Hurricanes Ranked 5th In AP Preseason Football Poll
Aug. 5, 2000
CORAL GABLES, Fla. (www.hurricanesports.com) – The University of Miami football team is ranked fifth by the Associated Press in the service’s preseason football poll of media members for the 2000 season. The ranking is the highest for Miami in the AP preseason poll since the Hurricanes were ranked fifth to start the 1993 season.
Nebraska begins the season atop the poll, ahead of defending national champion Florida State. The second-ranked Seminoles visit UM at the Orange Bowl on October 7. Alabama ranks third in the national survey of members of the news media with Wisconsin ranking fourth. Florida ranks ninth in the poll, marking the fifth time in the last 10 years that UM, FSU and UF have begun the season together in the top 10.
“The ranking is a nice complement to our program and indicates to all of us that people think we have a chance to be a very good football team,” said head coach Butch Davis. “I tend to look at the ranking as more of an indication of where people think the program stands and that’s very complementary. Of course, you have to earn any ranking on the field. We have very good leadership on this team. We have veteran players who understand how important it is to remain focused on the game itself, instead of being distracted by the polls.”
The top 10 ranking marks the first such preseason ranking for UM since 1994. It is the highest preseason ranking for UM since 1993 when the Hurricanes began the season ranked fifth and eventually played Nebraska for the national championship in the Orange Bowl. The Hurricanes will begin the season ranked among the top 10 for the fifth time in 10 seasons, and UM begins among the top five for the fourth time since 1991.
Miami will face three schools in the AP preseason top 25 rankings. In addition to No. 2 FSU, the Hurricanes will visit No. 13 Washington on September 9 and host No. 11 Virginia Tech November 4 at the Orange Bowl. The Hurricanes begin the 2000 season Thursday, August 31, against McNeese State at the Orange Bowl. Kickoff is set for 7:30 p.m.
For ticket information for Hurricanes football, contact the UM Ticket Office at (305) 284-4808.
