Mario Cristobal explains 'critical factors' that Miami uses in recruiting new players

One of the strengths that Mario Cristobal has had over the years is his ability to recruit players to the teams he’s coaching and build a strong roster. Now, in year three at Miami, that’s a continuing trend for him.

During an appearance on Always College Football, Mario Cristobal explained to Greg McElroy what he sees as the critical factors that he uses to recruit new players to Miami.

“You know the critical factors because you were a part of that operation as well [Alabama],” Mario Cristobal said. “Those things haven’t changed and those critical factors have always stood the test of time. At the end, once all those boxes are checked, they have to be a great locker room fit, right? Mentality has got to be on point. They can’t be an agenda-driven, independent contractors…it’s got to be that way.”

Cristobal has found success at several stops in his career, in large part thanks to his ability to recruit. That includes tenures as a head coach at FIU and Oregon, as well as being an assistant at Alabama, Oregon, Rutgers, and Miami.

“Fortunately for us, because it helps you, every job [except for Alabama] was a rebuild. So, there was such a focus on you’ve got to change the roster. You’ve got to overhaul the roster. You’ve got to overhaul, really, everything. The coaching staff, recruiting department, strength room, everything,” Cristobal said. “Until you’re in that situation, you don’t realize how — it’s not a desperate thing — it’s just a really urgent feeling of ‘For us to accomplish what we have to accomplish, to do what we want to do, we’ve got to be able to have the right pieces in place.'”

Miami recruited the 13th-ranked high school class in the 2024 cycle, according to the On3 Industry Ranking. At the same time, the Hurricanes brought in the 18th-ranked transfer class in the 2024 cycle. It’s a class that saw the Hurricanes add 15 players via the portal, including presumed starting quarterback Cam Ward and starting running back Damien Martinez.

“And that’s a relentless process because you can’t have one here and a hole on this side, and you can’t one here and layer it here well, and no depth and let that bottom fall out. So, that in itself is…that process is almost like a process on top of all the other processes. We feel really strongly about the progress we’ve made there, and we’re excited about this roster. It’s looking more and more like it should look like.”

To this point, Mario Cristobal has brought in plenty of talent to Miami but inconsistent results on the field itself. The Hurricanes are just 12-13 under Cristobal and in year three, there is an expectation that the team’s talent translates to more winning.