March Madness CaneSport Style: Round 1, Games 21-24

March Madness CaneSport Style: Round 1, Games 1-4

March Madness CaneSport Style: Round 1, Games 5-8

March Madness CaneSport Style: Round 1, Games 9-12

March Madness CaneSport Style: Round 1, Games 13-16

March Madness CaneSport Style: Round 1, Games 17-20

Who says there is not gonna be March Madness?

We can't let the coronavirus take away March Madness.

So CaneSport has created its own tournament.

Miami Hurricane style.

Welcome to Round 1 with a field of 64 contenders aiming to be the national champion of Hurricane lore.

Over the the next couple weeks, we will eliminate the pretenders down to the Round of 32, the Sweet 16, the Elite 8, the Final Four and then the championship.

The subscribers at CaneSport.com will have the voting power on the message boards of CaneSport.com.

Who or what will emerge as the greatest Cane of all.

The coming days will provide the answer.

We will introduce four new games each day for the next eight days.

So get your votes in in the threads in the War Room message board and may the winners advance

Then we will move onward to the next round until we crown a champion.

THE CASE FOR MCKINNIE: McKinnie was one of the most dominating offensive lineman in Miami Hurricanes history. He arrived at UM via junior college after playing defensive end in high school, and as a senior in 2001 he won the Outland Trophy as the nation's top interior lineman. He also won the Jim Parker award, given to the top offensive lineman, and was named the CNN/Sports Illustrated Player of the Year. McKinnie finished 8th in the Heisman Trophy balloting, with 26 first place votes. He never allowed a sack during his college career, and in 2001 anchored the Canes offensive line that averaged 5.3 yards per rushing attempt and 43 points per game on the way to an undefeated season and the National Championship. As a junior in 2000, his first year playing at UM after redshirting in 1999, he was named a unanimous All Big East selection and first team All American by the Football News. He made a name for himself in Miami's 27-24 victory over arch rival Florida State by shutting down the Noles' Jamal Reynolds, the eventual Lombardi Award winner, to just one assisted tackle in the game. He was a first round pick (7th overall) in the 2002 NFL Draft by Minnesota and spent nine seasons in the league - he was a Pro Bowl selection in 2009.

THE CASE FOR SEARCY: Searcy spent five seasons as an offensive tackle at UM, redshirting in 1987 and helping the Canes to national titles in 1989 and 1991 as a dominating starter. Searcy started every game his final three seasons and as a senior he earned First-Team All-America honors from the Football Writers Association of America and Second-Team All-America honors from The Sporting News, The Football News and Associated Press. By the time his college career was over he was the No. 11 overall draft pick by the Steelers. He played 11 NFL seasons and was selected to the Pro Bowl in 1996 and 1997.

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THE CASE FOR BLADES: Blades was a two-time first team All-American as a defensive back for the Hurricanes in 1986 and 1987. He was awarded the Jim Thorpe Award as the nation's premier defensive back in his senior season and he had 19 interceptions in his career, held, a record at the time. He also had 305 interception return yards, five straight games with an interception and 286 tackles from the safety spot. All of the above were records at the time he left UM. But before leaving he helped lead the Hurricanes to their second national championship in his senior year, 1987, when he was first in the nation in interceptions (.91) per game. In 1988 Blades was the third overall pick in the first round by the Detroit Lions. He played in the NFL for 10 years, was selected to the Pro Bowl in 1991 and had 772 tackles and 14 INTs in the pros.

THE CASE FOR WILLIAMS: Williams was a Cane from 1989-91, and he was one of the best defensive backs that Miami ever produced. As a true freshman in 1989 he had his first career field goal block against FSU and was part of a defensive unit that led the nation in total defense en route winning the school’s third National Championship. As a junior he enjoyed his breakout season with 84 tackles and three interceptions. Following that season he was named First Team All-Big East and a First Team All- American by the Associated Press, Kodak and by the Walter Camp Football Foundation. He was also a finalist for the Jim Thorpe Award. Drafted after his junior year by Cincinnati with the 28th pick in the first round, he spent 11 seasons in the NFL and was named to the Pro Bowl in 1997. He finished his NFL career with 876 tackles and 31 interceptions.

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THE CASE FOR STUBBS: Stubbs was a dominant presence off the end and a terror for quarterbacks. He had a career high 17 sacks in 1986 as a junior, ending his career with 39.5 sacks. He also had 267 total tackles as a Cane. Stubbs was a consensus All-American defensive end in his senior year of 1987 when the Canes won their second national championship, and he was one of three finalists for the Outland Trophy and one of 12 finalists for the Lombardi Trophy. A second round NFL draft pick of the San Francisco 49ers, he won two Super Bowls and enjoyed an 11-year pro career that saw him total 227 tackles and 51.5 sacks.

THE CASE FOR HENDRICKS: Hendricks is a real old time Cane, playing from 1966-68. And he was simply unstoppable off the edge. The 6- 7 Hendricks, better know as "the Mad Stork," totaled 327 tackles in his three years at Miami, a remarkable average of 109 tackles per season. A three-time All-American for the Hurricanes, he earned consensus, first-team All-America honors in 1967 and 1968, and led Miami to a 20-11-1 record. In his final season - which included nine takeaways - he was named UPI National Lineman of the Year and finished 5th in the Heisman Trophy balloting. He went on to a spectacular 15-year NFL career as an outside linebacker playing in 215 consecutive games. During his time in the NFL he had 60.5 sacks and helped lead his teams to four Super Bowl championships and was an eight-time Pro Bowl selection.

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THE CASE FOR SAPP: A consensus All-American and the first Hurricane to win the Lombardi Trophy, Sapp was a dominant force during his 1992-94 career. He even made the short list for the Heisman Trophy during his junior year when Sapp recorded 10.5 sacks. He finished his UM career with 176 tackles and 19.5 sacks. A first-round draft pick of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 1995, Sapp is one of the select few players to earn both an NCAA Championship football ring and a Super Bowl ring. Selected to seven NFL Pro Bowls and awarded the 1999 NFL Defensive Player of the Year award, he had 96.5 sacks and 19 forced fumbles in his 13-year NFL career.

THE CASE FOR MARYLAND: Maryland (played at UM from 1987-90) was a member of Miami's 1987 and 1989 National Championship teams, but his most prolific work came as a senior in 1990. During his final season with the Canes he recorded 96 tackles (54 solo), including 10.5 quarterback sacks, seven tackles for losses and 19 quarterback pressures. He also forced five fumbles and broke up two passes. As a result he became the first Hurricane to win the 1990 Outland Trophy. He was also a unanimous All-America selection and named the United International Press Lineman of the Year. Maryland finished his college career with 279 tackles, 25 tackles for losses and 20.5 quarterback sacks. He led the Hurricanes to four consecutive bowl berths, two national championships and an overall record of 45-3-0 during his career. In 1991 Maryland was selected as the first overall pick by the Dallas Cowboys, andhe was a Pro Bowl selection in 1993 and won three Super Bowls with the Cowboys. In his nine-year pro career he had 24.5 sacks and nine forced fumbles.
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