University of Miami


1967 Hurricanes
(Authentic Reproduction)

 

 

 

     

Tate was now a hot property and was tabbed to succeed his mentor Bobby Dodd at Georgia Tech but chose to remain at Miami with a contract extension and promises to grow the program. The 7-4 record of 1967 was a let-down as Playboy Magazine had chosen the 'Canes as the pre-season number one team in the country and Tate as pre-season Coach Of The Year. Other publications gave them similar high ranking but end Jim Cox and running backs Joe Mira (George's brother), Doug McGee, John Acuff and Vince Opalsky could not overcome the revolving door at QB that included Bill Miller, David Teal, and Dave Olivo. Hendricks and Bob Tatarek, a huge 270-pound DT who later had a five year career with the Bills could not maintain the same overall performance of the '66 defensive squad. They dropped their first two games, switched the offense to a more run-oriented attack behind Olivo, finished at 7-3 and then lost to Colorado in the Bluebonnet Bowl. Only Hendricks played spectacularly as billed in the pre-season, and despite drawing over 77,000 for the Notre Dame contest, attendance was down. One of the highlights of the '67 season was the addition of Hurricane warning flags that were placed on the sides of the gold shells. The Kelly green one-inch center stripe was maintained and this very unique look has remained a point of great interest for all Miami fans and helmet collectors. The Miami athletic department had the team play their opening game of the 2005 season against Florida State in a "throwback" replica of the same helmet, jersey, and pants style as worn in that 1967 season. A unique "GET A GATOR" decal replaced the hurricane warning flags on the side of the helmets for the annual tilt against Florida, a game that the 'Canes won 20-13.

If interested in any of these Miami helmets please click on the photos below.