#544. The Memory of that Miami - Florida International Riot

Continuing our drive to make SBPDL the ultimate 365Black destination, a rehashing of a previous story is in order so as to explain the importance of today’s entry.

College football kicked off last week and people of all races were glued to the television screens as ratings for the opening weekend reached record highs:

“The NCAA season kicked off Thursday, Sept. 3, with a matchup between unranked South Carolina and N.C. State, which drew 3.26 million viewers between 7 p.m. and 10:04 p.m. The Gamecocks’ sloppy 7-3 victory outdrew ESPN’s 2008 season opener by 38 percent.”

“A nine-minute edition of College Game day Scoreboard drew 3.89 million viewers, leading into the Boise St.-Oregon throw down (3.86 million viewers).

“For the week ended Sept. 6, ESPN drew an average nightly audience of 3.73 million total viewers, per Nielsen live-plus-same-day ratings. The network also swept the three core TV demos, drawing 1.87 million adults 25-54, 1.8 million viewers 18-49 and 818,000 18-34s.”

During the opening weekend of college football, a seemingly isolated incident transpired in Boise, Idaho, as the Boise State Broncos defeated Oregon 19-8. Black running back Lagarrette Blount of Oregon decided to sucker punch a white player from Boise State and then challenge everyone in his path.

Seemingly isolated until you weave this incident into an interesting pattern that has been repeating itself in college football games in the 21^st century as Black people causing massive riots during games is now a common sight.

Blount was suspended for the season for his actions after the Boise State game, but in the annals of thuggery and football his actions barely elicit a blip.

In the 2006 Miami-Florida International football game, a brawl broke out between the nearly all-Black teams that took more than five minutes to breakup and ended in the suspension of 31 total player s(all-Black people) from the combined squads:

“With 9 minutes left in the 3rd quarter, Miami H-back James Bryant caught a 5-yard touchdown pass…

During the ensuing PAT attempt, FIU safety Chris Smith wrestled Miami holder Matt Perelli (white player) to the ground after the kick and appeared to punch him in the chin. FIU cornerback, Marshall McDuffie, Jr., kicked Perelli in the head.Miami players, including Calais Campbell, came to Perelli's defense, separating Miami and FIU players. FIU's Lionel Singleton punched Campbell in the back of the helmet, which was quickly followed by retaliation from both teams, escalating the fight to a bench-clearing brawl. Miami's Anthony Reddick swung his helmet at FIU players and Miami's Brandon Meriweather kicked an FIU player. FIU's A'Mod Ned, who was injured, came onto the field and swung at Miami players with his crutches. The fight lasted less than two minutes with Florida Highway Patrol State Troopers and FIU Police coming onto the field to restore order.

Officials needed several minutes to sort out the penalties. Ultimately, 13 players were assessed 15-yard penalties for fighting and ejected from the game (eight from FIU and five from Miami). Although the unsportsmanlike conduct penalties for fighting offset each other, Miami was forced to kick off from its own 10-yard line due to the original penalty against Bryant (penalized at half the distance to the goal).”

The incident made national headlines and was replayed on ESPN and other sports channels over and over again and of those 31 players who were suspended, all were Black people:

• For FIU: cornerback Marshall McDuffie, Jr., cornerback Chris Smith, offensive lineman Michael Alls, offensive linemen Chad Sales, linebacker Mannie Wellington, linebacker Michael Dominguez, linebacker Scott Bryant, defensive lineman Roland Clarke, fullback John Ellis, defensive back Cory Fleming, defensive lineman Reginald Jones, defensive back Robert Mitchell, linebacker Quentin Newman, defensive lineman Luis Pena, defensive end Jarvis Penerton, running back Julian Reams, defensive back Lionell Singleton, tight end Samuel Smith and wide receiver Chandler Williams
• For Miami: cornerback Carlos Armour, offensive tackle Chris Barney, H-back James Bryant, offensive tackle Tyrone Byrd, tight end DajLeon Farr, wide receiver Ryan Hill, cornerback Bruce Johnson, running back Charlie Jones, safety Brandon Meriweather, punter Brian Monroe, offensive guard Derrick Morse, cornerback Randy Phillips and safety Anthony Reddick

Miami ended up winning the game, but the evidence to support the notion that the University of Miami is the quintessential “THUG U” was cemented forever.

In 2003, a prominent Black player for Miami, Kellen Winslow, went on record as being a soldier for THUG U and more importantly, articulated a code of conduct that Black people at all schools live by:

"Yeah, I don't give a hell. It's about this U, man. I don't give a flyin' you-know-what about a Vol. I don't give a damn! He would do the same thing to me. It's war. They don't give a freakin' you-know-what about you. They will kill you. They're out there to kill you. So I'm 'a kill 'em. You write that in the paper. You write that. You make money off that. No, man, I'm pissed. All y'all take this down. I'm pissed, man. We don't care about nobody except this U. We don't. If I didn't hurt him, he'd hurt me. They were gunnin' for my legs. I'm 'a come right back at 'em. I'm a fuckin' soldier!"

Black people would love for the story of rioting and college football to end here, but in 2004 a brawl occurred during the rivalry game between Historically White Colleges the University of South Carolina and Clemson University, which both field nearly all-Black teams:

“…a massive fight resulted during the after two Clemson players hit a South Carolina wide receiver on the helmet after an incomplete pass with 5:56 left to go in the fourth quarter ^[2][3]. Some players on the field from both teams engaged in shoving and punching and both benches practically cleared as chaos erupted on the field. State Troopers, as well as other local law enforcement officers, entered the field to restore order. No fans ever entered the field. Play was suspended for six minutes.

"The fight overshadowed the last game Lou Holtz participated in as Carolina's head coach, as he retired at the end of the season. Holtz quoted that he "is going to be remembered along with [former Ohio State coach] Woody Hayes for having a fight at the Clemson game". Holtz then handed the coaching reins to Steve Spurrier. Clemson won the game 29-7.”

Black people have a historic record of rioting in major cities in United States and this has carried over into the football stadiums on college campuses where thousands of white people now pay to watch these riots occur for their enjoyment.

Stuff Black People Don’t Like includes the memory of that Miami – Florida International riot, for it shows that the Blount incident at Boise is not an isolated occurrence. Rioting and unsportsmanlike activity is a part of college football and the pervasive THUG U mentality helps to ensure that it stays that way.