'Canes Arrive In Phoenix For Fiesta
Dec 27, 2002
By BOB BAUM
AP Sports Writer
PHOENIX (AP) – When No. 1 Miami came to the 1987 Fiesta Bowl, the playerscame off the plane wearing camouflage fatigues and a combative attitude.
This year’s Hurricanes arrived at Sky Harbor International Airport on Fridayin Miami green sweat suits – no arrogance, just the calm confidence of aprogram on a 34-game winning streak.
“We’re really not a fatigues-type team,” coach Larry Coker said. “We arebusiness as usual. We have a tremendous task ahead of us. I don’t thinkfatigues are going to help us prepare and have a chance to beat Ohio State.”
If those long-ago ‘Canes had a thuggish image, the modern version is fardifferent.
“The big thing I can speak to on this team is I think we do havecharacter,” Coker said at a brief airport news conference. “That’s somethingthat’s very special.”
After last year’s national championship, Coker spoke to his returningplayers about how they had a chance to repeat and “and why maybe some of theother teams didn’t repeat.”
“That was about being unselfish,” Coker said. “And I think this is a veryunselfish team. That’s a big reason why we’re here and have the opportunitythat we have.”
As was the case when No. 2 Ohio State arrived on Thursday, the No. 1Hurricanes were greeted by a mariachi band and dozens of yellow-jacketed FiestaBowl officials as they climbed off the plane onto a red carpet.
Only 25 players were on board the chartered plane. After getting theChristmas holiday off, the rest were arriving on their own. The team practicedFriday at Scottsdale Community College.
Coker has been asked why the Hurricanes don’t seem more excited as they seekto become the first repeat national champions since Nebraska in 1994-95 andjust the second since Alabama in 1978-79.
“Well, you know, the game is a week away, so we don’t want to be too hypedup too soon,” he said, “but our players will be ready to play.”
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Larry Coker answers questions during a news conference following his team’s arrival in Phoenix. |
The Hurricanes will be allowed to mix business with pleasure in the daysleading to the Jan. 3 national championship showdown at Sun Devil Stadium.
“This is a reward for our players. I want this to be a great collegeexperience,” Coker said. “This is not life or death. When it’s time to havefun, we’ll have fun. When it’s time to practice, we’re going to be focused inbetween the lines and we’re going to practice hard.”
Coker is 24-0 as a head coach at Miami. The Hurricanes are 0-3 in FiestaBowls. One of those streaks won’t last beyond the next week, and oddsmakersrate Miami a double-digit favorite to end its Fiesta drought.
The Big East already is off to a good start, with Boston College winning theMotor City Bowl and Pittsburgh the Insight Bowl on Thursday. The performanceadds weight to Coker’s insistence that his conference no longer is loaded withpushovers. Still to come are West Virginia against Virginia in the ContinentalTire Bowl on Saturday and Virginia Tech against Air Force in the San FranciscoBowl on New Year’s Eve.
Miami will try to cap it by winning the biggest of them all.
“There’s a chance it could be a very good bowl season for the Big East,”Coker said. “I think the teams have a chance to win every game.”
