I have read most of the posts on here post the L @ Syracuse and they were all the same: "Fire x" or "y needs to go" or something in these lines. I thought about this differently, because looking at what we have done this season, not much of it has looked any different compared to any of the past seasons going back to 2017: Playing down to inferior competition, being in close games that should not be close and playing fundamentally unsound, undisciplined football that gets worse if the going gets tighter and tighter.
Considering that this is a problem that has been going on beyond the Cristobal era and was not fixed by him (despite his sayings of how he wants to establish culture and fix stupid mistakes), it is evident that the problems may go a bit deeper, more so in the psychological aspect as well as the athletic shortcomings that we have seen over the past years. Therefore, the potential solution that has to be come up with BY THE UNIVERSITY (written in caps on purpose) needs to go deeper than just firing people and paying more money. Resources need to be allocated in manners where the expenses equal the value that they bring in.
As a result, here is a step-by-step-"guide" on how I would manage the football program moving forward:
1. Call for a meeting between the president, AD, boosters, NIL boosters and the HC Mario Cristobal.
This one will already ruffle some feathers, but the truth is that this needs to happen way before we talk about anything related that is happening on the field. Mario Cristobal and Manny Diaz have the same exact record at the University of Miami over three years, but one guy was fired for having that record and the other has received more support and backing compared to any other HC in the history of this program. That is exactly why this meeting needs to be called.
Mario has to be faced with the resources that were spent on the football program over the entire time that he has been here. He made demands that the University had to fulfill, now however, the University is fulfilling these demands without anything in return. We are in year 3, we have not made the title game in our conference without a dominant force like Clemson used to be and we have not seen improvement on the football field despite the investments in talent and in the coaching staff. These resources should be allocated and put on a piece of paper to make him aware of the resources that were spent for a football program to have 0x ACC title games (and therefore championships).
And let´s be perfectly honest: If Cam Ward did not have a last-second change of heart, we would not have won ten games this season. The record without him would be far worse. Mario wants to talk about accountability, I do not see a single reason why this man should be excluded from it. There needs to be some level of pressure going his direction.
2. Reconsider team management.
I do not see leadership on the field outside of one guy leading the offense. I do not see any anger within the players. Everyone just shuts up, goes through the motions and goes quiet afterwards. But every time someone makes a play, there is some fancy dancing or talking, especially on defense. What is so hard about making a play, giving a high-five to your teammate, then go back to the huddle and get ready for the next play. I see dudes on this defense signaling incomplete pass or flexing towards the opponents bench. This level of arrogance is so ******* absurd to witness, it is unreal. They make five **** plays and go silent, they make one good play and act as if the are the biggest and baddest machine on the field. It is laughable, it shows to me what these players are looking for and nothing else. I do not see a TEAM wanting to win, I am seeing a team looking for the cameras, looking for the highlight play.
For the third straight year, this football program is in the 100s in penalty yards, 122nd now, 106th last year, 103rd a year prior. It has gotten worse. But where is the accountability and the coaching? All I hear is the typical "Keep the main thing the main thing" or "We need to go 1-0 this week" yap and I do not see any repercussions for stupidity on the field. Nothing changes and nothing happens. I dont see leaders within the position groups, I dont see captains actually leading, I do not see anything.
Hire a sports psychologist and figure out what the remaining players for next season want. Find out who wants it and who does not want it. What are your goals? What do you want to achieve individually? What do you want to achieve as a team? Because anyone can talk. A professional can figure out who is just yapping and who actually means what he says. But there needs to be a cleanse of players who only do the bare minimum in preparation. I am confident that Mario knows what a winning culture looks like, but I have a tough time figuring out whether he can communicate it. So far, not much evidence.
3. Reconsider coaching management.
I think I can predict that we will have a new DC next season, which would be the third hire in four years. We have not hired at that spot because teams are so glad to hire our guys as HCs, but because they have not had any level of success. I do believe Dawson will receive HC offers and I do believe that he will take them, knowing that A) he is 47 and B) it will probably be the only time that he will receive HC offers. So, not only DC but OC. That list will shorten down, because Mario has a WR coach and a OL coach already at his disposal. Not much room for many OC to hire their guys to run an offense. Bad, would advocate for a change, but not happening. DC though? Hire a DC and fill out the staff with the guys that this DC wants. Based on the performance, what players were playing and how little change happened on this front, no assistant should keep a job once this season has concluded. People can point to the lack of ability on this football team all they want, but it took us almost a season to realize that Mesidor is not a tackle, that Jaden Harris flat out sucks, that Mauigoa should not be covering RBs and that defensive ends should not be in coverage. This falls on everyone and I can assure to you, other programs have shorter leashes if their coordinators perform this poorly.
4. Last one: Define player roles and BUILD A TEAM.
Teams dont see six captains. Whats the purpose of having six captains? One on offense, one on defense. Define exactly what you are looking for: Accountability, mental toughness, resilience, etc. Tell all the players that there is an open competiton for these roles, tell everyone what you expect en route to selecting these players, and when you select them, tell them exactly what you want and how you want it. I am seeing some of these top teams players get in everyones face when someone screws up. I can see anger and emotion and actual CARE about what is going on. I do not see that from any of our players. When the going gets tough, everyone gets silent. That starts from the top and it has to change.
Ultimately: Figure out who cannot hack it and throw them out. Football is not who you are, it is what you do. Certain characteristics translate from the football field to the life after football and if you can see that a student athlete on a NIL payroll cannot hack it, he most clearly will not hack it beyond football when it is not about playing a game. If you cannot commit to a disciplined, fundamentally sound approach, if you cut corners, if you dont prepare and give 100% at 100% of the time, you will not succeed and you will repeat these behaviors over and over and over again.
That is how I would do it. These are my two cents. I am not as mad as I could be and most certainly not as mad as I should. I almost expected this, to be quite honest, I expected it to happen sooner. And that is the worst part. I cannot even expect improvement, because I can tell with good confidence that we will not. Marios view on offensive football may have changed a bit, and thats nice, but everything else has stayed the same and we are on to Year 4.
But do not expect me to drink any Kool-Aid. No ACC title game next year and we can consider the era of Cristobal a failure of big proportions. It his last shot, I do not see support going further beyond this.
