COLLEGE FOOTBALL / BOWL REPORT : SUGAR : Aficionados of Trash-Talking

The subject was trash-talking, an item of interest dear to the heart of every self-respecting Miami Hurricane player. At Miami, berating and verbally intimidating opponents has been elevated to an art form.

“It’s something you learn from the ‘hood,” Hurricane linebacker Micheal Barrow said. “That’s the way the game is supposed to be played. It’s not cricket.”

An example: Miami wide receiver Lamar Thomas, no wallflower, makes it a point to introduce himself to an opposing defensive back after catching a pass. “It’s going to be a long night,” he’ll say.

Or if a cornerback decides to try to play bump and run against him, Thomas tells him, “This could get dangerous.”

And if Thomas is in a playful mood, he will actually beg a defender to quit using zone coverage and instead try covering him one on one.

“When they start talking back to me, I know I’ve got them,” Thomas said.

But this was a day when the Hurricanes paid homage to other great trash-talking teams, beginning with the Iowa running back who, after being tackled by Miami linebacker Darrin Smith, said, “Next time, why don’t you hit me with your purse.”

“We stopped and laughed at that one,” Barrow said.

As far as team trash-talkers, Thomas gave high marks to several surprising sources.

“Brigham Young talked more trash than I’ve ever heard,” he said. “They were saying all types of Mormon words.”

Next on the Thomas list of candidates was Notre Dame.

“They were saying curse words I’d never heard in my life,” Thomas said of the Irish. “I said, ‘Hey, you guys are Catholics.’ ”

Only one team, agreed Barrow and Thomas, is immune to Miami’s trash-talking practices.

“Florida State,” Barrow said. “You can’t really intimidate them.”

And then, in a gesture befitting of their reputation, Thomas decided to zing Friday night’s Sugar Bowl opponent, No. 2-ranked Alabama. Asked if he thought Florida, which lost to the Crimson Tide in the Southeastern Conference Championship game, should have won the contest, Thomas said: “I think Florida had a good game plan. I was pulling for them. I wanted to play Florida State again . . . good competition.”