blades. Benard Clark. Jessie Armstead. Micheal Barrow. Cortez Kennedy. Warren Sapp. Ray Lewis. Dan Morgan. Ed Reed. Vince Wilfork. Jon Vilma. Sean Taylor. Antrel Rolle. Jon Beason. All deserve mention, as do countless others, as these young men took care of business while sporting the orange and green. They also went on to be defensive greats at the next level, too.
Legendary coach Jimmy Johnson wasn’t a household name when he took over the Hurricanes program in 1984, but he changed the way the game itself was played by the time he left Miami five seasons later. …
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