COLLEGE FOOTBALL Miami needs 3 more wins

CORAL GABLES, Fla. (AP) -- The flight would be long, the faces even longer.
The Miami Hurricanes trudged out of Husky Stadium and into a somber locker room. Players cried, coaches consoled, and everyone prepared for the cross-country trip home -- as losers.
Stunned and silent, the Hurricanes then watched a replay of their 34-29 loss to Washington during the five-hour plane ride from Seattle to Miami. Few of them will ever forget it, mostly because they haven't felt like that since.
Top-ranked Miami hasn't lost since that painful day, Sept. 9, 2000 -- compiling a 31-game winning streak that is the longest in major college football in more than 30 years. It covers 26 months, 10 ranked teams, four close calls, two head coaches and one national championship.
It's a run the Hurricanes didn't foresee and don't want to end.
"It's something that we're not going to be able to fathom until we get done playing," safety Maurice Sikes said. "That's the only time you can sit back and really enjoy it. We know that if we lose one game we're out of it, so we've got to win every game. Then at the end of the season, let's count them all up and see how many we have."
Need 3-game sweep
The idle Hurricanes (9-0, 4-0 Big East) have games remaining against No. 18 Pittsburgh, Syracuse and No. 13 Virginia Tech. If they win all three, they will earn a berth in the Jan. 3 Fiesta Bowl to play for a second consecutive national title.
The 'Canes expect to win them all, and maybe with good reason.
"We're winning at an unbelievable clip," longtime offensive line coach Art Kehoe said. "Just in the last 19 years, we have five national titles, a 58-game home winning streak, a 29-game winning streak and now a 31-game winning streak. It's sick. No one else is remotely close to any of those things. It means we're doing a lot of things right."
It starts with talent and coaching.
The small, private school located just southwest of downtown Miami is surrounded by diverse nightlife, beautiful beaches and -- most importantly -- talented teenagers wanting to play college football. Combined with a tradition of winning national titles and sending players to the NFL, the Hurricanes feel they have the perfect recipe for success.
Streak proves it
The winning streak proves it.
"The parity has gotten so prevalent and has equalized everything it's just amazing that they've been able to run off 31 games in a row," Florida State coach Bobby Bowden said.
The difference?
"Talent and coaching," Bowden said. "They've got a great coaching staff and then they are in a talented area. They're probably in the most talented area of the United States."
Only six Division I-A teams have had winning streaks longer than Miami, but none since Toledo's 35-game winning streak that ended in 1971. Oklahoma (1953-57) holds the NCAA Division I-A record with 47 consecutive victories. Miami would need to remain unbeaten this season and go undefeated next year to break the mark.
"They're capable, but I would say it would be mighty hard," Bowden said. "But the way they are playing, it wouldn't surprise me."
Bowden knows better than anyone.
3 losses to Miami
His Seminoles have lost to Miami three times during the streak. The Hurricanes used a touchdown drive in the final minutes to beat them 27-24 in 2000, ended their 54-game home unbeaten streak last season, 49-27, and then edged them 28-27 this year on a missed field goal in the final seconds.
"You've got to be excellent, and they are that, but even being excellent you've still got to get a couple of breaks," Bowden said.
Miami has won four games in the closing minutes, including the two against Florida State. The Hurricanes also needed a last-second interception returned for a touchdown to seal an 18-7 victory over Boston College and a dropped 2-point conversion pass against Virginia Tech that led to a 26-24 win.
"It's just amazing what they're doing," Oregon State coach Dennis Erickson said. "When you have a streak like that, you always play with a target on your back. Everyone wants to be the one to beat you."
Erickson coached Miami to a school-record 29 consecutive wins from 1990 to 1993, but the current Hurricanes eclipsed that mark with a lackluster win over Rutgers two weeks ago. The Hurricanes followed with a dominating performance against Tennessee last Saturday -- much more indicative of their play throughout the streak.
"That's a really good group of football players, and extremely well coached," Penn State coach Joe Paterno said. "When they get to a big game, they know what they're doing."