The 1989 Miami Hurricanes football team represented the University of Miami as an independent during the 1989 NCAA Division I-A football season. It was the Hurricanes' 64th season of football. The Hurricanes were led by first-year head coach Dennis Erickson and played their home games at the Orange Bowl. They finished the season 11–1 overall. They were invited to the Sugar Bowl where they defeated Alabama, 33–25, to win the program's third national championship.
Schedule
Rankings
Game summaries
At Wisconsin
California
At Missouri
At Michigan State
Cincinnati
San Jose State
Backup Gino Torretta, making his second consecutive start for the injured Craig Erickson, threw for a school-record 468 yards and 3 touchdowns. The Hurricanes picked up their 48th win in 49 games.
At Florida State
Prior to the Miami-Florida State game, University of Miami mascot Sebastian the Ibis was tackled by a group of police officers for attempting to put out Chief Osceola's flaming spear. Sebastian was wearing a fireman's helmet and yellow raincoat and holding a fire extinguisher. When a police officer attempted to grab the fire extinguisher, the officer was sprayed in the chest. Sebastian was handcuffed by four officers but ultimately released. Miami quarterback Gino Torretta, who started the game in place of injured Craig Erickson, told ESPN, "Even if we weren't bad boys, it added to the mystique that, 'Man, look, even their mascot's getting arrested.'"
East Carolina
At Pittsburgh
San Diego State
Notre Dame
The Hurricanes avenged a close loss from the previous year in South Bend. This game marked the seventh time in seven attempts that Miami defeated a #1 ranked team during the 1980s.
Vs. Alabama (Sugar Bowl)
Personnel Roster
Coaching staff Name Position Seasons Alma mater Dennis Erickson Head coach 1st Montana State (1969) Bob Bratkowski Offensive coordinator/wide receivers 1st Washington State (1978) Sonny Lubick Defensive coordinator/defensive backs 1st Western Montana (1960) Gregg Smith Offensive line 1st Idaho (1969) Dave Arnold Special teams/tight ends 1st Bob Karmelowicz Defensive line 1st Bridgeport (1972) Art Kehoe Assistant offensive line 5th Miami (1982) Ed Orgeron Defensive line 1st Northwestern State (1984) Tommy Tuberville Linebackers 1st Southern Arkansas (1976) Alex Wood Running backs 1st Iowa (1978)
Support staff Name Position Seasons Alma mater Brad Roll Strength & Conditioning 1st Stephen F. Austin (1980) Carmen Grosso Graduate Assistant Ronnie Lee Graduate Assistant Scott Runyan Graduate Assistant Pete Savage Graduate Assistant Dan Werner Volunteer Assistant 3rd Western Michigan (1983)
1990 NFL draft
Player Position Round Pick Team Cortez KennedyDefensive tackle 13 Seattle Seahawks Jimmie Jones Defensive tackle 364 Dallas Cowboys Bernard ClarkLinebacker365 Cincinnati Bengals Willis PegueseDefensive end 372 Houston Oilers Greg Mark Defensive end 379 New York Giants Richard Newbill Linebacker 5126 Houston Oilers Dale Dawkins Wide receiver9223 New York Jets Kenny BerryDefensive back 10256 San Diego Chargers Bobby Harden Defensive back 12315 Miami Dolphins
References