Miami remains undefeated after another thrilling victory last Saturday. On Monday, head coach Mario Cristobal met the press and shared his thoughts on the Canes progress and the upcoming game against arch-rival Florida State.
On fan support…
"I want to thank all the fans that made it out there again. Every time we've been on the road, we've had a tremendous turnout, and our players feel it. We are really grateful for it. It's always a game changer when you see your people, their support. And so want to thank them and looking forward to seeing them at Hard Rock on Saturday. But it was a certainly a hard fought and a massive road win for us, conference play against a really talented team, good coaches, good scheme, and our guys found a way to just keep responding and play together as a team. And they're driven and certainly found a way to get it done. And preparations began immediately on Florida State upon our arrival in Miami.”
On the team’s awareness of the rivalry…
"Right now, you'd be surprised how many guys you would think wouldn't be familiar with it, but that are familiar with it. I think it's important that we always educate our players on the history of the University of Miami, and such a insanely awesome rivalry like we've always had with Florida State. And at the same time making sure that the main thing stays the main thing so that we don't spill over into emotional play. Stuff that doesn't contribute to winning. But no, the response and the excitement is what you could imagine. I don't think the rivalry and the juice and energy behind it will ever change. It's Florida State, Miami, and certainly looking forward to a great challenge and a great opportunity.”
On alumni involvement…
"That's another reason so many guys came here, for so many years, was because of that. That type of mentorship is invaluable. Imagine getting mentored by Hall of Famers that have done it at the highest level to the best of what most anyone can remember. And it comes from the right place. Comes from the heart. And I think it's also an indication of how much University of Miami means to the guys that went here, and that they're feeling very positive about the direction of the program, and that they want to be present and involved.”
On winning close games…
"A lot growth, right? I mean, you always look at those stages. People always talk about how in stage one of a program, or year one typically, if you have to redo things, it's a year where you take some really hard losses. And then your second year, you're more competitive, and some of them are close, and you win some and you lose a couple. And then after that, you start winning, sometimes by a little bit. And then eventually, as you go on, you become a more sustainable perennial type of program, right? And so these guys, I think it's what we've always talked about. They love to work. There's a high level of trust and confidence due to, I would say, just what's being earned out on the practice field on a daily basis, all the way since spring, and their time and effort in the weight room since January, and the fact that their approach to work now. Because we demand a lot of them, seems to just get better. And you could confront, demand our team, our coaches can from each other, can get the most out of each other, because we all had the same like mindset, the same goals. So we all recognize we have a long way to go, and we're excited to get to work on getting there.”
On Florida State…
"Well, I think everything. I mean, obviously I study the defensive side first. What you see is just a really talented team. They're about as talented in most of the key positions in the front seven as you'll see, and the secondary is big, long, they're fast. They play band coverage as good as anyone that we've seen. They mix it up pretty well as well. They got a wide variety of pressure and stunt packages that go with it. And then I think their offensive line, I know they might have had a guy hurt or two, but they're another group that's really big. A highly recruited class that is really strong and powerful, and has had some really, really strong moments. And again, all I see is I see a really good football team and looking forward to a great game.”
On the defensive breakdowns…
"I don't feel concern. I feel urgency. It's almost, you know, for a fact that we're better than some of the things we have shown, and that we need to be consistent in showing we got to get there. And you get there together. The one thing that really stands strong in our program is, there's, there's no division from within. Can't have it. This football stuff, you see week after week, man. It is absolutely insane the way that some of these games go. And so you've got to take the fact that, we may win some games, 52 to 45 and we might have to win one 3-2. We don't know how it's gonna come and when it's gonna come. So until then, together, move forward and press on and just find a way to get better. I guess it's that simple.
“Just get better. Just get better.”
GO CANES!
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