1985 Miami Hurricanes football team

1985 Miami Hurricanes football
Sugar Bowl, L 7–35 vs. Tennessee
Conference	Independent
Ranking
Coaches	No. 8
AP	No. 9
Record	10–2
Head coach	Jimmy Johnson (2nd season)
Offensive coordinator	Gary Stevens (3rd season)
Offensive scheme	Pro-style
Defensive coordinator	Paul Jette (1st season)
Base defense	4–3
MVP	Vinny Testaverde
Home stadium	Miami Orange Bowl
Seasons ←  1984 1986  →

1985 NCAA Division I-A independents football records

v t e	Conf.							Overall
Team	W		L		T			W		L		T
No. 3 Penn State		–		–				11	–	1	–	0
No. 9 Miami (FL)		–		–				10	–	2	–	0
Army		–		–				9	–	3	–	0
No. 15 Florida State		–		–				9	–	3	–	0
West Virginia		–		–				7	–	3	–	1
Southern Miss		–		–				7	–	4	–	0
Syracuse		–		–				7	–	5	–	0
Virginia Tech		–		–				6	–	5	–	0
Pittsburgh		–		–				5	–	5	–	1
Cincinnati		–		–				5	–	6	–	0
Notre Dame		–		–				5	–	6	–	0
South Carolina		–		–				5	–	6	–	0
Southwestern Louisiana		–		–				4	–	7	–	0
Navy		–		–				4	–	7	–	0
Temple		–		–				4	–	7	–	0
Boston College		–		–				4	–	8	–	0
Memphis State		–		–				2	–	7	–	2
Rutgers		–		–				2	–	8	–	1
East Carolina		–		–				2	–	9	–	0
Louisville		–		–				2	–	9	–	0
Tulane		–		–				1	–	10	–	0
Rankings from AP Poll

The 1985 Miami Hurricanes football team represented the University of Miami during the 1985 NCAA Division I-A football season. It was the Hurricanes' 60th season of football. The Hurricanes were led by second-year head coach Jimmy Johnson and played their home games at the Miami Orange Bowl. They finished the season 10–2 overall. They were invited to the Sugar Bowl, where they lost to Tennessee, 35–7.

Schedule

Date	Opponent	Rank	Site	TV	Result	Attendance	Source
September 7	No. 5 Florida		Miami Orange Bowl Miami, FL (rivalry)		L 23–35	80,227	[1]
September 14	at Rice		Rice Stadium Houston, TX		W 48–20	15,411	[2]
September 28	at Boston College		Sullivan Stadium Foxborough, MA		W 45–10	31,864	[3]
October 5	at East Carolina		Ficklen Memorial Stadium Greenville, NC		W 27–15	34,511	[4]
October 12	Cincinnati		Miami Orange Bowl Miami, FL		W 38–0	30,164	[5]
October 19	at No. 3 Oklahoma		Oklahoma Memorial Stadium Norman, OK	ABC	W 27–14	73,102	[6]
October 26	Louisville	No. 15	Miami Orange Bowl Miami, FL (rivalry)		W 45–7	31,761	[7]
November 2	at No. 10 Florida State	No. 11	Doak Campbell Stadium Tallahassee, FL (rivalry)	ABC	W 35–27	61,250	[8]
November 9	at Maryland	No. 8	Memorial Stadium Baltimore, MD	CBS	W 29–22	62,350	[9]
November 23	Colorado State	No. 4	Miami Orange Bowl Miami, FL		W 24–3	35,035	[10]
November 30	Notre Dame	No. 4	Miami Orange Bowl Miami, FL (rivalry)	CBS	W 58–7	49,236	[11]
January 1	vs. No. 8 Tennessee	No. 2	Louisiana Superdome New Orleans, LA (Sugar Bowl)	ABC	L 7–35	77,432	[12]
Homecoming Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game

