Miami 2023 Preview: Hurricanes 'will be better in a lot of areas' despite tough schedule

Football season is nearly upon us and with it the expectations built throughout the entirety of a long offseason have come into full focus. For Miami in 2023, the question is just how far the Hurricanes can progress.

It was a rough first season under new coach Mario Cristobal in 2022, with the Hurricanes finishing 5-7. There might be a silver lining going into Year 2.

“I do think that Miami is in a good place from the fact that we’re not talking about them, we don’t have a ton of expectations,” the ACC Network’s Roddy Jones said on the Andy Staples show. “I do think they’ll be better in a lot of areas, particularly in the offensive line. I think they’ll play better at quarterback. How many more wins does that equal? I’m not sure. Should be a bowl team, but I’m not sure they get to like nine (wins).

“But I do think this is a team that’s going to take a step forward, and probably a significant one by the end of this year because of the youth that they’re going to have.”

Jones provided a lengthy overview of what you can expect from Miami in 2023.

Youth movement on the offensive line

One of Cristobal’s biggest wins last year came on the recruiting trail. Well, two wins, really.

The Hurricanes snagged five-star offensive tackle prospects Francis Mauigoa and Samson Okunlola to serve as future bookends of the offensive line. But Miami in 2023 has a need, and both are expected to play.

Is that an improvement in and of itself?

“It really is, by just getting massive. Those two guys are massive,” Jones said. “And Mario Cristobal said as much, he’s like, ‘Look, these guys are so big that as freshman you just kind of throw them out there and if nothing else they’re hard to get around because of the mass.’ So I think they can be significantly better on the offensive line late in the year.”

Miami finished ranked 95th nationally in rushing offense in 2022, as well as 100th in sacks allowed, so there’s a whole lot of room for improvement.

Schedule makes things dicey for Miami in 2023

One of the tricky things about Miami’s 2023 schedule is that it doesn’t give the Hurricanes much time to get rolling before Texas A&M comes to town in Week 2.

So while Jones believes the ‘Canes will be significantly improved by year’s end, that doesn’t necessarily mean a clean start out of the gates.

“I think they’re going to go through some growing pains early on, particularly when you play a Texas A&M, who’s going to be extremely talented on the defensive side, particularly on the defensive line,” Jones said. “So as long as they don’t let that break them, then I think they will be significantly better late in the year, which is when the schedule gets absolutely brutal.

“They have an early bye week. Their bye week is the last week of September. Then after the bye they play North Carolina, NC State, Clemson and Florida State, all in the back, in the last eight games. Then you sprinkle in like a Louisville in there, which is a team that, I don’t really know what Louisville’s going to be, but the schedule sets up nicely for them.”

In other words, there are plenty of areas where Miami could slip up this fall. It’s not an easy schedule.

Momentum for the future?

Even though there may be some lumps along the way, Jones came off on the Andy Staples show as thinking Miami could still be in good shape for the long haul.

“I think as long as you see steps, yes,” Jones said. “Now will they be patient, five years patient? No, but I don’t think they need to be.”

As Jones explains, there’s already a model you can look to as a basis for what you might expect out of Miami under Cristobal. He took over an Oregon program in similar shape and it took a minute, but he really got things rolling.

That’s the plan for Miami in 2023.

“Mario Cristobal’s Oregon team took a big step forward in Year 2,” Jones said. “So while I don’t think they’ll take quite the step forward at Miami, I do think next year this team should be really good. Will it compete for a 12-team playoff? I don’t know. I don’t know the answer to that.

“But I do think they did a really good job in the portal this year. Matt Lee, a guy that they get from UCF over at center is a really good addition. You mentioned Francis Mauigoa, Francisco Mauigoa, his brother was one of the best players on Washington State‘s defense last year. He transfers and helps them defensively. So they’ve done a good job. They got a couple transfer corners in, as well. But does that get you to contending for the ACC? I don’t think so.

“I do think, though, by next year we should have some expectations around this Miami program.”