Miami's coaches we're at the podium Monday afternoon to recap the Hurricanes's blowout victory against NC State and look ahead to Saturday's matchup with Virginia Tech.
You can also find the press conference videos below with a full transcript of what Mario Cristobal had to say:
Mario Cristobal:
Opening Statement…
"Excited to get back to work with our guys. After that strong performance, dominant performance on Saturday, lots of stuff to be excited about, lots of stuff to improve upon. And the best part is the energy, the attitude going right back to work with a great start today. Got to sustain that. Got a great opportunity this coming weekend to go up to one of the most iconic places to play football. An unbelievable atmosphere. A very talented team, a lot of really good football players, and certainly there's a long history between Virginia Tech and Miami, so excited about the challenge and that opportunity."
On Bryce Fitzgerald..
"Did a great job. He's uber talented and but he's also uber motivated. He brings that approach every day, a lot like we talk about guys like Malachi Toney. He's been led by a guy like Keionte Scott, guys like Zech Poyser, Jakobe Thomas. These are guys that have really helped lead him to understand the ways of becoming a really good football player and a lot of versatility with him. And you know, he got a shot in there. We pretty much got three or four guys playing that spot on Saturday and in different packages. I think they all had their some really bright moments, some other ones we got to correct. So looking forward to just watching him continue to evolve as a player."
On the offensive line improving pre-snap...
"Well, you know [Alex Mirabal] really well. So it's everything. It's team first, everything. I think now two weeks without a pre-snap. Know we had holding in there somewhere along the lines, but sustaining blocks, finishing blocks, chasing the ball, chasing guys down the field, a lot of pride. You see it every day. So it's not surprising. It's good to see the extra effort put into cleaning that up, because that certainly was affecting us. It's good to see that pay off. Got to say, I pointed to a noisy environment this week, certainly different than playing at home. A crowd very involved. The crowd there has impacted so many games for so many decades that we certainly got to crank it up and improve even more to give ourselves the best chance."
On what he sees from Virginia Tech...
"A DNA to that program. They're always extremely physical, extremely tough, and play really hard. When you look, when you break down, it analytically, and you really dive into the relative part of the game, they're a top-five rushing offense. They get after you up front, and they do it in a lot of different ways. And they'll scheme you up series to series. They understand leverage, numbers, and angles as good as anybody. And it's not quarterback runs only. that's part of their game, but both their running backs, really, all the guys that they use, they get downhill in a hurry, they got great contact balance, they run with power, they run behind their pads, they're very versatile, they catch the ball to the backfield well, and their offensive line and tight ends, they get after it. They really do.
On head-to-head games and CFP rankings...
"I would say the number one criteria for anything is always head-to-head. It's why we play the game, right? So I think that always has been, and always will be, the number one factor in determining whatever relates to whatever."
You can also find the press conference videos below with a full transcript of what Mario Cristobal had to say:
Mario Cristobal:
Opening Statement…
"Excited to get back to work with our guys. After that strong performance, dominant performance on Saturday, lots of stuff to be excited about, lots of stuff to improve upon. And the best part is the energy, the attitude going right back to work with a great start today. Got to sustain that. Got a great opportunity this coming weekend to go up to one of the most iconic places to play football. An unbelievable atmosphere. A very talented team, a lot of really good football players, and certainly there's a long history between Virginia Tech and Miami, so excited about the challenge and that opportunity."
On Carson Beck...
"I think anytime you don't participate fully in spring practice, there's a lot of value to spring, let me start by saying that. And I thought that we had overcome a lot of that. Do you ever fully get that back? You don't. There's been some really good moments, and then some others where you wish you would have had more time, but certainly we feel great about the last couple of weeks of all the things that are transpiring offensively. And there's a very distinctly higher level of just energy, and I would say, just approach by everyone in the building and the complimentary football when that thing kicks in. Now it's special to watch, and I think that's what we all witnessed on Saturday, and we're looking forward to improving upon that, because there's a lot of stuff on tape, a lot of stuff on tape, that we have an opportunity to improve upon.Status on Keionte Scott...
"I don't know. Like we mentioned, it is a more significant injury. You certainly hope and pray for. But it doesn't look like it's very likely, but I'd hate to rule it out completely, because you just never know.On the leadership from injured older guys...
"Keionte's leadership, it screams loudly. I think one of the better things I witnessed all year in my time here was him taking it upon himself to approach [CharMar Brown] after the fumble and just going right to him and looking him right between the eyes, and bringing the right type of not the coddling encouragement, but like, 'Hey man, you're that guy, and you're going to come back, you're going to bounce back, you're going to get after it, and you're going to make some critical plays in this game.' So you see it from him, and you saw from CJ Daniels. Just very involved. They're always moving. They're men of action. They always have to be doing something that's impacting the rest of the team, and they themselves understand the value of that. They've seen it when they were young players in other spots. So invaluable. And certainly guys that we're counting on week in and week out to whether they're playing or not, to bring that kind of juice."On Bryce Fitzgerald..