Personnel

Roster

Player	Class	Pos	Summary
Vinny Testaverde*		QB	216 Cmp, 352 Att, 3238 Yds, 21 TD
Geoff Torretta		QB	11 Cmp, 16 Att, 263 Yds, 3 TD
Alonzo Highsmith*		RB	117 Att, 451 Yds, 3.9 Avg
Warren Williams*		RB	89 Att, 522 Yds, 5.9 Avg
Melvin Bratton		RB	67 Att, 285 Yds, 4.3 Avg
Darryl Oliver		RB	66 Att, 264 Yds, 4.0 Avg
J.C. Penny		RB	21 Att, 181 Yds, 8.6 Avg
Todd Stanish		RB	11 Att, 31 Yds, 2.8 Avg
Steve Staffier		RB	2 Att, 8 Yds, 4.0 Avg
Michael Irvin*		WR	46 Rec, 840 Yds, 18.3 Avg
Brian Blades*		WR	30 Rec, 657 Yds, 21.9 Avg
Brett Perriman		WR	14 Rec, 263 Yds, 18.8 Avg
Kenny Oliver		WR	5 Rec, 125 Yds, 25.0 Avg
Andre Brown		WR	2 Rec, 23 Yds, 11.5 Avg
Willie Smith*		TE	48 Rec, 669 Yds, 13.9 Avg
Charles Henry		TE	4 Rec, 48 Yds, 12.0 Avg
Alfredo Roberts		TE	1 Rec, 4 Yds, 4.0 Avg
Dave Alekna*		OL
Paul Bertucelli*		OL
Ed Davis*		OL
Paul O'Connor*		OL
Greg Rakoczy*		OL
John O'Neill		OL
Matt Patchan		OL
Jerome Brown*		DL
Kevin Fagan*		DL
Derwin Jones*		DL
John McVeigh*		DL
Victor Morris		DL
Dan Sileo		DL
Daniel Stubbs		DL
Rod Carter*		LB
Bruce Fleming*		LB
Randy Shannon*		LB
Winston Moss		LB
Tolbert Bain*		DB
Selwyn Brown*		DB
Donald Ellis*		DB
Darrell Fullington*		DB
Bennie Blades		DB
Jeff Feagles		P

1985 Miami Hurricanes football team roster
Players			Coaches
Offense Pos. # Name Class QB 14 Vinny Testaverde Jr RB 5 Melvin Bratton So RB 43 Cleveland Gary Fr RB 30 Alonzo Highsmith Jr RB 24 Warren Williams So WR 9 Brian Blades So WR 83 Andre Brown Fr WR 47 Michael Irvin Fr WR 33 Brett Perriman So OL 52 Darren Bruce Fr OL 75 John O'Neill Fr TE 87 Alfredo Roberts So	Defense Pos. # Name Class LB 91 Rod Carter Fr DB 19 Darrell Fullington So LB 22 Randy Shannon Fr DB 36 Bennie Blades So LB 45 George Mira Jr. So DE 96 Daniel Stubbs So DL 93 John McVeigh Sr DT 95 Kevin Fagan Sr	Special teams Pos. # Name Class K 25 Greg Cox So P 38 Jeff Feagles So	Head coach Jimmy Johnson Coordinators/assistant coaches Legend (C) Team captain (S) Suspended (I) Ineligible Injured Redshirt

Recruits

Jimmy Johnson and his staff had the key recruit in the 1985 class QB Steve Walsh Jimmy also continued collecting talent from Florida, "Ten of the 19 signees are from Florida. Last year, 18 of the 25 high school players who signed letters were from Florida (11 from Dade and Broward), and 19 of 26 who signed in 1983 were from Florida (nine from Dade and Broward)." ^[13]

Coaching staff

Name	Position	Seasons	Alma mater
Jimmy Johnson	Head coach	2nd	Arkansas (1965)
Gary Stevens	Offensive coordinator/quarterbacks	6th	John Carroll (1965)
Paul Jette	Defensive Coordinator/defensive backs	1st	Texas (1977)
Hubbard Alexander	Wide receivers	7th	Tennessee State (1962)
Joe Brodsky	Running backs	8th	Florida (1956)
Butch Davis	Defensive line	2nd	Arkansas (1973)
Art Kehoe	Assistant offensive line	1st	Miami (1982)
Don Soldinger	Tight ends	2nd	Memphis (1967)
Tony Wise	Offensive line	1st	Ithaca (1972)
Mike Knoll	Linebackers	2nd	Missouri Western State (1975)

