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Miami Hurricanes Head Coach Mario Cristobal recently appeared on the Joe Rose show, providing a comprehensive overview of the team's current dynamics and his strategies for the upcoming transfer portal period. His remarks offer a glimpse into the team's development and the intricacies of managing a college football program.
Van Dyke's Commendable Performance
Cristobal began with high praise for quarterback Tyler Van Dyke, who had to step in during the last two games. Despite losing his job to freshman Emory Williams, Van Dyke showed remarkable professionalism. Cristobal expressed his respect for Tyler's approach, saying, “A lot of respect, really approached it like a professional. He had a sense of urgency stepping up in the pocket when things weren’t there – finding a way to make things happen with his feet or get rid of it. All in all, just a really good job.”
Team's Positive Trajectory
Speaking on the team's overall progress, Cristobal was optimistic. He noted, “Everything is moving in a positive direction with a lot of progress. From a personnel standpoint, it’s night-and-day as opposed to what we walked into. A lot of it is young and still developing or just got here, but what is really important is the development of the DNA.”
Physical Football Culture
Cristobal highlighted a change in the team's approach to colder climate games. “For a good dozen years, Miami has blown off those games up North and these guys went out there warming up NFL-style without a shirt on. We challenged them all week – they went up there and played really physical football down a couple guys.”
Transfer Portal Challenges
Cristobal shared his thoughts on the transfer portal, which re-opens on December 4th. He described it as, “It’s the wild, wild west. Trying to figure out who to keep, who to help, who’s staying, who’s going, just be professional as possible and do what’s absolutely best for the program, and try to keep people from getting in the ears of guys and giving them false information. We need another big recruiting haul – we need another 30-plus guys in the mold of Rueben Bain, Mark Fletcher, Damari Brown.”
He sees each player departure as a chance to improve the team. “Any defection that you create or happens to catch you by surprise is an opportunity to upgrade. You keep a three-deep at every possible slot and you just keep that handy and keep going. You have an opportunity to get better everywhere. We are working our way to becoming a really good team. It’s a young team with a lot of juice, improvement across the board, system’s really starting to come on and it’s going to attract some really good players and coaches.”
Cristobal also addressed the challenges of navigating the transfer portal. “It’s completely out of control. The NCAA, and rightfully so, has taken a hardline stance that if somebody is messing around and tampering, they’re going to slam you. But you better be in position if word is out there that a guy is going to move here or there. You’ve gotta be straight up and realistic because you’ve got to be ready to upgrade right away whether it’s coming from the outside or making a move from the inside.”
Combatting Complacency and Building Culture
He spoke about the importance of fighting complacency and building a strong team culture. “We’ve flooded this building with awesome people and we need to get a bunch more. We need to make sure there is no complacency. For example – that the postseason become a serious thing for Miami. Let’s call it what it is – there’s been an arrogant approach to the postseason and late season games unless you’re playing for it all and that can’t happen here.”
Guiding Players' Career Choices
On the topic of players contemplating their future, whether in going pro, transferring, or staying at Miami, Cristobal stressed the importance of providing accurate guidance. “We respectfully approach it to figure out exactly where it’s at. You help them navigate through the noise and show the guys that it’s relevant to real draft information as opposed to some of the BS they get from their advisors.”
Van Dyke's Commendable Performance
Cristobal began with high praise for quarterback Tyler Van Dyke, who had to step in during the last two games. Despite losing his job to freshman Emory Williams, Van Dyke showed remarkable professionalism. Cristobal expressed his respect for Tyler's approach, saying, “A lot of respect, really approached it like a professional. He had a sense of urgency stepping up in the pocket when things weren’t there – finding a way to make things happen with his feet or get rid of it. All in all, just a really good job.”
Team's Positive Trajectory
Speaking on the team's overall progress, Cristobal was optimistic. He noted, “Everything is moving in a positive direction with a lot of progress. From a personnel standpoint, it’s night-and-day as opposed to what we walked into. A lot of it is young and still developing or just got here, but what is really important is the development of the DNA.”
Physical Football Culture
Cristobal highlighted a change in the team's approach to colder climate games. “For a good dozen years, Miami has blown off those games up North and these guys went out there warming up NFL-style without a shirt on. We challenged them all week – they went up there and played really physical football down a couple guys.”
Transfer Portal Challenges
Cristobal shared his thoughts on the transfer portal, which re-opens on December 4th. He described it as, “It’s the wild, wild west. Trying to figure out who to keep, who to help, who’s staying, who’s going, just be professional as possible and do what’s absolutely best for the program, and try to keep people from getting in the ears of guys and giving them false information. We need another big recruiting haul – we need another 30-plus guys in the mold of Rueben Bain, Mark Fletcher, Damari Brown.”
He sees each player departure as a chance to improve the team. “Any defection that you create or happens to catch you by surprise is an opportunity to upgrade. You keep a three-deep at every possible slot and you just keep that handy and keep going. You have an opportunity to get better everywhere. We are working our way to becoming a really good team. It’s a young team with a lot of juice, improvement across the board, system’s really starting to come on and it’s going to attract some really good players and coaches.”
Cristobal also addressed the challenges of navigating the transfer portal. “It’s completely out of control. The NCAA, and rightfully so, has taken a hardline stance that if somebody is messing around and tampering, they’re going to slam you. But you better be in position if word is out there that a guy is going to move here or there. You’ve gotta be straight up and realistic because you’ve got to be ready to upgrade right away whether it’s coming from the outside or making a move from the inside.”
Combatting Complacency and Building Culture
He spoke about the importance of fighting complacency and building a strong team culture. “We’ve flooded this building with awesome people and we need to get a bunch more. We need to make sure there is no complacency. For example – that the postseason become a serious thing for Miami. Let’s call it what it is – there’s been an arrogant approach to the postseason and late season games unless you’re playing for it all and that can’t happen here.”
Guiding Players' Career Choices
On the topic of players contemplating their future, whether in going pro, transferring, or staying at Miami, Cristobal stressed the importance of providing accurate guidance. “We respectfully approach it to figure out exactly where it’s at. You help them navigate through the noise and show the guys that it’s relevant to real draft information as opposed to some of the BS they get from their advisors.”
