The Miami Hurricanes made their first-ever trip to the College Football Playoff during the 2025 season. The playoff berth marked the first time in decades that the Canes were seriously in the mix for a national title.
It was a welcome return to prominence for a program with a storied history that includes five national titles. The last of those came in 2002.
Let’s take a look back at that national title–winning squad.
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When was the last time Miami won a national title?
The last time Miami won a national title came during the 2001-02 season. That year, Larry Coker was in his first season as the Hurricanes’ head coach.
Coker was already well acquainted with the program, having served as Miami’s offensive coordinator under Butch Davis from 1995 to 2000. While the Hurricanes did not win a national championship during that stretch, they went 51-20 over those six seasons and finished 11-1 with a Sugar Bowl victory in 2000.
The 2001 team was loaded with star power, featuring 17 players who eventually became first-round NFL Draft picks. On offense, quarterback Ken Dorsey led the way, throwing for 2,652 yards with 23 touchdowns and nine interceptions.
Dorsey was surrounded by dynamic playmakers, including wide receivers Andre Johnson and Kevin Beard, along with tight end Jeremy Shockey. Johnson totaled 37 receptions for 682 yards and 10 touchdowns, while Shockey added 519 yards and seven scores.
Miami’s rushing attack was equally formidable, led by junior Clinton Portis, who rushed for 1,200 yards and 10 touchdowns while averaging 5.5 yards per carry. Frank Gore and Willis McGahee combined for 876 yards and eight touchdowns as well.
Defensively, the Hurricanes were anchored by future NFL and College Football Hall of Famer Ed Reed, who led the nation with nine interceptions, two of which he returned for touchdowns. The unit also featured linebacker Jonathan Vilma, who recorded 73 total tackles, and defensive tackle William Joseph, who posted 10 sacks.
Miami entered the season with high expectations, opening at No. 2 in the AP preseason poll behind Florida. The Hurricanes quickly lived up to the hype, finishing a perfect 12-0 season capped by a dominant 37-14 Rose Bowl victory over Nebraska.
The Canes were so dominant, most of its games weren't close. Miami beat its opponents by an average margin of 33.2 points per game, the largest margin in Miami school history. Just one Miami game all season was a one-score game, its 27-24 win over Virginia Tech in the last week of the season.
Coker continued on for five more seasons with the Canes, but his 2001 season remains Miami's last national-title winning season.
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Miami national title and CFP history
Miami has won five national titles in its storied history, including in 1983, 1987, 1989, 1991 and 2001. The school also was named national champions in 1986, 1988, 1990, 2000, 2002, but that was when the sport still had several different polls that awarded national championships.
Since the conclusion of the 2001-02 season, the Hurricanes have been searching for a return to true national relevance. Miami cycled through several head coaches who failed to pan out, including Randy Shannon, Al Golden, Mark Richt and Manny Diaz, before Mario Cristobal arrived in 2022.
True national title contention during that stretch was rare. Larry Coker posted 12-1 and 11-2 records in 2002 and 2003, respectively, but Miami lost to Ohio State in the 2002 national championship game, and LSU won the title in 2003. The Hurricanes’ best finish prior to Cristobal came in 2017 under Richt, when they went 10-3. Three straight losses to close the season, including defeats to Pitt and Clemson, knocked Miami out of the playoff hunt.
Miami also missed the playoff during Cristobal’s first three seasons, going 5-7, 7-6 and 10-3 from 2022 to 2024.
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