"I haven't seen them be that much of a contender in my lifetime"
MUCH OF CONTENDER?
Laura Rutledge, you are not 14 years old. You were born in 1988.
She was alive when that absolute garbage Cleveland Gary bad call against Notre Dame cost us a title.
She was alive when we won in all in 1989 (smoking ND along the way, payback for the previous year).
She was alive when at the end of 1990 season in which we finished
#3 , we absolutely shellacked Texas at that infamous 1991 Cotton Bowl - committing a record number of celebration penalties after Texas had spent the preceding month talking smack about Miami after they got snubbed from playing Colorado in the Orange Bowl for a chance at
#1 .
She was alive when we were undefeated national champs in 1991.
She was alive when we played Alabama for the national title in 1992 (and sadly lost, finishing
#3 ).
She was alive when we played Nebraska for the title in 1994 (and sadly lost a 4th quarter heartbreaker, finishing
#3 ).
She was alive when in 2000, the BCS computers snubbed consensus
#2 Miami hard - leaving us out of a championship everyone absolutely agreed we should have been in and instead bestowing it upon FSU who we beat that season. FSU would go on to be embarrassed and we finished the season
#2 .
She was alive when in 2001, the greatest college football team to have ever been assembled won it all.
She was alive in 2002 when referee Terry Porter threw a late garbage flag after Miami had won it's sixth national title and some BS pass interference on 4th down gave Ohio State new life, and the game.
2003 would be the last time we finished the year top 5 - but she can't claim we weren't a contender in her lifetime when her lifetime overlaps with Miami's decade of dominance and the unreal teams of the early 00's.
GTFOH.
