(This is the second of a three-part series on Florida’s Big Three, Florida, Miami and FSU. Today, Miami)
There are no catchy slogans in Miami’s locker room, or the stadium it plays in. There used to be. There was one in the old Orange Bowl, above the exit the players used when they charged through the smoke and onto the field.
It was a play on words, on the old adage that ‘you take what the defense gives you.’ Miami changed that. Above the exit, in big, bold letters, the last thing the players saw was a sign that read ‘We take what we want.’
I liked that. Actually, it was put there by the Miami Dolphins, but it fit the Hurricanes’ bad boy image, the aggressive, sometimes arrogant approach that defined Miami’s attitude at the time. The sign is long gone now, along with the Orange Bowl and, at least until recently, Miami’s winning ways…
Mario Crystobal does not bleed red. He bleeds orange and green. He grew up in Miami, played offensive tackle on two of the U’s (as Miami is reverently referred to by former players and alums) national championship teams and watched from afar as the powerhouse built by Howard Schnellenberger, Jimmy Johnson and others crumbled and fell apart.
So, after Manny Diaz was dismissed in 2021 following three mediocre seasons that were piled on a bunch of other mediocre seasons, Crystobal, then head coach at Oregon, returned to his alma mater.
This would end, now. And he would end it. This was a disgrace. He would put pride back in the program. He would make Miami Miami again. He knew how to get it done. There was no doubt in his mind that Miami could become, once again, what it had been.
Crystobal’s approach to football is entirely different then that of his rival up the road in Gainesville, Jon Sumrall, who was hired this year to do for Florida what Crystobal is doing for Miami.
Unlike Crystobal, Sumrall had no connection with Florida prior to being hired. And again unlike Crystobal, Sumrall has no head coaching experience at a Power Four conference level.
Crystobal, by way of contrast, came to Miami after five highly successful seasons at Oregon, where he won Pac-12 conference championships when the Pac-12 was considered a Power Five conference and compiled an overall 35-14 record.
So, while Sumrall has spent much of his time trying to convince Gator Nation that he is the right guy to pull the program out of the swamp, Crystobal has quietly been marshalling Miami’s resources and making steady progress in getting the ‘Canes back to the top of the mountain in college football.
Last year, Miami made it all the way to the national championship game, where it lost to Indiana, 27-21. But for Crystobal, that isn’t good enough. There’s first place and no place.
“I think in football, we do feel truly at the University of Miami that you never stay the same, you get better or you get worse,” Crystobal commented. “So, elevating every aspect of the program starts with every individual.
“I’m talking about the importance of challenging your coaches and players. We’re blessed to have an excellent coaching staff. But there’s no value in coming back thinking you’re going to be good,” Crystobal said.
“It’s important that we self assess and that we find every possible advantage and edge to give our players so they can go out and be the best they can possibly be,” the Miami coach went on.
“Mentality is everything for us. We like to get on edge and we like to stay on edge. The only way to do that is by demanding certain levels of intensity and urgency as it relates to practice and preparation.
“I think if you speak with our players, I think they’ll echo that,” Crystobal said. “That’s been what has really worked for us. We’re nowhere near where we want to be yet, but we’re certainly gaining ground.
“I owe Miami, I do,” Crystobal declared. “I feel strongly about that as it relates to what we want to accomplish. We don’t have any signs on the wall. For us, it’s as simple as this.
“For us, our culture, this will sum it up. Everybody for everything every single day. There shouldn’t be any misconception or misunderstanding as it relates to that.”
And so, Miami is back, although no one in the program, including Crystobal, will tell you that. And there may not be any signs in bold letters for everyone to see, either. But if you look closely, you can sense it. There’s just an attitude about the ‘Canes again.
They take what they want.