Support staff

Name	Position	Seasons	Alma mater
Bill Foran	Strength & conditioning	1st	Central Michigan (1977)
Tom Ciskowski	Volunteer assistant
Mark Gibson	Volunteer assistant

^{[ citation needed ]}

Rankings

Further information: 1985 NCAA Division I-A football rankings

Game summaries

No. 5 Florida

See also: 1985 Florida Gators football team and Florida–Miami football rivalry

At Rice

See also: Rice Owls football

At Boston College

See also: 1985 Boston College Eagles football team

At East Carolina

See also: 1985 East Carolina Pirates football team

Cincinnati

See also: Cincinnati Bearcats football

at No. 3 Oklahoma

Team	1	2	3	4	Total
•Hurricanes	7	7	13	0	27
No. 3 Sooners	7	0	0	7	14

• Date: October 19
• Location: Oklahoma Memorial Stadium, Norman, Oklahoma
• Game weather: Overcast
• TV announcers (ABC): Keith Jackson, Frank Broyles, and Tim Brant

Scoring summary

1	8:44	Miami (FL)	Michael Irvin 56-yard pass from Vinny Testaverde (Greg Cox kick)	Miami (FL) 7-0
1	6:34	OU	Derrick Shepard 14-yard pass from Troy Aikman (Tim Lashar kick)	Tied 7-7
2	14:16	Miami (FL)	Testaverde 3-yard run (Cox kick)	Miami (FL) 14-7
3	8:49	Miami (FL)	Cox 20-yard field goal	Miami (FL) 17-7
3	4:06	Miami (FL)	Brian Blades 35-yard pass from Testaverde (Cox kick)	Miami (FL) 24-7
3	2:34	Miami (FL)	Cox 36-yard field goal	Miami (FL) 27-7
4	10:28	OU	Lydell Carr 1-yard run (Lashar kick)	Miami (FL) 27-14

See also: 1985 Oklahoma Sooners football team

^[14]

Louisville

See also: 1985 Louisville Cardinals football team

^[15]

at No. 10 Florida State

#11 Miami (FL) at #10 Florida State

Team	1	2	3	4	Total
•No. 11 Hurricanes	14	0	7	14	35
No. 10 Seminoles	14	10	0	3	27

• Date: November 2
• Location: Doak Campbell Stadium, Tallahassee, Florida
• Game attendance: 61,250
• TV announcers (ABC): Tim Brant

Scoring summary

1	10:04	FSU	Hassan Jones 8-yard pass from Chip Ferguson (Schmidt kick)	FSU 7-0
1	7:23	Miami (FL)	Brian Blades 10-yard pass from Vinny Testaverde (Cox kick)	Tied 7-7
1	7:06	Miami (FL)	Blades 38-yard pass from Testaverde (Cox kick)	Miami (FL) 14-7
1	0:25	FSU	Brian Davis blocked punt recovery in end zone (Schmidt kick)	Tied 14-14
2	6:52	FSU	Derek Schmidt 37-yard field goal	FSU 17-14
2	2:39	FSU	Pat Carter 26-yard pass from Chip Ferguson (Schmidt kick)	FSU 24-14
3	8:15	Miami (FL)	2-yard fun (Cox kick)	FSU 24-21
4	11:07	FSU	Derek Schmidt 44-yard field goal	FSU 27-21
4	9:55	Miami (FL)	Michael Irvin 30-yard pass from Testaverde (Cox kick)	Miami (FL) 28-27
4	3:06	Miami (FL)	Brett Perriman 2-yard pass from Testaverde (Cox kick)	Miami (FL) 35-27

