Cote’s Hot Button Top 10: 90% of U.S. against Hurricanes, Fins next coach and more
GREG COTE’S HOT BUTTON TOP 10 (JANUARY 18): WHAT IN SPORTS HAS GRABBED US THIS WEEK: America is against the Miami Hurricanes? Plus Dolphins head-coach insider, NFL playoffs, college hoops gambling scandal, PGA Tour caves, Panthers, Heat, Marlins, tennis, Canes hoops and more. Welcome to 135th edition of HB10, bringing you what’s on our minds from a Miami lens and accentuating stuff that’s big, weird, damnable, funny or worth needling as sports week past pivots to the week ahead:
1. HURRICANES: Oy! Is it possible 90 percent of America is rooting for Indiana?: Certainly not scientific, this, but BetOnline.ag has tracked geotagged data on X (nee Twitter) using hashtags and keyword phrases to determine who fans nationwide are rooting for in Monday’s Miami-Indiana national championship game in college football. Results? (Close your eyes, Canes fans.) Indiana has the majority of support in 45 states and Miami in only five: Florida (of course), Kentucky, North Carolina, Oregon and South Carolina. The outlier, Oregon, assuredly is because Indiana crushed the Oregon Ducks to get to Miami.
2. DOLPHINS: Fins leaning to another first-time NFL head coach in Hafley?: Jeff Hafley, Dolphins head coach? Looking like it at the moment. He’s the Packers’ defensive coordinator. He was interviewed for the Miami job this week by new Fins GM Jon-Eric Sullivan ... who was hired from Green Bay. Quickly Hafley became the betting-odds fave to be next Dolphins coach at +175, ahead of Rams defensive coordinator Chris Shula, grandson of The Don. Either would continue a dubious Fins trend of hiring men with zero previous NFL head-coaching experience. The last who had it was Dave Wannstedt in 2000.
3. NFL: Broncos win but lose Nix, Seahawks cash a rout: No. 1 conference seeds Denver and Seattle advanced to the AFC and NFC Championship Games on Saturday, but the Broncos’ win was Pyrrhic. The Broncos eliminated Josh Allen’s Bills 33-30 in OT -- but lost QB Bo Nix to a season-ending ankle injury. The Seahawks obliterated San Fran, 41-6. It’s Rams vs. Bears and Texans-Patriots today to complete the NFL’s final four. Meanwhile, outside the playoffs, Giants closed the deal with John Harbaugh, and the Used Coach lot adds a new entry in Mike Tomlin.
4. PANTHERS: Cats visit Trump, then lose 9-1. Coincidence?: The double-champ Panthers this week likely alienated at least half their fan base by agreeing to a White House photo op with Donald Trump, and one night later lost 9-1 at Carolina. Coincidence? That tied the second most lopsided defeat in club history; the only worse was a 12-2 loss in 2002-03 season. Florida rebounded Saturday with a 5-2 win at Washington, again without Brad Marchand, and with Matthew Tkachuk’s season debut said to be imminent but we’re still waiting. Cats are 25-22 but still in a fight to make playoffs as they host San Jose Monday.
5. HEAT: And the Miami roller coaster continues...: One game after blowing a 19-point lead in a home loss to Boston, the Heat on Saturday beat defending NBA champ Oklahoma City 122-120 in downtown Miami behind Bam Adebayo’s 30 points and Andrew Wiggins’ late 3. The win followed a 2-5 lull. Miami is now 22-20and remains stuck in play-inn purgatory just past halftime of the season. Heat are at Golden State Monday. As for any Ja Morant trade speculation, wake me when it moves from being just a media toy to something closer o real.
6. INTER MIAMI: Champions targeting Mexican star Berterame: MLS Cup champ Inter Miami is angling to sign Mexican national team forward Germán Berterame of Liga MX squad Rayados de Monterrey. Team Messi has agreed to pay the player’s release clause of some $15 million to complete a transfer, though a deal is not yet completed. Since joining Rayados in 2022 Berterame has scored 67 goals in 152 matches across all competitions. Inter Miami will have Lionel Messi for 2026 and perhaps beyond but is positioning itself for life-after as well.
7. COLLEGE BASKETBALL: Here comes the sport’s latest gambling scandal: A college hoops point-shaving scandal has been uncovered involving at least 39 players on 17 NCAA Division I teams. It resulted in dozens of games over the previous two seasons being fixed by a gambling ring, as per a federal indictment in Pennsylvania. Four of the players charged have played for their current teams in the past week. Tulane is probably the most nationally prominent of the implicated schools. None of the 17 is ranked or from the state of Florida.
