MIAMI — Before every game this season, Miami wide receivers coach Kevin Beard would gather his players together to FaceTime with former program greats such as Andre Johnson, Reggie Wayne and Santana Moss, asking each one: What do you expect to see from us?
A wideout for the Hurricanes himself in the early 2000s, Beard would open up the floor and let each former player share their thoughts on what it means to play receiver at Miami. In doing so, Beard’s current group would hear the same message he’d been delivering, but from outside voices with baked-in credibility.
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“I want them to hear from somebody else,” said Beard. “So when they hear, they understand that this is the standard.”
Miami has long been defined in part by the parade of former players who continue to haunt the program’s halls and practice fields, passing along tips and tricks in a type of oral history.
“They understand it already,” said defensive line coach Jason Taylor. “They hear about it. The brotherhood the University of Miami has post-playing days is palpable.”
Michael Irvin (left) celebrates with Miami defensive back Jakobe Thomas (8) during the team’s College Football Playoff game against Texas A&M at Kyle Field.
Led by a former Miami offensive lineman in coach Mario Cristobal and motivated by pregame speeches from program legends such as Michael Irvin and Ray Lewis, this year’s team has clearly taken these lessons to heart, leaving the Hurricanes one win away from the program’s national championship since 2001.
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“You can’t afford to lose,” said offensive tackle Francis Mauigoa, who had the chance to spend time this season with former Miami linemen Bryan McKinnie and Jon Feliciano. “They were the tone-setters back then. So we want to continue on their legacy.
“You can see the sense of brotherhood that the program has. It’s something that you don’t get often.”
When talking to the team, as Lewis did before the Fiesta Bowl against Mississippi, these former players describe how the names, coaches and conference affiliations may change, but that every Miami player is responsible for continuing a legacy that dates back decades, even if the program has been mired in a generation-long championship drought.
“I’m learning anything I can,” he said. “It’s a little like, ‘Damn, that’s Ray Lewis. That’s Edgerrin James.’ At the same time, they’re here for us, and I’m taking as much knowledge that I can on and off the field.”
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Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson attended the University of Miami on a full athletic scholarship, graduating in 1995 with a Bachelor of General Studies degree in criminology and physiology.
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Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson attended the University of Miami on a full athletic scholarship, graduating in 1995 with a Bachelor of General Studies degree in criminology and physiology.
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Social media star and TV personality Alix Earle attended the University of Miami and graduated in 2023 with a Bachelor’s degree in Marketing (BBA) and established a scholarship through the Miami Herbert Business School to support juniors and seniors in business programs.
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Actor Ray Liotta studied acting at the University of Miami in the 70’s where he met fellow actor Steven Bauer.
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Actor Sylvester Stallone attended the University of Miami in the late 60’s, where he studied drama and earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts (BFA) in 1998.
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Alex Rodriguez signed a letter of intent to play baseball at the University of Miami, but turned pro with the Seattle Mariners before playing for the school.
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Music superstar Gloria Estefan graduated from the University of Miami in 1979 and received an honorary doctorate in1993.
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Recording artist Ben Folds briefly studied at the University of Miami’s Frost School of Music.
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Spanish singer and songwriter Enrique Iglesias attended the University of Miami between 1993-94 studying business before starting his musical career.
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US Secretary of State Marco Rubio earned his Juris Doctor degree from the University of Miami School of Law in 1996, graduating cum laude.
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Sports reporter Dan LeBatard graduated from the University of Miami in 1990 with a degree in journalism
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Stephen ‘Steve-O’ Glover of “Jackass” fame spent time at UM in 1993.
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Producer, actor, writer and comedian Jeff Garlin spent one semester at University of Miami in the 80’s where he began performing stand-up comedy.
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Musician Bruce Hornsby graduated from the University of Miami School of Music in 1977.
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Henry Edward Roberts, “Father of the personal computer” was born in Miami and originally attended University of Miami studying medicine.
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Olympic gold medal winning diver Greg Louganis attended the University of Miami in 1978 on a diving scholarship, transferring to UC Irvine in 1980 to work with coach Ron O’Brien.
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Sports agent Drew Rosenhaus graduated from UM in 1987.
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Broadcaster Suzy Kolber attended the University of Miami and graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree in telecommunications in 1986.
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Actor Laverne Cox attended IU on a dance scholarship studying for two years in the 90’s before transferring to Marymount Manhattan College in NYC.
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“Breaking Bad” and “Better Call Saul” actor Jonathan Banks attended IU in the mid-1960’s and appeared in a production of “Threepenny Opera” with fellow actor Kevin Kline. Banks dropped out shortly after making the Dean’s List.