See also: 1985 Florida State Seminoles football team and Florida State–Miami football rivalry

Despite being sacked seven times, Vinny Testaverde passed the Hurricanes to victory with 339 yards and four touchdowns. ^[16]

at Maryland

See also: 1985 Maryland Terrapins football team

Miami (FL) at Maryland

Team	1	2	3	4	Total
•No. 8 Hurricanes	0	13	7	9	29
Terrapins	10	3	9	0	22

• Date: November 9
• Location: Baltimore Memorial Stadium, Baltimore, MD
• Game attendance: 62,350
• TV announcers (CBS): Brent Musburger (play-by-play), Ara Parseghian (analyst), and Pat O'Brien (sideline)

^[17]

Colorado State

Colorado State at Miami (FL)

Team	1	2	3	4	Total
Rams	0	0	3	0	3
•No. 4 Hurricanes	0	3	7	14	24

• Date: November 23
• Location: Miami Orange Bowl, Miami
• Game attendance: 35,035

  

Scoring summary

2		MIA	Greg Cox 25-yard field goal	MIA 3-0
3		CSU	DeLine 44-yard field goal	Tied 3-3
		MIA	Highsmith 3-yard run (Greg Cox kick)	MIA 10-3
4		MIA	Bratton 1-yard run (Greg Cox kick)	MIA 17-3
		MIA	Oliver 5-yard run (Greg Cox kick)	MIA 24-3

See also: 1985 Colorado State Rams football team

Notre Dame

Notre Dame at Miami (FL)

Team	1	2	3	4	Total
Fighting Irish	0	7	0	0	7
•No. 4 Hurricanes	13	14	10	21	58

• Date: November 30
• Location: Miami Orange Bowl, Miami
• TV announcers (CBS): Brent Musburger (play-by-play), Ara Parseghian (analyst), and Pat O'Brien (sideline)

Scoring summary

1		MIA	Greg Cox 39-yard field goal	MIA 3-0
1		MIA	W. Williams 6-yard run (Greg Cox kick)	MIA 10-0
1		MIA	Greg Cox 47-yard field goal	MIA 13-0
2		MIA	Bennie Blades 61-yard interception return (Cox kick)	MIA 20-0
2		ND	Allen Pinkett 3-yard run (John Carney kick)	MIA 20-7
2		MIA	Melvin Bratton 7-yard pass from Vinny Testaverde (Cox kick)	MIA 27-7
3		MIA	Greg Cox 48-yard field goal	MIA 30-7
3		MIA	Michael Irvin 15-yard pass from Vinny Testaverde (Greg Cox kick)	MIA 37-7
4		MIA	Vinny Testaverde 1-yard run (Greg Cox kick)	MIA 44-7
4		MIA	Andre Brown 17-yard pass from Geoff Torretta (Seelig kick)	MIA 51-7
4	4:44	MIA	Bill Hawkins recovered blocked punt in end zone (Greg Cox kick)	MIA 58-7

See also: 1985 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team

Miami scored the most points in a game since 1967. The Hurricanes scored on their first four possessions, the fifth was ended when time ran out at halftime, and then they scored the first four times they got the ball in the second half. ^[18]

vs. No. 8 Tennessee (Sugar Bowl)

Miami (FL) vs. Tennessee

Team	1	2	3	4	Total
No. 2 Hurricanes	7	0	0	0	7
•No. 8 Volunteers	0	14	14	7	35

• Date: January 1
• Location: Louisiana Superdome, New Orleans, Louisiana
• Game attendance: 77,432
• Game weather: Indoors
• TV announcers (ABC): Keith Jackson, Frank Broyles, and Tim Brant

Scoring summary

1		Miami (FL)	Michael Irvin 18-yard pass from Vinny Testaverde (Greg Cox kick)	Miami 7-0
2		Tennessee	Jeff Smith 6-yard pass from Daryl Dickey (Fuad Reveiz kick)	Tied 7-7
2		Tennessee	Tim McGee fumble recovery in end zone (Reveiz kick)	Tennessee 14-7
3		Tennessee	Henderson 1-yard run (Reveiz kick)	Tennessee 21-7
3		Tennessee	Jeff Powell 60-yard run (Reveiz kick)	Tennessee 28-7
4		Tennessee	Charles Wilson 6-yard run (Reveiz kick)	Tennessee 35-7