8. UM HOOPS: Ranking will have to wait for Canes men: Miami was 15-2, 4-0 in the ACC and on a 10-game win streak before Saturday’s 69-59 loss at No. 22 Clemson. UM is back on the wood Tuesday vs. Florida State and deserving of a poll position, its only three losses to ranked teams. Canes women have skidded a bit, now 11-7 and 0-4 vs. ranked teams heading into a Thursday game at No. 22 Notre Dame.
9. GOLF: PGA Tour caves on ex-traitor Koepka: As PGA Tour golf season opens, Brooks Koepka is the first of the traitors who abandoned the Tour for the Saudi blood-money of LIV Golf to be allowed back. Tiger Woods called his return “incredible.” Others like ex-U.S. Open champ Wyndham Clark say they’re torn. “I think it’s ultimately good,” Clark said. “But also it’s frustrating he’s able to get the cake and also eat it.” The Tour allows him back under a new Returning Member Program with conditions including: Forfeit player-equity shares for next five years; be ineligible for $100 million FedEx Cup bonus program in ‘26; and make $5 million donation to charity. “I understand exactly why the Tour did that,” said Koepka. “It’s meant to hurt.”
10. TENNIS: Can a U.S. man finally break the Aussie drought?: No American man has won the Australian Open (or reached final) since Andre Agassi in 2003 entering the first big weekend of this year’s event. Now 8-seed Ben Shelton and 9-Taylor Fritz will try to end the drought, but it would mean penetrating the chokehold Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner now have on the sport. U.S. women have fared better in tennis’ first of four majors, including Madison Keys a surprise winner in ‘25. Four American women are current top-10 seeds led by No. 3 Coco Gauff.
THE LIST: DOLPHINS HEAD COACHES BY LONGEVITY: As the Dolphins search to hire the 12th fulltime (non-interim) head coach in club history, here are the previous coaches ranked by total (regular-season and playoff) games coached:
No. Coach Win Pct. Seasons
423 Don Shula .648 1970-95
76 Dave Wannstedt .566 2000-04
70 Mike McDaniel .500 2022-25
69 Jimmy Johnson .551 1996-99
62 Tony Sparano .468 2008-11
Note: Others by games coached: George Wilson 56, Joe Philbin 52, Adam Gase 49, Brian Flores 49, Nick Saban 32, Cam Cameron 16, and interim coaches Dan Campbell 12, Jim Bates 7 and Todd Bowles 3.
Other select most recent stuff from me: In Hurricanes vs. Mendoza, Miami -- city and team -- will win it all // NFL Divisional playoff picks // Poll Dance: Want Hurricanes or Mendoza/Indiana to win national title? // Previous HB10 // Canes’ tour de force now 1 home win over Indiana from new glory days // Flailing, failing Dolphins in latest reboot with McDaniel firing // Rams’ Stafford wins 1st season title in Herald’s 28th NFL QB rankings // Reborn Hurricanes at center of refreshing CFP final four // Dolphins enter offseason with no answers at QB after loss at Patriots // Canes’ ‘violent, relentless’ defeat of Ohio State is Miami’s biggest win in 23 years // Step aside, other cities: Why 2026 in sports belongs to Miami // Stugotz signs major iHeart Media deal, but says not done with LeBatard Show // Canes stifle A&M with defense, advance in CFP to face Ohio State // R.I.P. George Mira, ‘The Matador,’ Hurricane football’s first true star // Irish eyes are crying, but CFP got t right with Canes over Notre Dame // Messi, Inter Miami win MLS Cup, crown 50 years of SoFla soccer // How Browns fan’s tragedy gave Bernie Kosar new life // Tortoise to hare, reinvention of Miami Heat an NBA marvel // How Miami project -- and forgiveness -- helped Marc Buoniconti turn tragedy to triumph // Beloved cast member leaving Dan Le Batard Show // Barkov lost for season a mortal blow to Panthers’ 3-peat bid // Cristobal has ‘insatiable’ drive for new Hurricanes glory days, and he’s getting close // A tribute to Miami sports legend Jimmy Johnson as he retires from Fox TV // 15 years later, Dolphins Cancer Challenge is life-saving legacy of Jim Mandich // And my latest podcast:
