Someone at Athlon actually gets it…

I usually won’t post the work of others here. I feel like I have a pretty good thumb on the pulse of what’s going on with The U. That said, every now and again I come across something which I couldn’t have said better myself. This is one of those times.

Michael Bradley wrote the following for Athlon Sports this off-season. While I’m not a fan of the SEC lovin’ Athlon rag, I am now a fan of Mr. B. A great piece all Cane fans should read.

Attitude Adjustment: Miami’s Randy Shannon

The first few times were rather traumatic. If you were on The List, you ran. Right away, no matter what you were wearing. Showed up in sandals, did you? Too bad. Get out and get on the track. Loafers? Man, were you going to have blisters.

From the moment Randy Shannon took over at Miami, where he had earned national title rings as a player and an assistant coach, the program’s short-lived retreat to its dark days as a symbol of bad behavior and excess was over. By the time Shannon had held his first meeting, the ugly events of the 2006 season — on-field brawls, off-field tragedies, arrests, six losses — were long forgotten. The former linebacker had been around during the days of the fast-and-loose Canes, but he wasn’t about to let anything get out of control. That was his message. And his hammer came down swiftly and painfully.

“He set the tone for us to do everything right and not to mess up,” defensive end Calais Campbell says. “If you do, he’ll make you not want to mess up again.”

The first time the Hurricanes met, Shannon read off a list of people who had missed class, training sessions or workouts. It contained about 30 names. Everybody had to get up at that moment and run. Hard. He called that roll of dishonorable mention every Thursday. Soon, the Miami players knew what to do. “After a couple weeks, there were only one or two names called,” Campbell says.

This is no simple win-loss about-face. Shannon faces a rare challenge at Miami. He must bring the team back to its previous high level of success, but he has to do so within a framework that satisfies the somewhat nebulous definition of what a Hurricane is. All top schools have identities that have been crafted over time by coaches, players, and in some cases, marketers. Miami is a little different. No other school is so strongly identified with an attitude. Being a Cane means being brasher than the next guy. It means working harder. And it definitely means reaching back to those who came before you, and once you’re out, staying in contact with those who come next.

Each year, former Miami players descend on the campus to work out or just visit with the current crop. Phones ring in dorm rooms at all hours, and on the other end of the line are All-Americans of days past, calling to remind youngsters what is expected of them. Some schools push the concept of the institution. Miami football is about a dedication to the ethos created by previous generations. “Most people who play here feel like they work harder than anybody else,” Campbell says.

Last year, there was a little too much of that attitude, and Miami’s overall reputation took a hit. The Canes may not have been too upset about the brawl with FIU or former Miami wideout Lamar Thomas’ on-air approval of the proceedings. But the university certainly took a hit. Miami was perceived as an outlaw school, and while that may carry some cachet with certain people, it’s no way to market an institution. When that was teamed with a lack of success on the field (Miami was 7–6 last year), it was clear a big change was needed.

Out was Larry Coker, who had led the Hurricanes to one national championship and within an egregiously late flag of a second. In was Shannon. And in was a new discipline and focus on and off the field that was designed to produce victories and players with character.

“You lose games because of mental slips and by not being disciplined,” Shannon says. “Small things are the difference between winning and losing. If you keep screwing up here and there, you’ll keep losing.”

There is a new emphasis on accountability. “I tell the players, ‘If you can go home and sleep at night, you’ve done everything right,’” Shannon says. Those who suffer from insomnia won’t be playing for the Hurricanes. And there is plenty to play for. Sixteen starters return from a team that excelled defensively in ’06 (seventh in total defense, 13th in scoring D) but struggled mightily to score points.

New offensive coordinator Patrick Nix should inject some life into the Hurricane attack, while Shannon’s defense will again be stout. More important, the Miami attitude will be back, in a form that is productive, not arrogant.

“The guys want to win; that’s all,” Shannon says. “I asked the team, ‘Has anybody here won a championship?’ Nobody raised their hand. I said, ‘I’ve won three.’ I want them to trust me, and we’ll do it.”

Comments

comments