Over the years it’s been a who’s who regarding members of the U Family who have dropped by for signing sessions or in-store events.
Things truly got cranking after that 2001 national title, with guys like Ken Dorsey, Ed Reed and other greats off that championship squad dropping by. Other greats soon followed—Vince Wilfork, Willis McGahee, Frank Gore, Devin Hester, Sam Shields, Jimmy Graham, Santana Moss—the list goes on.
Canes-related personalities have also made appearances—head coach Butch Davis his rookie season in 1995, as well as author Bruce Feldman upon the release of his book “Cane Mutiny” and filmmaker Billy Corben, when “The U” was released on DVD.
Not to take anything away from all of those epic events, the recent in-store with legendary head coach Howard Schnellenberger might go down at the best-ever.
Coach Schnellenberger arrived 45 minutes early and worked on signing all the pre-orders for out of towers before he was announced to a packed house (60 or so inside and another 30 deep in line outside.)
True to form, Coach huddled up the folks inside and gave a rousing pep talk, talking about his love for the Miami program—as it was and where it’s heading, vowing that this current team and quarterback will both get better.
From there, a three-hour marathon where the legend signed everything put in front of him, wrapping shortly before 10:00 p.m. Coach personalized each book and made time to take pictures with every fan in attendance.
Another Hurricanes tradition was also in the mix—The Big Cheese. Long-time owner Bill Archer delivered 16 pizzas and brought some girls in to serve pizza and snacks while the 1983 national champions highlight DVD rolled in the background. It was truly as special evening.
Once the fans rolled out, Coach and his wife Beverly stuck around to chat with the allCanes crew and couldn’t have been more engaging. We talked Hurricanes football and he even broke down the defense Miami ran against Nebraska on the failed two-point attempt in the 1984 Orange Bowl, leading to UM’s first title.
A classic, unforgettable evening with a true legend—who dazzled the old schoolers, while making a whole new generation of younger Canes fall in love with him.
Thank you, Coach. For everything.
For those who missed the event, there are currently a handful of signed copies of “Passing The Torch” still available online. These will go quickly, so order yours today and please spread the word to other Canes who might’ve missed out.