JD PicKell: What Miami fans' expectations are for 2022 football season

After hiring Mario Cristobal as its football coach this offseason, the Miami Hurricanes have high expectations heading into 2022. The Hurricanes claimed five national championships from 1983-2001 but have mostly faded into mediocrity over the past 15 or so seasons and are desperately craving a comeback.

Cristobal isn’t the first to attempt to try to turn around the program, but those in Coral Gables hope he will be the last for a while. In a recent video launched on On3’s YouTube channel, J.D. PicKell explained that there is a buzz around the Hurricanes fanbase right now despite a 7-5 finish this past season.

He also revealed their No. 1 goal: Win the ACC Coastal Division.

“They’re excited about right now,” PicKell said. “They’re excited about 2022. We put out a tweet and went to the message boards on the On3 Miami site and said, ‘Miami, what’s the pulse of your program?’ We got 50, 60, 70 GIFs just coming down pipe. So many that were the fire emoji or different movie scenes. The overall sentiment was, ‘We’re jacked up. We’re fired up. We’re ready to win today.’ When talking to people close to the program on the phone, they said, ‘For 2022 it’s win the Coastal or bust. We need to win the Coastal division or we’re not having a successful 2022 season.’ A lot of people set their sights higher, but at the very least they want to win the Coastal. “

Miami finished second in the Coastal division during the 2021 season with a 5-3 conference record. The Hurricanes have not claimed the division crown since 2017 when they went on to lose to Clemson in the ACC Championship Game. Furthermore, Miami has never won a conference title since joining the ACC in 2004 (they have nine Big East championships).

There is certainly reason for optimism heading into 2022. Firstly, Cristobal brings an impressive track record after leading Oregon to two Pac-12 titles and a 35-12 record across four seasons. Secondly, the Hurricanes return reigning ACC Rookie of the Year and starting quarterback Tyler Van Dyke, who threw for 2,931 yards, 25 touchdowns and just six interceptions.

Miami is set to open its 2022 football season on Sept. 3 against Bethune-Cookman. For more on the state of the program in 2022 and beyond, check out PicKell’s video.