Canes Turn To Whipple

Mark Whipple was sitting last week in a film room at the Philadelphia Eagles' complex, watching tapes of three Miami games from this past season.

He noticed many talented offensive players.

Now, it's Whipple's job to make them winners.

Whipple, who helped Ben Roethlisberger win his first Super Bowl and coached Massachusetts to a Division I-AA national title in 1998, was hired Tuesday as Miami's offensive coordinator - returning to the college game after four seasons as an NFL assistant.

He'll also be assistant head coach, something Miami coach Randy Shannon didn't have in either of the past two years.

"In one sense, my goal was to be a coordinator in the National Football League and a head coach," Whipple said. "But this opportunity came ... and my focus is really on trying to get the University of Miami to a national championship."

The 51-year-old was an offensive assistant with the Eagles this past season. He accepted the Miami job Monday, and the hiring process was complete Tuesday morning.

His first task will focus on recruiting: Signing day is Feb. 4, meaning Whipple will have about a week to get to know the players Miami is targeting. Whipple was planning to hit the road to start the recruiting quest Tuesday afternoon.

"Aside from being innovative at his craft, Mark is a tremendous individual who will positively impact our student-athletes on and off the field," Shannon said.

Whipple replaces Patrick Nix, who was fired after two seasons with the Hurricanes. Miami was 7-6 this past season, falling in the Emerald Bowl to California.

After Nix was fired, he said he had a different philosophy than Shannon.

So Shannon spent much of the past month searching for someone he'd be in sync with, and ultimately decided on Whipple, whose reputation in the college game was an impressive one.

"If we're not playing well on offense, then I know we're not going to be on the same page," Whipple said. "If we don't make first downs or score touchdowns, then no, our relationship's not going to be very good. That's just the bottom line."