CORAL GABLES, Fla. – Although he’d never say so, Miami coach Randy Shannon’s future was most uncertain a year ago.
Months of talking about a new contract for Shannon had gone almost nowhere, and he was faced with the unenviable task of trying to convince recruits to spend the next four years of their lives at Miami while unable to guarantee them he’d actually be with the Hurricanes past the 2010 season.
“It was tough,” Shannon said.
Not anymore. A new four-year contract was hammered out in May, giving Shannon some measure of security. And with a depth chart that’s finally loaded to his liking, Shannon thinks he might have the kind of team he needs to get the Hurricanes thinking about winning college football’s biggest prize again.
When No. 13 Miami opens its season Thursday night against Florida A&M, Shannon believes he’ll be sending the most talented Hurricanes team of his four-year tenure onto the field. All they have to do now, he says, is go out and prove him right.
“I think when he came in, he had to establish his new rules, his new regime,” Miami kicker Matt Bosher said. “I think he did that. He came in and led with an iron fist for a while. Now he’s kind of letting the team police ourselves before he had to step in. He’s letting the senior class have a lot more responsibility and the team have a lot more accountability … which I think is a good sign.”
By now, Shannon’s rules are well known. Go to class. (The Hurricanes rank among major college football’s leaders in the NCAA’s Academic Progress Rate.) Don’t get in trouble. (Only one player has been arrested in Shannon’s three-plus years, and that was on a misdemeanor charge.) Make sure no one calls the coach’s cell phone after midnight to report an issue.
