Miami Hurricanes Diehard Fan Series: Jimmy Pumariega
As we head into the 2014 Miami Hurricanes football season, I decided it would be a good idea to pay homage to some of the diehard Cane fans. I will be doing a series of these Q&A interviews, so stay tuned! The first fan that I want to honor is Jimmy Puma (short for Pumariega). As many fans know, the Puma family is very well respected around the Hurricane community. Heck, even Coach Golden gave a shout out to Jimmy recently on twitter. I had the privilege of doing a Q&A interview with Jimmy recently and I am very ecstatic to share it with fellow Canes fans.
First off, Tell us a little bit about yourself and how/when did you become a Canes fan?
Growing up my twin older brothers Roly and Willy (@willldathrill) had a great influence on the Canes fanatic that I am today. My older, crazy brother would drive me to Little Havana from Hialeah to attend Hurricane games at the Orange Bowl. These games were always very memorable and always included great shenanigans, like getting on the field, to making it into a post game press conference and Roly actually asking a question in the tunnel as a reporter. Being a father to five great kids makes me revert back to those fond memories in hopes I will instill the same great memories.
What is the most memorable Canes game that you’ve attended?
Hands down, I’d have to say UM vs UCLA on December 5, 1998, when we won 49-45. Edgerrin James ran for 299 yards on 39 carries in the last game of the season and killed their national championship hopes.
What is your typical gameday/tailgate routine?
The preparation begins the night before by going to the store to buy liquor, food, and any essentials that my friends might need. We park in the green lot with our friends and families gets us in before everybody. We setup, start cooking, drinking, sharing stories and raising canes. We also make a point to attend Caneswalk. We love to welcome our boys and coaches and show them we care.
Do you have any game day superstitions?
While packing the van on game day, I always have to have, ‘In the air tonight’ by Phil Collins blasting really loud. It plays on a loop over and over until the process is done. Unfortunately, on early game days (like the Gator game last year) it doesn’t go too well with the neighbors, lol.
Didn’t you coin the term, ‘It’s not a nation, it’s a family?’ If so, how did you come up with it?
In fact, I actually did come up with this slogan/term. At the time I never imagined it would blow up the way it did. Most universities refer to themselves as a ‘nation’ due to their large student population and alumni. Miami being a smaller private university has always had the family feeling. When I refer to family, I am referring to the actual school, fans, and players from the past and present with their lifelong kinship they all uphold to this day amongst each other. They are always coming back to the school and giving back someway.
Who is your favorite Canes player of all time and why?
This is actually a tough question. There being so many players that have come through the smoke of the Orange Bowl and have become champions, it makes it difficult to pick just one. But one player has always stood out, one I always look back to. It has to be the moment when Alonzo Highsmith stood in the middle of the Orange Bowl pre-coin toss and stated, ‘I ain’t scared of you bi___!’ This was Miami vs the mighty Oklahoma Sooners in 1986. He stood there along side Winston Moss and Jerome Brown (RIP). He knew before anyone else, the greatness of Miami football. Miami was scared of no one. We will play you anywhere and at any time.
What would you say to the younger generation to convince them to be a Canes fan? They’ve seen UF and FSU win championships but not The U. Why should they be Hurricane fans?
All you have to do is look at the current NFL rosters, NFL Hall of Famers, and Pro Bowlers. All college teams go through their ups and downs. Look at Alabama, they were nobody for about 15-20 years. Look at USC before Pete Carroll came on board. Look at Ohio State, etc. Florida State didn’t win a national championship for 14 years, everything in between doesn’t mean jack. We are on our 13th year. Enough said!
Lastly, would you like to give any predictions for the upcoming season?
I am horrible at these predictions in fear of jinxing the team. I’ll answer with my generic go to answer, ‘This is our year!’
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If you would like follow Jimmy on twitter you can at @DirtySouthCanes. Also, don’t forget to ask him how to order one of his ‘It’s not a nation…It’s a family’ t-shirts.
I’d like to thank Jimmy for his time and for sharing his thoughts and stories with fellow Cane fans. It was truly an honor to learn more about one of the biggest diehard Miami Hurricane fans.