Oh, no.
Doom and gloom already?
While the Miami Hurricanes season is yet to get underway, a big test awaits them in Gainesville this weekend. Miami is favored by 2.5 points in the swamp, but ESPN gives Florida the edge in win projection percentage.
Miami may look scarier on paper, but this is still the first game of the season on the road against a rival and a South Eastern Conference opponent. While Miami should win this game, a misstep could spell trouble for the rest of the season.
After Miami’s embarrassing gaffe versus Georgia Tech, their season spiraled downward Miami finished the season with a 3-5 record after starting off 4-0. That was the conclusion of the second season of the Mario Cristobal era.
Miami is entering year three of the Cristobal program. Cristobal inherited this team from Manny Diaz. In year three, with a new freshman class and three offseasons of transfers, the team is led by mostly Cristobal’s guys.
That means that the blame falls on Cristobal and his staff.
A coach can only coach his players so well. There’s a point where the players are just not talented enough to compete with other more talented schools. Cristobal may have been able to make the case before that his team was not as talented, but he can’t make that excuse now.
Miami was able to add playmakers to almost every position through the transfer portal. Cam Ward from Washington State at quarterback elevates the ceiling of the offense tremendously with his dual-threat ability. Damien Martinez and Sam Brown at running back and wide receiver, respectively, both add serious talent and experience to the offense.
These studs join an already established group of threats in Xavier Restrepo, Jacolby George, and Mark Fletcher Jr. The Hurricanes now have a three-headed monster at wideout and two running backs who are fast and powerful workhorses
14 four-stars and one five-star prospect headline this incoming class of freshmen. 247Sports has this as the 6th best recruiting class in the nation. Some of these players will get on the field and make an impact right away.
This is a make-or-break season for the Hurricanes. The ’Canes have never looked better on paper. They have a light schedule and all the momentum from the national media. Their coach trusts in his program and his culture, and soon his failure to perform may cost him.
The average tenure of a Division 1 football coach is about three and a half years. Typically, coaches have a maximum of two or three years to show significant improvement in order to keep their job. While a jump from five wins in year one to seven wins in year two is technically an improvement, it’s not the progress that Miami fans and ownership have hoped for.
Miami has not won its conference since 2003. Cristobal was supposed to change that. He was supposed to bring a winning culture back to Coral Gables. But Cristobal has won just 12 games since being hired and only six ACC games. The only way Cristobal can silence the doubters and make people feel better about his $80 million deal will be to start winning football games, particularly in the ACC.
It’s put up or shut up time for Mario Cristobal and Miami.
Al stats and data via ESPN and The Miami Hurricanes unless otherwise noted