Traditions unite generations of Canes

By News@TheU 08-25-2025

Members of the University of Miami community often boast about the pride they feel when-across a crowded room, perhaps in a city far from Miami-someone sees their U-branded apparel and responds by "throwing up the U" with their hands, fingers tightly aligned, thumbs kissing each other. It's an instant connection, a joyful camaraderie of being affiliated with one of the best research universities in the United States.

The gesture is one of many University of Miami traditions developed over the last century, and several can trace their origins to the flora, fauna, or climate of South Florida-including the Miami Hurricanes name.

Among a few different theories, legend says the first members of the football team suggested they be called "Hurricanes" because one such storm had postponed the University's opening game-or because they wanted to sweep away their opponents with great force. The name caught on quickly, with the student newspaper renaming itself from University News to The Miami Hurricane in 1929, just two years after the publication launched.

Read the full issue of Miami magazine's centennial edition online.

While the Hurricanes name denotes strength and a whirlwind of energy, the school mascot is a symbol of courage. Our Sebastian mascot is an ibis, a wetland bird known to be the last wildlife to leave its habitat before a hurricane and the first to return after the storm. The University's yearbook has been named "Ibis" since 1926, but the bird didn't become the official mascot until 1957, after a costume that was created for a Homecoming event made its football field debut the following year. Originally named Icky, the mascot was renamed Sebastian after the San Sebastian dormitory. The first mascot was a boxer dog named Hurricane the First, also known as Hurricane I.

When you hear someone say "I bleed orange and green," they are referring to the colors of the institution, selected in 1926 to represent the green leaves, white blossoms, and orange fruit of the Florida orange tree.

Category 5, the student-run spirit programming board, focuses on preserving and implementing traditions related to sports. For all Division 1 sports at the U, Cat 5's presence in the student section at sporting events fires up the crowd.

"When someone sees you with any University of Miami gear, they'll throw up the U, and it creates a sense of community," said Zander Samarasinghe, the 2024-2025 chair of Cat 5. "People react to it because it is such a huge brand. Everyone knows about the U."

The orange and green split-U mark was introduced in 1973, commissioned by the student-athlete scholarship fund now known as the Hurricane Club. It was a bold move to shift away from previous "M" and "UM" marks but one that created one of the most recognizable collegiate brands today. The practice of throwing up the U originated in 1992 when former cheerleader Bill Tigano, B.S.C. '93, flashed the now-ubiquitous hand gesture during a football home game against Florida State University. The University adopted the split-U athletics mark as its official institutional mark in 2009.

In addition to throwing up the U, Hurricanes football fans hold up four fingers at the start of the fourth quarter. This represents the belief that the game is won in that crucial final period and that no matter the score in that moment, the Canes will fight for a victory. This never-give-up spirit spurred many historic comebacks, also earning them the moniker "Cardiac Canes" in recent years. If you are visiting campus and see a group of people wearing colorful patchwork jackets, it might be tapping day for the Iron Arrow Honor Society.

Founded 1926 through a commitment between President Bowman Foster Ashe, student Francis Houghtaling, and Seminole spokesman Tony Tommie to preserve traditions of the University and the Seminole Indians, Iron Arrow continues to have a close partnership with what is now the Miccosukee Tribe of Indians of Florida.

Another connection between the University and the Seminole Indians is the War Canoe Trophy, a canoe that members of the tribe crafted from a 200-year-old Everglades cypress tree felled by lightning. It was donated on behalf of the City of Hollywood in 1955 as a trophy for the annual football game between the University of Miami and the University of Florida. Today the canoe is on display in the University of Miami Sports Hall of Fame and Museum on the Coral Gables Campus. Alumni Weekend and Homecoming is an annual celebration that has included a spectacular fireworks display and a boat burning ceremony on Lake Osceola since 1956. Legend has it that if the mast of the boat falls before the boat sinks, the Miami Hurricanes will win the Homecoming football game the following day.

And when the Hurricanes football team emerges on the field, they do so in a now-iconic cloud of smoke that began in the 1950s with fire extinguishers in the Orange Bowl. Former transportation director Bob Nalette came up with the idea as a way to increase fan interest.

Adding to the game-day fanfare is the Frost Band of the Hour. The 150-plus-member marching band traces its origins back to 1926, when 17 students came together to form the University Band. It has been called Band of the Hour since 1949, when an announcer at the Orange Bowl introduced Henry Fillmore's march with an impromptu quip: "'The Man of the Hour' will now be performed by the Band of the Hour." A gift from philanthropists Phillip and Patricia Frost in 2000 to secure stability during a time of financial strife led to the current name, Frost Band of the Hour.

"This is a band with such a longlasting tradition, such great music, and such a wonderful culture of support," said Craig McKenzie, D.M.A. '19, director of athletic bands. "U of M football is an activity the entire community comes together for, and the Band of the Hour is the soundtrack."

The University of Miami Alma Mater, written by University employee William "Bill" S. Lampe and composed by music student Christine Asdurian in 1926, is played at every special event, including commencement and athletics competitions. While singing, Canes hold up one finger that sways from side to side like a palm frond in the wind.

"That's a magical moment for me as the student conductor," said Noah Booz, a music education major and Frost Band of the Hour drum major. "The alma mater is like my chance to say: 'I love you.' "