"Did a great job. He's uber talented and but he's also uber motivated. He brings that approach every day, a lot like we talk about guys like Malachi Toney. He's been led by a guy like Keionte Scott, guys like Zech Poyser, Jakobe Thomas. These are guys that have really helped lead him to understand the ways of becoming a really good football player and a lot of versatility with him. And you know, he got a shot in there. We pretty much got three or four guys playing that spot on Saturday and in different packages. I think they all had their some really bright moments, some other ones we got to correct. So looking forward to just watching him continue to evolve as a player."
On Girard Pringle's performance versus NC State…
"Looked like a mature player out there. The extra yards, the make-you-miss opportunities. Really patient to the hole, but explosive through the hole, yards after contact, ball security, certainly the check down right to get, I think it was 12-13 yards. Just a lot of stuff, really played well, and only going to get better, really never got tired. And just a really good performance by Girard."On the response from Elija Lofton...
"I think he deserves a lot of credit because he has played through some pretty good injuries and nicks and bumps or whatnot that have slowed him down. But he's never complained. He just keeps showing up. And has it hindered him some? It has, but he still keeps coming. When you make a play like that, it can really start the momentum to some bigger and better things. So his approach has never, ever wavered. He is a guy that's very strong-minded. We're counting on for continued high-level play, and I think it's coming his best steps ahead of him, but again. I'm really proud of the guy, because he's fought through a lot, and his future here is really bright. So looking forward to more to come.On the offensive line improving pre-snap...
"Well, you know [Alex Mirabal] really well. So it's everything. It's team first, everything. I think now two weeks without a pre-snap. Know we had holding in there somewhere along the lines, but sustaining blocks, finishing blocks, chasing the ball, chasing guys down the field, a lot of pride. You see it every day. So it's not surprising. It's good to see the extra effort put into cleaning that up, because that certainly was affecting us. It's good to see that pay off. Got to say, I pointed to a noisy environment this week, certainly different than playing at home. A crowd very involved. The crowd there has impacted so many games for so many decades that we certainly got to crank it up and improve even more to give ourselves the best chance."
On what he sees from Virginia Tech...
"A DNA to that program. They're always extremely physical, extremely tough, and play really hard. When you look, when you break down, it analytically, and you really dive into the relative part of the game, they're a top-five rushing offense. They get after you up front, and they do it in a lot of different ways. And they'll scheme you up series to series. They understand leverage, numbers, and angles as good as anybody. And it's not quarterback runs only. that's part of their game, but both their running backs, really, all the guys that they use, they get downhill in a hurry, they got great contact balance, they run with power, they run behind their pads, they're very versatile, they catch the ball to the backfield well, and their offensive line and tight ends, they get after it. They really do.
On what Keelan Marion adds to the offense...
"He's been great. He's been great. The neat thing about the offense is, we're getting better and better. But again, Coach Dawson, really smart, hard-working dude that just knows ball, and we're two things. Obviously, we're doing some things to help ourselves, but we're also getting the right guys on the field. Players over plays all the time. That's how it works. But Keelan has been one of those guys, and he attracts a lot of attention now because of his ability to create separation, make explosive plays, contested catches. On special teams he hasn't gotten loose yet, but he's been close. He's been a great player for us the entire year. Unbelievable energy and attitude. He really brings a fire to him that that gets everybody else just lit up and fired up, and he's another guy every single day. Attitude with him is just always, it's always up there. He's always going to bring the right type of mentality to practice and a game day. So love to see him have the success he's having. We expect him to continue to get even better."On injured WR CJ Daniels…
"He was ready. He was ready last game, and felt, I'll take full responsibility in talking with him, and being the limited amount of reps, like game plan reps that we actually got, felt that [Daylyn] Upshaw and [JoJo] Trader had got enough reps were maybe it's best where, if we're not all the way, all the way there, let's go with what we saw all week in practice. But I feel great about his availability this week as well. We're trending great with Mark Fletcher as well. Waiting on word with OJ [Frederique], but that one's certainly trending as well. It was great to see [Ahmad] Moton get the snaps this past week, which he'd been missing for a while. And we were missing him. We've been missing OJ [Frederique], David Blay, Keionte [Scott], CJ, Mark Fletcher, Wesley [Bissainthe], that's a lot of really good players. It's almost a third of our starters. So to have some of these guys on the men's and working their way back, it's exciting. So, but I'll keep you updated on those. But I do expect CJ [Daniels], for sure, Mark trending well, training well with OJ, Wesley, Moore, and Moton looks to be on the mend as well."On head-to-head games and CFP rankings...
"I would say the number one criteria for anything is always head-to-head. It's why we play the game, right? So I think that always has been, and always will be, the number one factor in determining whatever relates to whatever."
