GABOS: Now Is the Time for Miami to Practice What We Preach

I was sat on the train to work this morning, still thinking about Miami’s defeat to Notre Dame, and something occurred to me.

We’ve all seen GABOS written across Malachi Toney’s eye black. It’s become something associated with one of the most exciting players in college football, but there’s a much bigger message behind those five letters.

Toney has spoken about GABOS being more than football. It’s a mindset, a way of approaching life and understanding that nobody owes you anything.

And right now, I think it’s a message that everyone connected with the Miami Hurricanes needs to remember.

It’s Easy to Say When You’re Winning

Think about where we were just over a week ago.

Miami were 8-0, sitting at No. 1 in the country, with Toney tearing apart defences and the Hurricanes looking like genuine national championship contenders.

Then everything changed.

Toney suffered an ankle injury that required surgery, ruling him out of the Notre Dame game and leaving Miami without their biggest offensive weapon.

Then came the 31-24 defeat in South Bend.

And, of course, that controversial Elija Lofton touchdown that was ruled incomplete.

Three things that haven’t exactly gone our way.

It’s easy to embrace GABOS when you’re winning games, scoring touchdowns and everything seems to be falling into place.

But surely the real test of that mentality comes when things aren’t going your way?

Nobody Owes Miami Anything

Notre Dame weren’t going to take it easy on us because Toney was injured.

The officials weren’t going to award Lofton a touchdown because Miami had fought back from 24-3.

And the rest of college football certainly isn’t going to feel sorry for the Hurricanes because our unbeaten season has ended.

That’s football.

I still believe Lofton’s catch was a touchdown. I’m still gutted about the defeat, and I still think Miami were capable of winning that game.

But none of that changes the result.

We can spend the next week debating the officials, complaining about injuries and wondering what might have been.

Or we can remember what GABOS stands for.

That doesn’t mean we shouldn’t support Toney through his recovery or that players and fans aren’t allowed to be disappointed.

It means not allowing adversity to become an excuse.

We Need to Live It Too

And this isn’t just about the players.

It’s about us as supporters.

We’re quick to celebrate GABOS when Toney is making incredible catches and Miami are winning.

Now we’ve suffered our first defeat, we need to show that we believe in the message beyond the good times.

Back the players who have to step up. Hold the team accountable when performances aren’t good enough. But don’t lose faith because things have become difficult.

We saw against Notre Dame that Mensah, Barkate and Lofton are more than capable of making plays.

The talent hasn’t disappeared overnight.

The coaches need to find solutions, the players need to respond, and we need to get behind them.

The Last Word from Across the Pond

We can’t change what happened in South Bend. We can’t take back Toney’s injury, overturn the Lofton decision or turn that defeat into a victory.

But we can decide how we respond.

And that’s what GABOS is really about.

Miami haven’t suddenly become a bad football team because they’ve lost a game. This is still the team that started the season 8-0, reached No. 1 in the country and gave us so much to be excited about.

We’ve seen what Mensah, Lofton, Barkate, Fletcher and the rest of this team can do. We’ve seen the fight they showed when everything appeared to be going against them in South Bend.

Now it’s time to build on that.

For the players, it’s about trusting each other, learning from mistakes and getting back to playing the fearless football that brought us this far.

For us as fans, it’s about continuing to believe, getting behind the team and remembering why we support the Hurricanes in the first place.

We can be disappointed. We can demand better. But we can also be part of the positivity that helps this team move forward.

Because GABOS doesn’t mean you won’t face setbacks. It means those setbacks don’t have to define you.

The unbeaten season might be over, but our ambitions aren’t.

Duke are next. Another game, another opportunity and another chance for this team to show what it’s made of.

And perhaps, when we look back at this season, we’ll remember Notre Dame not simply as the game we lost, but as the moment that inspired what came next.

GABOS isn’t just about how you play when everything is going your way. It’s about who you become when it isn’t.

Let’s get behind this team and see where the journey takes us.

GABOS. Go Canes.