Rivalry Revisited
By David Villavicencio
The rivalry between the Miami Hurricanes and Notre Dame Fighting Irish is one of the most influential in the great history of college football.
Though the two legendary college football programs have only met 25 times heading into Saturday’s 3:30 p.m., ET matchup in Notre Dame, Ind., so many of those battles helped shape the history of both programs and college football as a whole.
“It’s another opportunity for us to play the game of football again and to have a performance that we’ll all be proud of,” Miami head football coach Mark Richt said. “We’re looking forward to the challenge of playing Notre Dame. We know there’s a lot of history in this one. Regardless of the record, regardless of what anyone is doing, how we’re doing conference-wise – good or bad – this game kinds of stands alone, and we know that. So we’re looking forward to it.”
Notre Dame is one of the winningest programs in college football history, earning 11 national titles from 1924-1988, while Miami burst on the scene as a national powerhouse in the 1980s and has won five national championships. But the two programs built the biggest rivalry of the 1980s, meeting in so many games that many around the country felt would decide the national championship.
From 1987-89, the winner of the annual Miami-Notre Dame meeting would go on to win the national title, with the Canes shutting out Lou Holtz’s Irish, 24-0, in 1987. Notre Dame avenged the loss a year later with a 31-30 win in South Bend, while the Canes would defend their home field in 1989 with a 27-10 victory over the then No. 1-ranked Fighting Irish en route to the third of their five national titles.
While the fan bases for both schools are aware of the many unforgettable matchups between the two college football giants, the players on both teams may be less familiar as Miami and Notre Dame have faced off just twice since ending their annual meeting following the 1990 season.
“We’ll give them a little history,” Richt said. “I know think it’s important to do that, for them to really understand. I’m not going to spend the whole week just harping on that, but I think it’s important for them to know the history of the series and some of the great games that have been played by two teams that have a national brand. That’s pretty impressive.”
Growing up in Miami, Hurricanes’ defensive coordinator Manny Diaz grew up immersed in the rivalry and he has helped echo the importance of it to his players all week.
“They’re being told that at Miami you get judged by whether you beat Notre Dame or not,” Diaz said. “If you don’t beat Notre Dame, it’s a failure. It’s a big deal. It’s a big thing in this University and in this town. If we are 12-0 or 0-12 and playing here, there or on the moon, Miami must beat Notre Dame. There have been great games throughout the years. Our players must understand that it’s fun to come to The U in recruiting, but you have to understand what made The U, ‘The U.’ Those battles that went both ways in the 80s are really what made The U, ‘The U.’”
Several leaders on both sides of the ball for Miami have expressed their thoughts on the opportunity to play against Notre Dame, but senior safety Jamal Carter knows a victory Saturday would forever be part of the 2016 Hurricanes’ legacy.
“I agree with everything [defensive coordinator Manny Diaz] said,” Carter said. “It is a big game. After three losses, we are trying to break this losing streak. This would be a huge win for us, giving us momentum to finish out the season strong.”
Fellow senior wide receiver Stacy Coley says the Hurricanes understand the environment will be hostile Saturday, but the Hurricanes just need “to go out there and play our game.”
Junior offensive lineman Trevor Darling is looking forward to the opportunity of playing in South Bend and trying to earn a victory for the first time since 1984.
“We’re just excited as a team and up for the challenge,” Darling said. “We’re just getting together and working on the things we need to work on to handle our business.”
The rivalry goes beyond the football field for two Hurricanes as they have family ties to both schools. Sophomore defensive lineman RJ McIntosh said he has tried to stay focused on football and not send too any texts this week to his younger brother Deon, a freshman running back at Notre Dame.
But it’s junior offensive lineman Kc McDermott who has learned a lot about the Miami-Notre Dame rivalry over the years as his oldest brother, Tyler, was a graduate assistant at Notre Dame, while Shane was an All-ACC center at Miami. According to Kc, the McDermott family will be all Miami this week, but he uses his brother’s connection to the Fighting Irish as extra motivation to go into South Bend and get a victory.
“Having my brother coach there is another big reason why I should want to beat them,” McDermott said. “He wants me to beat them, even though he coached there. He always supports me and that is what a good brother does and that is what it means to us as a family.’
“For the two schools, it is a big time rivalry and there is a lot of heated battles that have happened in this rivalry and it looks like this is going to be another one,” McDermott said. “Obviously last time we played them wasn’t good for us, so we are going to look forward to get some pay back for what happened last time.”
The Canes will face a tough task on Saturday against Notre Dame, with the Irish offense led by star quarterback Deshone Kizer averaging over 30 points per game so far this season. Add in the excitement of the rivalry matchup and a hostile environment that senior defensive back Adrian Colbert experienced a year ago as a member of the Texas Longhorns and you have the makings of what should be an incredible game.
“It is a historical place to play at,” Colbert said. “Their fan base is ridiculous. When we went there, it was really hostile. You think going into a Catholic school that they are going to be a little nicer, but they are pretty down with it. They are die-hard fans and throughout the game are talking straight cash to you. They do not care what the score is, who you are or how good you are, they are just going to be there for their team for the whole game. They are going to talk from the opening kickoff until the end. That is just how it is. We just have to go in with a good mind set, block out the fans and just play our game.”