Main article: 1986 Sugar Bowl

See also: 1985 Tennessee Volunteers football team

^{[19] [20]}

1986 NFL draft

Main article: 1986 NFL draft

Player	Position	Round	Pick	NFL club
Kevin Fagan	Defensive tackle	4	102	San Francisco 49ers
Reggie Sutton	Defensive back	5	115	New Orleans Saints
Willie Smith	Tight end	10	265	Cleveland Browns
John McVeigh	Linebacker	12	321	Seattle Seahawks

^[21]

References

1. "Bell passes Gators over Hurricanes". St. Lucie News Tribune. September 8, 1985. Retrieved November 4, 2023– via Newspapers.com.
2. "Hurricanes blow past Owls, 48–20". The Abilene Reporter-News. September 15, 1985. Retrieved April 13, 2025– via Newspapers.com.
3. "B.C. knew miracles would end". Sun-Journal. September 29, 1985. Retrieved April 13, 2025– via Newspapers.com.
4. "Terrific, terrible Testaverde propels Hurricanes, 27–15". The Miami Herald. October 6, 1985. Retrieved March 5, 2021– via Newspapers.com.
5. "Miami downs Cincinnati 38–0". The Macon Telegraph & News. October 13, 1985. Retrieved April 13, 2025– via Newspapers.com.
6. "Hurricanes blow away OU". San Angelo Standard-Times. October 20, 1985. Retrieved April 13, 2025– via Newspapers.com.
7. "Hurricanes whip Schnellenberger's Cardinals 45–7". The Tampa Tribune-Times. October 27, 1985. Retrieved April 13, 2025– via Newspapers.com.
8. "Miami comeback stops FSU, 35–27". The News Tribune. November 3, 1985. Retrieved April 13, 2025– via Newspapers.com.
9. "No miracles; Terps left with 'what if?'". The Baltimore Sun. November 10, 1985. Retrieved January 31, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
10. "Lackluster Hurricanes beat Colo. State 24–3". St. Petersburg Times. November 24, 1985. Retrieved April 13, 2025– via Newspapers.com.
11. "Hurricanes finally put it all together". Florida Today. December 1, 1985. Retrieved April 13, 2025– via Newspapers.com.
12. "Orange crush, but Tennessee, not Miami, does the damage". The Shreveport Journal. January 2, 1986. Retrieved November 4, 2023– via Newspapers.com.
13. "Um Gets 10 Floridians, Goes Out Of State For Qbs - Sun Sentinel". Archived from the original on July 20, 2014.
14. "MIAMI BEATS SOONERS, 27-14". The New York Times . October 20, 1985. Retrieved October 12, 2017.
15. "UM Pummels Louisville, 45-7". Sun Sentinel . October 27, 1985. Retrieved December 10, 2023.
16. "Miami's Come-From-Behind Victory Really 'Special'". The Palm Beach Post via newspapers.com. November 3, 1985. Retrieved January 18, 2020.
17. "MIAMI DEFEATS TERPS, 29-22". The New York Times . November 10, 1985. Retrieved January 18, 2020.
18. "FAUST ERA AT NOTRE DAME ENDS IN 58-7 HUMILIATION". The New York Times . December 10, 1985. Retrieved January 18, 2020.
19. "52nd Annual Sugar Bowl Classic ~ January 1, 1986". Sugar Bowl. January 1, 1986. Retrieved August 23, 2019.
20. "SUGAR BOWL; MIAMI SURPRISED BY TENNESSEE, 35-7". The New York Times . January 2, 1986. Retrieved August 23, 2019.
21. "1986 NFL Draft". pro-football-reference.com. Archived from the original on December 21, 2007. Retrieved August 23, 2019.