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Dallas Mavericks owner and businessman Mark Cuban earned his degree in management from IU in 1981.
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Actor Kevin Kline began his IU career in music before switching to speech and theater, graduating in 1970.
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“Hunger Games” author Suzanne Collins graduated from Indiana University in 1985 with a B.A. in theatre and telecommunications.
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“Hoosiers” director David Anspaugh attended Indiana University from 1965-69 where he began shooting 16mm films.
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Writer/director Angelo Pizzo grew up in Bloomington and attended IU where he met David Anspaugh, before they both went to film school at USC.
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Bollywood actor Ranveer Singh earned his BA in telecommunications, minoring in Theater in 2008.
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Television journalist Jane Pauley attended IU from 1968-72 graduation with a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science.
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Sportscaster Dick Enberg earned his master’s and doctorate degrees in health sciences at IU and began his legendary broadcast career there doing the Little 500 bicycle race and Hoosier sports games.
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Producer/writer/director Ryan Murphy was a journalism major at IU graduating in 1988.
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Actor Lee Majors played football at IU from 1957-59 before transferring to Eastern Kentucky University.
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Broadcaster Joe Buck began his career while a student at Indiana University in 1989 studying English and Telecommunications.
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Donald Fehr graduated from IU in 1970 with a degree in political science before going to law school. He worked as executive director in both the NHL and Major League Baseball.
In some cases, understanding the legacy means going on YouTube and watching grainy, standard-definition clips of vintage TV broadcasts.
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Irvin left Miami after the 1987 season and finished his NFL career in 1999, when Cristobal was in his second season as a Miami graduate assistant. Lewis retired in 2012 and James in 2009, when most of this year’s team was in elementary school.
But all three lingered around this installment of the Hurricanes, sharing what their teams looked like and their opinions on what creates and maintains a winning environment. Before the Peach Bowl, linebacker Wesley Bissainthe recalled, Lewis told the team to play for one another and to take things one play at a time.
“To have him come back and speak life into us, there’s no better feeling,” Bissainthe said. “We try our best to model our games after guys like that.”
This year’s team is the first since at least 2003 to find a place in Miami’s pantheon of great teams, joining championship-winning squads of 1983, 1987, 1989, 1991 and 2001 along with the many groups — in 1986, 1988, 1990, 2000, 2002 — that staked a claim to being seen as the best team in college football.
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There’s a subtle turn-back-the-clock aspect to this year’s run to the championship game against unbeaten Indiana, in part because of Cristobal’s blueprint for reestablishing the Hurricanes’ physical dominance on the line of scrimmage. Because of his existing links to the program, Cristobal hasn’t shied away from connecting the past with the present; instead, the Hurricanes have embraced the expectations that come with tying the 2025 team with those that established Miami as a national power.
“That’s the foundation that we had,” Beard said. “We are living our lives trying to make the guys before us proud.”
But the Hurricanes also understand they are creating their own legacy.
“At the end of the day, they’re not the ones who are making plays,” said defensive lineman Ahkeem Mesidor. “This is the 2025 Miami team. It’s not 2001. It’s not the 1990s.”
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Win or lose on Monday night, the 2025 team may go down as the one responsible for putting Miami back on the map, should the program’s upward trajectory continue deeper into Cristobal’s tenure.
This team is already responsible for erasing Miami’s reputation for folding under pressure by beating Notre Dame in the season opener, rallying from a midseason lull to make the playoff and then beating three higher-ranked opponents in Texas A&M, Ohio State and the Rebels.
A win against the Hoosiers might give Miami the most impressive postseason résumé of any team in Bowl Subdivision history, aided by the expanded playoff format. If so, the Hurricanes will have beaten the tournament’s No. 7, No. 2, No. 6 and No. 1 seeds.
While there are tangible ways to show how the Hurricanes have remained linked to the past, Miami has also forged ahead, said Cristobal, adapting to a new landscape of college football that’s miles removed from the era of the program’s heyday.
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“To protect that and to keep the integrity of that, we’ve gone a route where it’s different than some of the traditional Miami teams, and that’s okay,” he said.
“But there was never any lean towards going back. You go back to take the principles and values and bring them forward. But to go forward, that’s in my opinion, as a head coach, the best way to do it.”
These Hurricanes are simply writing the next chapter, creating a unique legacy to layer upon the program’s existing history.
“We understand we’re right in the middle of the 2025 chapter of the Miami Hurricanes,” Taylor said. “We’re not living in the glory days or the former times.”
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Miami football embraces former stars in CFP run but wants own legacy