Ranking every Miami national championship team ahead of CFP title game

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Miami football can move into historic territory with one more win during the 2025 college football season.

The 10th-ranked Hurricanes will take on No. 1 Indiana in the College Football Playoff national championship game on Monday, Jan. 19, from Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Florida. With a win, Miami would win its sixth national championship, moving it into a tie with Michigan for the 10th-most championships ever, at six.

All five others came during a 19-year period from 1983 and 2001, the last of which is regarded as one of the best — if not the best — college football teams ever.

Winning on Jan. 19 would snap a 24-year drought for Miami and would serve as the cherry on top of a great CFP run that includes wins over No. 7 Texas A&M, No. 2 Ohio State (the defending national champion) and No. 6 Mississippi.

As kickoff nears for the Indiana-Miami game, here’s how USA TODAY Sports ranks Miami’s five national championships, using point differential, ranked wins, All-Americans and historical impact as the criteria:

5. 1989: Miami defeats Alabama in Sugar Bowl

Record: 11-1
Point differential: 24.3 points per game
Ranked wins: No. 9 Florida State | No. 14 Pitt | No. 1 Notre Dame | No. 7 Alabama
All-Americans: 1 (DE Greg Mark)

Following the disappointment of the 1988 season and the departure of coach Jimmy Johnson to the NFL, Miami entered the 1989 football season with a chip on its shoulder. The Hurricanes opened the season with wins of at least 28 points in five of their first six games.

However, a slight bump in the road came when Dennis Erickson, in his first year with the program, lost to in-state rival Florida State 24-10 on the road on Oct. 28, 1989.

Following the loss, Miami bounced back with four straight wins, including a 27-10 win over then-No. 1 Notre Dame at the Orange Bowl on Nov. 25. The win over the Fighting Irish brought the Hurricanes back into national championship contention.

Miami closed out the season with a 33-25 win over No. 7 Alabama in the Sugar Bowl. Combined with the win over the Crimson Tide and Colorado’s loss in the Orange Bowl, the Hurricanes earned their third and final national championship of the decade.

Following the season, Miami saw five players selected within the first 80 picks of the 1990 NFL Draft. Mario Cristobal was a key part of the offensive line, including defensive tackle Cortez Kennedy, who went No. 3 overall to the Seattle Seahawks.

4. 1983: Miami wins first national title in program history

Record: 11-1
Point differential: 14.8 points per game
Ranked wins: No. 13 Notre Dame | No. 12 West Virginia | No. 1 Nebraska
All-Americans: 0

The 1983 season began with a 28-3 road loss to in-state rival Florida in Gainesville, Florida. That would be curtains for a chance for a national championship most seasons, right? Not the case in 1983.

The Hurricanes, led by coach Howard Schnellenberger, would not lose again, rattling off 11 straight wins, culminating in a 31-30 win over No. 1 Nebraska in the 1984 Orange Bowl Classic on Jan. 1, 1984. The Cornhuskers were the only team in those 11 games to score more than 17 points against Miami’s defense, which also held seven opponents to under 10 points.

Despite the impressive winning streak to end the season, Miami never ranked higher than No. 5 in any of the in-season polls. But they jumped out to a 17-0 lead in the first quarter behind a pair of touchdown passes from quarterback Bernie Kosar.

However, following a Jeff Smith touchdown with under a minute remaining to make the score 31-30, Nebraska coach Tom Osborne opted to go for a 2-point conversion and the win. However, Kenny Calhoun broke up a pass in the end zone to get the Hurricanes the win.

Miami’s win, combined with losses by second-ranked Texas in the Cotton Bowl and No. 4 Illinois in the Rose Bowl, opened the door for the Hurricanes to move from No. 5 to No. 1 to earn the program’s first national championship.

3. 1991 Miami wins third championship in five years

Record: 12-0
Point differential: 23.8 points per game
Ranked wins: No. 10 Houston | No. 9 Penn State | No. 1 FSU | No. 11 Nebraska
All-Americans: 5 (OT Leon Searcy, LB Darrin Smith, S Darryl Williams, KR/PR Kevin Williams and K Carlos Huerta)

One of the key members of the 1991 team was all-conference offensive lineman Cristobal, on an offense led by quarterback Gino Torretta.

