The Rise Follows the Fall

Asking two college football powers to share a national championship seems akin to asking a couple of toddlers to play nice with one toy in the sandbox.

But after Washington and Miami shared the 1991 title, Don James, then the Huskies coach, said, “I think it would have been a tragedy if one of us didn’t get a trophy. It’s the fairest thing that could happen.”

And this from former Miami quarterback Gino Torretta: “Washington deserves it, too.”

The happy co-champions shared less cheery common ground soon after when both landed on probation (Washington, 1993-94; Miami, 1995-97). The sanctions didn’t knock out either program as some predicted, but it sent them to the smelling salts.

Heavyweights again, the shared title, the probation, even Washington snapping Miami’s 58-game winning streak at the Orange Bowl in 1994 will provide drama to what is already one of college football’s must-see events this fall when the two teams meet September 9 in Seattle.

The only non-conference games that should have more clout are Florida-Florida State, Florida State-Miami and, perhaps, Nebraska-Notre Dame. Miami enters the season ranked No. 6 in TSN’s poll; Washington is 16th.

The winner will have a chance for big things. The Hurricanes play the Seminoles and their biggest league test, Virginia Tech, at home, and they should feast on the rest of the Big East. Washington is as good a bet as any in the Pac-10, especially since it doesn’t play a strong USC team. If the Huskies beat the Hurricanes and win at Colorado the next week, they should roll to their best season since ’91.

Washington’s biggest advantages over Miami are QB Marques Tuiasosopo and Husky Stadium. Tuiasosopo is the most dynamic quarterback in the nation, Michael Vick not included. Also, the home-field advantage should not be underestimated, particularly when a team has to travel from Miami to Seattle early in the season, when distractions and hiccups are more commonplace.

But don’t look for a stud quarterback and 3,300-plus miles to undo the ‘Canes. In receivers Santana Moss and Reggie Wayne and running backs James Jackson, Najeh Davenport and Clinton Portis, Miami’s offensive weapons are without peer. Defensively, the Hurricanes’ versatile linebackers should keep a wrap on Tuiasosopo’s scrambling, and in what may be the game’s key, their secondary--the best in college football--should take away Tuiasosopo’s pedestrian receiving options.

Another Miami asset: Butch Davis is in the sixth year of establishing his mark on his program; Rick Neuheisel is in his second.

The best guess: Miami 30, Washington 20.

Much of the focus leading up to the game will be on the past, but it should be on where Miami and Washington are going. The co-championship is becoming a distant memory. So are the probations.