March Madness CaneSport Style: Round 1, Games 5-8
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. Yesterday we introduced Games 1-4. Today you have Games 5-8. Voting continues on all eight games (See link above for Games 1-4),
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.
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.
ROUND OF 64
GAME 5. BERNIE KOSAR VS. STEVE WALSH: More impactful Cane QB
THE CASE FOR KOSAR: Kosar was instrumental in the University of Miami becoming known as "Quarterback U ". He threw for 5,971 yards and 40 touchdowns in 1983 and 1984, leading Miami to its first national championship as a redshirt freshman in 1983. Kosar was named MVP for his 300-yard passing performance in the Hurricanes 31-30 victory over Nebraska in the 1984 Orange Bowl Classic. When Kosar left UM he held school records for career passes completed, passing yards, total offense and touchdown passes thrown, all since eclipsed, but still holds the record for career passing completion percentage. Kosar was a first-round NFL supplemental draft pick of the Cleveland Browns, and he finished his NFL career with 23,301 yards and 124 touchdowns.
THE CASE FOR WALSH: Walsh is one of the long string of Hurricane signal callers that helped Miami gain the nickname "Quarterback U". He led the Hurricanes to their second national championship in 1987 by defeating the Oklahoma Sooners in the 1988 Orange Bowl Classic 20-14. In his two years as starting QB, he compiled a 23-1 overall record.As a junior, he was named first team All-American quarterback by the Associated Press, the Football Writers Association of America and ESPN, and was The Football News College Player of the Year. He was fourth in the 1988 Heisman Trophy balloting.Walsh finished his career at UM tied with Vinny Testaverde for 1st in TD passes thrown with 48, now 2nd. He is currently 3rd in career completion percentage and in the Top Ten in pass attempts, completions, passing yards and total offense. He was drafted in the first round of the NFL supplemental draft after his junior year by the Dallas Cowboys and threw for 7,875 yards with 40 TDs in his pro career.
GAME 6. EDDIE BROWN VS. ANDRE JOHNSON: More impactful Cane WR
THE CASE FOR BROWN: Brown arrived at UM in 1981, playing his first season in 1983 and helping the Canes to a national title with 640 yards and 5 TDs. The following season he was a consensus All-American and became UM's first pass catcher to surpass 1,000 yards in a season with 59 receptions for 1,114 yards and nine TDs. His most productive game? The Hail Flutie loss in which he had 10 receptions for 220 yards. He ended his career with, at the time, career records for receptions, receiving yards and TDs (89 catches, 1,754 yards, 14 TDs). Brown was the 13th overall pick in the 1985 draft by the Cincinnati Bengals and ended his pro career with 6,134 yards and 41 TDs.
THE CASE FOR JOHNSON: After redshirting in 1999 and seeing limited action in 2000, Johnson proved in his third season that he was one of the most dominating receivers in Miami's storied history. He finished that 2001 season with 44 receptions for 881 yards (20 yards per catch) and 10 touchdowns. He had seven catches for 199 yards in the Canes' national championship victory in the Rose Bowl, a UM bowl record. In 2002, Johnson caught 52 passes and amassed 1,092 yards, 21 yards-per catch and nine touchdowns, joining Eddie Brown as the only Canes receivers, at that time, to gain over 1,000 yards in a season. His 20 receiving touchdowns are tied with Reggie Wayne, for third-most in school history. Drafted by the Houston Texans third overall in the 2003 NFL Draft, he finished his pro career with 14,185 yards and 70 TDs and was a seven-time Pro Bowl selection.
GAME 7. DAVID NJOKU VS. JEREMY SHOCKEY: More impactful Cane TE
THE CASE FOR NJOKU: After redshirting in 2014 Njoku started four games in 2015 and had 21 catches for 351 yards and a TD. The following year he had a breakout season with 43 receptions for 698 yards and eight TDs - he turned pro following that year and was the 29th overall pick by the Cleveland Browns. He currently has 1,066 yards and nine TDs in his pro career.
THE CASE FOR SHOCKEY: Like Njoku, Shockey only had two years of real playing time at Miami. But that was in 2000 and 2001, and he helped UM to a national title in the latter season. In 2000, the sophomore Shockey caught three passes on UM’s game-winning drive against No. 1 Florida State including the game-winning TD. He had 296 yards and three TDs that season. In 2001 Shockey led the Canes with 45 receptions for 604 yards and eight touchdowns. Five of those catches came in the national title win over Nebraska, totaling 85 yards and a score. He was a finalist for the Mackey Award, given to the top tight end in college football. Shockey was picked in the first round (14th overall) of the 2002 National Football League Draft by the New York Giants. He ended his pro career with 6,143 yards and 37 touchdowns, winning a pair of Super Bowl Rings (New York 2007 and New Orleans 2009).
GAME 8. MICHAEL IRVIN VS. REGGIE WAYNE: More impactful Cane WR
THE CASE FOR IRVIN: Irvin won Freshman All-America honors from the Football News in 1985, UPI All-America honors in 1986, and 2nd team and honorable mention All-America honors by the Football News and Associated Press as a junior in 1987. He became a starter in his redshirt freshman year in 1985 and held UM career records for receiving yards (2,423) and touchdown receptions (26), was second in receptions (143) and fourth in touchdowns (26) when he left UM. He had 840 yards and nine TDs in 1985, 868 yards and 11 scores in 1986 and 719 yards with six scores in 1987. Irvin was drafted in the 1988 NFL draft by the Dallas Cowboys with the 11th overall selection in the first round. He went on to star for the Cowboys and win three Super Bowl titles while being selected for five Pro Bowls. He finished his pro career with 11,904 yards and 65 TDs.
THE CASE FOR WAYNE: Wayne was one of the most consistent and reliable receivers in Cane history. As a freshman in 1997, he was named Big East Rookie of the Year and a Sporting News Freshman All American when he led the Canes with 640 yards receiving on 48 catches. The latter broke Michael Irvin's freshman record of 46. In 1998, he again led Miami with 42 receptions and had 629 yards even though he missed two games with a torn ACL. The following season he had 486 yards and 4 touchdowns, and in Miami's 2000 season the senior led the team with 755 yards receiving and a 17.6 yards per catch average on 43 receptions. His 10 touchdowns that year tied for 2nd most all time behind Irvin's record of 11 in 1986. Wayne is the school career leader in total receptions with 173, a close second to Santana Moss in yards receiving (2,510) and is tied for 3rd in career touchdowns with 20. He holds the school record for consecutive games with a reception in 36 straight games. Wayne was a first round pick (30th overall) by the Indianapolis Colts in the 2001 NFL draft, and in 14 years with the Colts he had 14,345 yards and 82 TDs. A four-time Pro-Bowler, he helped the team win a Super Bowl in 2007.
