The Miami Hurricanes had everything lined up last season. Cam Ward was leading the nation’s top offense, and a College Football Playoff run felt within reach.
Then came the Syracuse game.
Up 21-0 in the second quarter, Miami collapsed, falling 42-38. The loss knocked the Hurricanes out of the ACC Championship race and ended any hope of making the playoff.
It was a crushing finish to what had been a promising season. Now, head coach Mario Cristobal, entering his fourth year back at his alma mater, is under real pressure to prove something at “The U,” according to ESPN’s Adam Rittenberg.
“The team once again has a high-priced transfer quarterback addition in Georgia's Carson Beck, and a roster that, talent wise, projects among the best in the ACC. Miami's patience for a CFP appearance should be thin, as there is real pressure on Cristobal to deliver in Year 4,” Rittenberg wrote.
Since Larry Coker’s national title run, Miami has cycled through four other head coaches. None delivered a conference championship, and the impatience has only grown over two decades in the ACC.
“But there's context around a large portion of Miami's drought, namely that the school fell behind with its program investments,” Rittenberg wrote. “Miami simply wasn't spending like a national contender, which isn't good enough, even for a program in a major city, surrounded by top talent. The Hurricanes fell behind rival Florida State, but also ACC programs like Clemson and, at times, Virginia Tech, Louisville and Georgia Tech. But the hiring of Cristobal in December 2021 marked a seismic change.”
Cristobal hopes Carson Beck can be the answer under center the way Ward was last year—only this time with a defense capable of closing games. The Hurricanes went heavy in the transfer portal on that side of the ball, landing six defensive backs to shore up a unit that faltered in crucial moments last season.
For Cristobal and Miami, the time to finally deliver in the ACC is now.