Mario Cristobal explains how long it takes to rebuild a roster

Mario Cristobal’s past experience has taught him that it takes time to rebuild a program. So as he begins the challenge of doing so at his alma mater, Miami, he has some idea of when to expect the breakthrough.

The Hurricanes are off to a 2-3 start in Cristobal’s inaugural season as coach, but he still sees progress from week to week. Asked how long the rebuilding process typically takes, the coach used his stops at Florida International and Oregon as examples.

“I always liken it to the different places I’ve had an opportunity to be a part of,” Cristobal said. “We went to an FIU program that was 0-12 and three years later win a conference championship. We went to Oregon when they were 4-8 and two years later went to the Rose Bowl being a top five team. Been at Alabama, where the talent was really coming in but then it really ramped up.

“So I think that’s for a sit-down assessing where you are and where you want to be, because there’s two different ways you’ve got to develop the players on your football team while you continue the influx of talent. Elite-caliber talent, which I think is exciting in two different ways because we are progressing and guys are certainly developing. Then, I think it’s also very obvious that some areas are stronger than others, so there’s gonna be tremendous opportunity here, I guess like in the way that history repeats itself. You name it whether it be ’81, ’87, ’91, ’94, ’99. We feel like we’re making progress.”

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Miami was once a college football dynasty, claiming five national championships from 1983-2001. Cristobal, a former Hurricanes offensive lineman, was a part of two of those titles in 1989 and 1991.

But the program has taken a big step backward since then. Miami has reached 10 wins only once since it made the move from the Big East to the ACC in 2004, and was a combined 21-15 in the three seasons before Cristobal took over.

As Cristobal attempts to bring talent in that can help the turnaround, he no longer has to look mostly toward high school recruits. Thanks to the emergence of the transfer portal, there are more options than in the past when it comes to rebuilding a roster. A perfect example of this is how Lincoln Riley used the portal in his first season as the coach at USC.

“I think our focus just has to be on the ‘right here, right now,'” Cristobal said. “Recruiting never stops. It goes throughout the course of the season and offseason. There really is no such thing as a vacation. I think your portal additions — as well as your subtractions — have to be very strategic. There has to be a good reason for taking someone that’s in the portal, and there also has to be a good reason for facilitating a guy that you might have on your roster to get in the portal as well.

“It’s strictly business. You’ve got to make sure you’re doing right by the program and right by the players. That you’re having honesty and transparency in the kind of conversations that lead to betterment for everybody. But certainly, let’s call it what it is. A talent acquisition is very different now because of the portal. You see the difference it’s made in our defensive line. You’d love to have time more than a couple weeks and months to be able to do that. Just broad base right across the entire roster.”

Cristobal can focus more on bringing in transfers and recruits to rebuild the roster in a few months, but right now his top priority remains finding ways to improve this season. The Hurricanes will aim to snap their three-game losing steak when they face Virginia Tech at noon ET Saturday on the road.