1971 Miami Hurricanes football team

1971 Miami Hurricanes football
Conference	Independent
Record	4–7
Head coach	Fran Curci (1st season)
MVP	Mike Riley
Home stadium	Miami Orange Bowl
Seasons ←  1970 1972  →

1971 NCAA University Division independents football records

v t e	Conf.							Overall
Team	W		L		T			W		L		T
No. 5 Penn State			–					11	–	1	–	0
Boston College			–					9	–	2	–	0
No. 17 Houston			–					9	–	3	–	0
No. 13 Notre Dame			–					8	–	2	–	0
Utah State			–					8	–	3	–	0
Florida State			–					8	–	4	–	0
Cincinnati			–					7	–	4	–	0
West Virginia			–					7	–	4	–	0
Temple			–					6	–	2	–	1
Air Force			–					6	–	4	–	0
Army			–					6	–	4	–	0
Colgate			–					6	–	4	–	0
Villanova			–					6	–	4	–	1
South Carolina			–					6	–	5	–	0
Southern Miss			–					6	–	5	–	0
Georgia Tech			–					6	–	6	–	0
Northern Illinois			–					5	–	5	–	1
Syracuse			–					5	–	5	–	1
Dayton			–					5	–	6	–	0
Holy Cross			–					4	–	6	–	0
Miami (FL)			–					4	–	7	–	0
Rutgers			–					4	–	7	–	0
Virginia Tech			–					4	–	7	–	0
Navy			–					3	–	8	–	0
Pittsburgh			–					3	–	8	–	0
Tulane			–					3	–	8	–	0
Marshall			–					2	–	8	–	0
Xavier			–					1	–	9	–	0
Rankings from AP Poll

The 1971 Miami Hurricanes football team represented the University of Miami as an independent during the 1971 NCAA University Division football season. Led by first-year head coach Fran Curci, the Hurricanes played their home games at the Miami Orange Bowl in Miami, Florida. Miami finished the season with a record of 4–7.

Schedule

Date	Time	Opponent	Site	TV	Result	Attendance	Source
September 18	1:52 p.m.	Florida State	Miami Orange Bowl Miami, FL (rivalry)	ABC	L 17–20	20,266	[1]
September 25		at Wake Forest	Groves Stadium Winston-Salem, NC		W 29–10	24,500	[2]
October 1	8:14 p.m.	Baylor	Miami Orange Bowl Miami, FL		W 41–15	26,876	[3]
October 9	8:15 p.m.	No. 7 Notre Dame	Miami Orange Bowl Miami, FL (rivalry)		L 0–17	64,357	[4]
October 15	8:15 p.m.	Navy	Miami Orange Bowl Miami, FL		W 31–16	26,728	[5]
October 29	8:15 p.m.	Army	Miami Orange Bowl Miami, FL		W 24–13	24,323	[6]
November 5		NC State	Miami Orange Bowl Miami, FL		L 7–13	19,228	[7]
November 13		at No. 4 Alabama	Denny Stadium Tuscaloosa, AL		L 3–31	57,313	[8] [9]
November 20	8:30 p.m.	at No. 16 Houston	Houston Astrodome Houston, TX		L 6–27	29,276	[10]
November 27		Florida	Miami Orange Bowl Miami, FL (rivalry)		L 16–45	37,710	[11]
December 4	8:01 p.m.	Syracuse	Miami Orange Bowl Miami, FL		L 6–17	17,224	[12]
Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game All times are in Eastern time

^{[13] [14]}

Personnel

1971 Miami Hurricanes football team roster
Players			Coaches
Offense Pos. # Name Class QB 12 John Hornibrook	Defense Pos. # Name Class	Special teams Pos. # Name Class	Head coach Fran Curci Coordinators/assistant coaches Legend (C) Team captain (S) Suspended (I) Ineligible Injured Redshirt

References

1. "Seminoles win No. 2". The Pensacola News-Journal. September 19, 1971. Retrieved September 28, 2025– via Newspapers.com.
2. "Miami wins, 29–10". The Orlando Sentinel. September 26, 1971. Retrieved January 23, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
3. "Miami bombs Baylor's Bears". Longview Morning Journal. October 2, 1971. Retrieved March 26, 2025– via Newspapers.com.
4. "Irish handle Hurricanes in an easy 17–0 fashion". Tallahassee Democrat. October 10, 1971. Retrieved September 28, 2025– via Newspapers.com.
5. "Miami scores early, coasts past Navy, 31–16". The Orlando Sentinel. October 16, 1971. Retrieved September 28, 2025– via Newspapers.com.
6. "Miami rally whips Army". The Knoxville News-Sentinel. October 30, 1971. Retrieved September 28, 2025– via Newspapers.com.
7. "N.C. State upsets error-prone Hurricanes". The Palm Beach Post. November 6, 1971. Retrieved January 23, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
8. Reed, Delbert (November 14, 1971). "Crippled Tide can stand pain". The Tuscaloosa News. p. B1. Retrieved February 9, 2014.
9. Stout, Harold (November 14, 1971). "Bama chalks up new records in 31–3 trashing of Miami". The Florence Times. p. 25. Retrieved February 9, 2014.
10. "Bowl-bound Cougars dump Hurricanes". The Palm Beach Post-Times. November 21, 1971. Retrieved April 10, 2025– via Newspapers.com.
11. "Reaves: Wow!". St. Petersburg Times. November 28, 1971. Retrieved January 23, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
12. "Syracuse stymies Hurricanes, 14–0". The Miami Herald. December 5, 1971. Retrieved September 28, 2025– via Newspapers.com.
13. "1971 Football Schedule". Sports Reference LLC. Archived from the original on January 3, 2015. Retrieved October 13, 2016.
14. "Schedule/Results (1971 Miami)". NCAA Statistics. National Collegiate Athletic Association . Retrieved May 11, 2025.