Ron Dugans grew up in Tallahassee and dreamed of becoming a Seminole. He did. He had an outstanding FSU career, too, with a couple big performances against Miami.
He should dislike everything about the Hurricanes. But he coaches them. And Dugans, in his first year as UM’s wide receivers coach, said playing in the Orange Bowl was his favorite memory of the rivalry.
“You knew coming to the Orange Bowl what kind of game it would be,” said Dugans, who played for coach Bobby Bowden and offensive coordinator Mark Richt from 1995-99. “The locker room wasn’t very nice. People throwing eggs at you. I miss the OB.
“That was something every year you looked forward to. That was every kid’s dream back then, to play in the OB. That’s what sticks out to me, because I know what it means to both schools, and I know what it means to the fans. Everybody looked forward to that game. You knew you were going against the best. Everybody’s coming to play.”
Dugans’ teams went 5-0 against Miami, and were ranked between No. 1 and No. 8 every single year. He caught a 42-yard pass against the Hurricanes as a true freshman in 1995. He was FSU’s leading receiver in the 1999 game, a 31-21 win in Tallahassee.
He graduated by the time UM won in 2000, the first of a six-game streak against the Noles.
As a former player, he understands how badly the Hurricanes want to break their six-game losing skid. As a 38-year-old coach, he knows the focus the current group needs to have.
“You knew what week it was back then, because every coach was getting after everybody,” he said. “Coach Richt has always been laid-back, get after you when he needed to, if something’s not right, he would fix it. Coach let us know it was an important game, but just take one play at a time.”
This will be the first big game in Miami’s renovated home, Hard Rock Stadium. Dugans hopes it is as loud and unfriendly to the Seminoles as the Orange Bowl was.
“On game day at Hard Rock, when you come off the bus and see all those fans, it’s like, ‘Wow,'” he said. “They love it. That’s a really nice stadium. To see it packed with orange and green, and for recruits to come watch how Miami is getting better each week, it means a lot.
“We had some fun. I enjoy and I embrace this rivalry. A lot of guys paved the way for it to become a rivalry.”
