Walking out of Sun Life Stadium after Miami’s loss to Virginia Tech was tough to swallow.
Another football season down, absolutely nothing to show for it.
But Miami’s fate was sealed well before the Nov. 20 loss to the Hokies.
Ohio State showed the Hurricanes Faithful that its beloved team was not championship ready and the game against Florida State was a completely one-sided contest. Miami wasn’t even ACC-Title ready. Certainly there was no shock or feelings of crushing defeat following the loss to VA-Tech, the final home game of my junior year.
My friends and I took it in stride. We would all be back home for Thanksgiving the following weekend when Miami would lose to USF and eventually fire then-head coach Randy Shannon.
Still, slowly making my way to the parking lot in November I couldn’t help but reflect on three fall semesters of disappointment.
I remembered being a freshman, coming to the U with a football recruiting class that was supposed to bring the Hurricanes back to the “promised land.”
In the middle of that 2008 season the young group actually had a chance to play in the ACC Championship game. But then came a trip to Georgia Tech and a game that stopped being competitive some time in the second quarter.
I remembered the beginning of my sophomore year, when Miami started off the season with impressive victories over Florida State, Georgia Tech and Oklahoma.
When, for a month, it was impossible to turn on SportsCenter and not see Hurricanes highlights and headlines proclaiming, “The U is Back.” How wrong they were. How wrong we all were for buying into the hype.
Walking through the parking lot now, we struck up a casual conversation with a group of older Hurricanes fans. They had been wearing orange and green well before any of us were in diapers. I realized then that my disappointment couldn’t really compare to theirs.
What struck them most about 2010 was how much the team had digressed from one season to the next, which was unacceptable and ultimately what did Randy Shannon in.
“Well, there’s always next year,” a friend said somewhat sarcastically while slamming the trunk shut.
Whether he meant it or not, he was right. There’s always going to be another season, and we’re always going to come back to watch, to hope.
So, here’s to the ‘Canes becoming relevant again, sooner rather than later. To Al Golden having a successful run as head coach. And to no current freshman writing a similar article to this one two years from now.
Adam Berger may be contacted at aberger@themiamihurricane.com.