It’s been a while, hasn’t it? It’s been a while since a Miami Hurricanes football game galvanized the entire city and generated some real excitement about college football in South Florida. Ever since Ken Dorsey helplessly threw his last pass out of the endzone in the 2003 Fiesta Bowl, Hurricane football has had about as much buzz as a busload of Mormons.

THE U MAY NOT YET BE BACK, BUT HOPE IS

But Monday night’s thriller in Tallahassee seems to have brought back the optimism that has been gone for so long. We had heard Randy Shannon had been recruiting some talent, sure. But all the program had to show for his efforts was a losing season and a loss in a bowl game named after a coffee table snack. But Monday night at Doak Campbell Stadium gave us a taste of the promise long left unfulfilled. The Hurricanes upset arch nemesis Florida State, on the road nonetheless, sending a message that if The U isn’t back, it is certainly well on its way.
 

Wide receivers made athletic plays and impressive catches. Highly touted running backs channeled their inner Willis McGahee—making plays we haven’t seen for the better part of a decade. And a quarterback. The U finally had a signal caller who looked like he could actually read a defense and make good throws under pressure. And he could even run. If he were white and playing in the SEC, people might be calling him the greatest football player of all time. But let’s hold that adoration off until Jacory Harris has a four-loss season as a starter like his Gainesville counterpart.

LET’S NOT PLAN THE PARADE JUST YET
 

Granted, the game was not perfect. The defense gave up 34 points which would be enough to lose to a better defensive team. Miami has a tough road ahead of itself in the next few weeks, culminating with an October 2 showdown with last year’s runner up Oklahoma. And despite the Sooners’ quarterback possibly missing that encounter, Sam Bradford does not play defense. Which is something Oklahoma does extremely well.
 

There have been big wins in the past seven years. There have been home wins against ranked teams and the bi-annual beating of Florida State.  But this one just felt different. This team looked legitimately good, not just slightly less awful than the team it was playing. The team’s leader held it together under pressure, and despite a less-than-impressive performance, the defense held the Seminoles when the outcome was on the line. The Canes did not look dominant the way an elite team might, but they did look like the kind of players capable of beating anyone if they played their best.
 
Anyone who knows me knows I am not an optimistic sports fan. But even a cynical fan like myself has to sit back and say, “Man, the ‘Canes look like a pretty good team this year.” ‘Canes fans, though, we’re smart. We’re not brainwashed homers like the Tebowites in Gainesville. We aren’t expecting a national title, or even a finish in the top 5 after one impressive win. But we are expecting a team that gives us hope, and Monday night we got it. Let’s see if the young Miami Hurricanes can keep this momentum rolling through the rest of the season and provide real optimism going into 2010.

Matt Meltzer is a featured columnist at Miami Beach 411. Matt’s column appears Tuesdays. See more articles by Matt Meltzer >