Sun Sentinel Palm Beach Edition
Turnover trash talk to take center stage
CORAL GABLES — A year after their beloved Turnover Chain became a viral sensation, the Hurricanes have watched — somewhat bemusedly — as college football teams across the country have tried to duplicate not necessarily the chain itself, but the results and excitement it helped produce in Miami and beyond.
There are Turnover Beads at Tulane. A Turnover Plank at Kennesaw State. A Turnover Chainsaw at Oregon State. A Turnover Robe at Memphis. A Turnover Throne at Boise State. A Turnover Belt at Ohio.
And, oh yeah, there’s a Turnover Backpack at Florida State.
Even Miami’s biggest rival couldn’t help but jump on the trend Miami started. On Saturday afternoon when the Seminoles visit Hard Rock Stadium for the latest showdown in one of college football’s most well-known rivalries, a fascinating subplot will play out on the sidelines.
For the first time, the team that made the sideline prop a spectacle will face a team with a prop of its own. And so, the questions must be asked.
Will the Turnover Chain, the gold standard of turnover props, make more appearances than the Turnover Backpack? Or will the backpack — which has been mocked mercilessly on social media by both Miami and Florida State fans alike — steal the spotlight?
Understandably, there are strong opinions on the issue in Coral Gables.
“The purse?” Hurricanes left guard Venzell Boulware quipped when asked this week about Florida State joining the turnover prop craze. “It’s not shocking. Everybody around the country is doing it. It’s fun to see, seeing that happen. You know you’re doing something good when that happens.”
Added Miami linebacker Mike Pinckney, “We made the whole thing exciting. It’s good. It’s something everybody on the team wants and it’s a good thing for our defensive coordinator [Manny Diaz] to come up with because everybody wants to have that spotlight. That’s exciting. Anything you can do to let your defense come alive and compete, you’ve got to do it.”
That competitiveness is a large part of what helped the Turnover Chain become so popular. Last season, after the chain made its debut, the Hurricanes went on to force 31 turnovers, third most in the nation and most in the ACC. Miami also won 10 straight games, claimed its first Coastal Division title and appeared in its first ACC Championship Game.
Yes, the Hurricanes finished the season with three straight losses, but the point Diaz made many times throughout the season was proven true — without on-field results, the Turnover Chain wouldn’t be nearly as fun.
As No. 17 Miami turns its focus to Florida State, the Hurricanes defense is coming off one of its most memorable performances of late.
In last Thursday’s 47-10 win over North Carolina, the Hurricanes forced six turnovers and scored three defensive touchdowns, the chain likely getting as much TV time as any single player on the field that night.
“That was very different. The crowd was lit. We were lit,” said Hurricanes striker Romeo Finley, who scored on an 83-yard interception return against North Carolina and celebrated by, of course, donning the chain and showing it off to Miami’s frenzied fans.
Through five games, the Hurricanes have totaled 12 turnovers — fourth most in the nation. Florida State, meanwhile, comes in having forced eight turnovers, ranking 39th among FBS programs.
Now comes one of the biggest tests each defense anticipates it will face all year, regardless of the opponent’s record. In each of the last four games in the series, neither Miami nor Florida State has scored more than 30 points. And each of those games has been decided by five points or less.
Chains or backpacks, fun as they may be, won’t be what defines Saturday’s game.
“You can do a lot of great things, but a lot of people are going to ask you what you did in this game, did you win this game?” Pinckney said. “I think we’ve just got to come out and dominate. You’ve got to realize the atmosphere and how big this game is.”