Just one team scored 20 points against the Hurricanes’ vaunted defense in 1991, with No. 9 Penn State losing 26-20 to Miami in the fifth game of the season. The defense held eight teams at 10 points or fewer, including shutting out Nebraska 22-0 in the Orange Bowl.

The perfect season would not have happened if not for “Wide Right I,” when FSU kicker Gerry Thomas missed a 34-yard game-winning field goal wide right on Nov. 16, 1991, giving Miami a 17-16 win. The Seminoles were ranked No. 1 at the time.

Tackle Leon Searcy and safety Darryl Williams were first-round selections in the 1992 NFL Draft.

2. 1987: Miami picks up six top-10 wins en route to championship

Record: 12-0
Point differential: 23.4 points per game
Ranked wins: No. 20 Florida | No. 10 Arkansas | No. 4 FSU | No. 10 Notre Dame | No. 8 South Carolina | No. 1 Oklahoma
All-Americans: 2 (DE Danny Stubbs and DB Bennie Blades)

In Jimmy Johnson’s fourth season as the Hurricanes’ head coach, Miami enjoyed its first perfect season en route to the national championship.

Miami came out on a mission after losing to No. 2 Penn State in the Fiesta Bowl, costing them a national championship. They opened the season with back-to-back wins over No. 20 Florida (31-4) and No. 10 Arkansas (51-7) by a combined 71 points.

The Hurricanes added a top-five win over rival FSU, and top-10 wins over Notre Dame and South Carolina before beating No. 1 Oklahoma 20-14 in the Orange Bowl en route to another championship.

With six top-10 wins, the 1987 team had one of the toughest strengths of schedule for a Miami championship squad. Despite the impressive resume, Miami was a three-point underdog at the Orange Bowl against the Sooners. That did not matter, as the Hurricanes never trailed in a 20-14 win over Oklahoma.

Seven Miami players were taken in the first 63 picks of the 1988 draft, including wide receiver Michael Irvin being selected No. 11 overall by the Dallas Cowboys.

1. 2001: Greatest team in CFB history?

Record: 12-0
Point differential: 33.2 points per game
Ranked wins: No. 13 FSU | No. 15 Syracuse | No. 11 Washington | No. 14 Virginia Tech | No. 4 Nebraska
All-Americans: Six (DB Ed Reed, OT Joaquin Gonzalez, OT Bryant McKinnie, CB/PR Phillip Buchanon, TE Jeremy Shockey and PK Todd Sievers)

When it comes to the discussion of the best college football teams of all-time, the 2001 Miami Hurricanes are at the center of the discussion. Miami put together another perfect 12-0 season and dominated opponents to an average difference of 33.2 points per game.

The 2001 Miami roster featured 17 future first-round NFL draft picks, 22 future All-Pro selections and 38 players who eventually found their way onto an NFL roster. Bryant McKinnie and Ed Reed were unanimous selections for All-American, while quarterback Ken Dorsey finished third in Heisman Trophy voting.

Five Miami players (Buchanon, McKinnie, Reed, Mike Rumph and Shockey) were picked in the first round of the 2002 NFL Draft, while four more (Andre Johnson, William Joseph, Jerome McDougle, and Willis McGahee) went in the first round of the 2003 draft. Six more (Vernon Carey, Sean Taylor, Jonathan Vilma, Vince Wilfork, D.J. Williams, and Kellen Winslow II) were first-round picks in 2004.

Of that drafted group, Reed (nine) and Johnson (seven) led the former Hurricanes’ stars in Pro Bowl selections as pros.

The 2001 Miami, 2019 LSU and 2020 Alabama teams belong in a class of their own for greatest college football teams ever. The 2025 Hurricanes have a chance to make sure 2025 Indiana is not brough into the discussion.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Ranking every Miami national championship team: Who’s behind 2001 team?

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