Everything Mario Cristobal said ahead of Rivalry Matchup Against Florida

CORAL GABLES, Fla. — No. 4 Miami (3-0) is set to face Florida (1-2), and it is all business for Mario Crisotbal and Co.

Cristobal opened his weekly press conference to the point and got right to the Gators, knowing how important this week is for the team.

Opening Statement…

"Thank you for being here today. Okay, so obviously, wrapped up on USF the other night and certainly open to questions there, but preparation began immediately for Florida this week, and go right to it."

On the importance of winning in-state games like this one…

"Yeah, the state championship in the state of Florida is always going to be one of the highest goals that we have. These guys play against each other, the fan bases, alumni bases, they're at it all off-season. There's deep meaning to it. So certainly very prominent in terms of that."

On the team's week-to-week mindset…

"I think it's spearheaded by everybody from players to staff, how really the only thing that matters to us right now is being focused on our job and not letting anything get in the way or anyone get in the way of us doing our job. So it's that simple, you know? So that's been our focus."

On how that indicates growth…

"I think the combination of continuity in the right spots and change in the right spots, as well as acquiring the right type of talent and really mature mentalities as it relates to being a professional in your approach to the game. Understanding what lies on the other side if you don't prepare at the highest level, if you don't treat every single game and every single opponent with the same amount of respect. So, that's contagious. So what you see is, I think guys are playing more and more, not only together, but for each other. And we've got a long ways to go, but we certainly have come a long way from that standpoint. And we'll continue working on a mentality until it looks exactly the way it should look."

On the injury status of RB Jordan Lyle and WR Jojo Trader…

"Yeah, Jordan, he was ready at game time, and because he hadn't taken maybe as much work as we felt comfortable with, he didn't play, but he was ready to go. Jojo barely missed the cut to be ready, but he is ready to play this week and is his full go."

On the danger of playing a team that has been struggling…

"The part that has to be respected most is their talent level, their coaching, their size, speed, physicality. Schematically, they're very challenging in a lot of different ways. They've been playing elite defense for several games, dating back to last season. And offensively, they've been very close on several occasions to having some great performances. So it's very clear. They're an extremely talented team. They're well coached. They play hard. And for us, a great opportunity."

On how the offensive line has set the tone up front…

"[James Brockermeyer] specifically, he is a professional. He's a mature mindset we just referred to. He's a great leader. He's a tough guy with a super high care factor. He's a tremendous mentor. Down the line, towards the end of the year, he'll be a guy that leaves a tremendous legacy. I think the physicality of the defensive line and the offensive line is improving every week. We're progressing a lot. We're not where we want to be yet. We're not there. We think it has caught some the attention of the skilled guys on both sides of the ball. We're improving in that area as well. But I would say, I would label it as progress. We've been improving. We've been getting better, but we certainly recognize across the board that we're not where we want to be yet, and that we have to keep working and improving."

On QB Carson Beck having experience playing against Florida…

"You never know, because when those teams come out the tunnel, you could be facing a completely different shift schematically. And so you prepare for everything, historically, what teams have done and whatnot, but without question, to your question, experience at that position, and understanding conceptually what we do versus what opponents show us is always a tremendous bonus, and certainly he takes a lot of pride in studying his opponents, so any insight from him certainly is welcome and respected."

On how Corey Hetherman's scheme has helped elevate the play of Rueben Bain and Akheem Mesidor…

"Corey Heatherman was hired primarily because what he does fits our personnel. We recruited a team that had explosive, fast-twitch guys that can play with power, and it just lended to really maximizing the potential, the abilities of both those guys you just mentioned, as well as some other guys. So I think it's not just one person, it's not one player, it's not just one coach and one play caller. I think collectively, everyone's contribution, because you mentioned their bodies have changed and whatnot. There's a strength coach as a nutritionist. There's a player willing to do it and bought into do it. There's a coach that's knowledgeable and understanding to put them in position to be more productive, and so certainly, a lot of progress in those areas. And we feel like we still have a long ways to go."

On handling the attention that comes with Collge Game Day…

"I think that's for [sports information director Cam Ghorbi] to handle so that we can focus on the game. I mean, it's always an honor. You know, we, Miami always grab a lot of attention. And over the past several years, it's been negative attention. So I think our players are very well aware of that, and so there's really nothing to talk about or focus about or focus on, aside from the opponent and making sure that we spend every minute we can on preparation, on elevating the standards of how we prepare, and just digging deep and improving as a football team. I think everything else will take care of itself."

On LB Chase Smith emerging as a player late in his career…

"Chase really showed up really strong this past game. He was physical, tackled well, very knowledgeable of the scheme now, feels very comfortable. Still has a ways to go, but is improving and communicated well, and we think he'll just keep getting better and better. You know, we're going to push him hard. He knows the areas he has to improve, but proud of him for fighting and for overcoming a tough injury a couple of years ago, and now starting to play better, better football every single week."

On his thoughts on the secondary play…

"I think we're progressing. We're getting better, and we've got a long, long ways to go. Certainly we're understanding the scheme. We're playing hard, we're communicating better, so there's progress, but a long way to go."

On how Lyle and Trader could emerge onto the field with stiff competition at both positions…

"They were doing great, they were doing great. And, Jojo got dinged up in camp, and then got dinged up again a little bit, so it's a frustrating deal, but that's ball. And we're fortunate to have guys that work their butts off at those respective positions. And as you get closer and closer to game time, you want full-speed players knowing that no one's going to be at 100 percent, right. Three games in, you're ready, you're nicked up all over the place. So what you make the best decision always. You keep Player Health and Safety at the forefront. And once that's clear, okay, how effective can he be for the team? And so that's kind of where it went with both those guys, and in the meantime, you also have guys like [Girard] Pringle got more carries, developed Chris Wheatley-Humphrey developed, Marty continues to develop, the wide receivers. You saw how many guys got playing time outside and inside. So that's the way you're like it to be as guys are on the mend work their way back. The guys are in there work hard, respond, perform at a level that's progressing and getting better with miles to go. But also remind the guys that are coming back from injury, you better come back and work your butt off to regain your playing time."

On handling the adversity of success…

"Well, I think, as it relates to whoever has kids out there, teenagers or whatnot, I feel like, to quote an old mentor, 'you're fighting for their minds every single day.' So, assuming would be the worst thing that you can do. Yeah, the reminders are daily, and I think the reminders come in the form of really hard work and structured, challenging practices that can get the best out of each player. Competitive practices that remind players that the best guys, the best performers, will play, and that the week of practice does matter, and that your practice and execution or is going to be reflected on your game day performance. So we're very honest, very transparent. e You just go right at it. And we think that's the best way it's worked for us so far. And I think our guys are also very well aware of how many teams, including ourselves, a year ago, can be humbled from one week to the next. If you're not completely dialed into what you have to do."

On what stands out about Florida…

"Size, speed, strength, good technique, and fundamentally, schematically challenging. Powerful at the line of scrimmage, heavily invested in the trenches, powerful at running back, speed at wide receiver, both inside and out, and length and size outside as well. Large secondary guys that can cover a lot of ground, a lot of length, multiple coverages, good at disguising coverages and pressures and pressures. Dynamic returner on special teams. Very talented football team, very well-coached football team."

On DE Rueben Bain bouncing back after an injury in 2024…

"Well, he's a local guy, man, born and raised right, born to be a Miami Hurricane. And when you get banged up after such a highly touted freshman year, that could be really, really frustrating, it changes everything you when you come back, you're never fully back to where you were before the injury, and you really haven't had a chance to develop further than you did before your injury. So with the amount of time that he invests, and the way schematically that he's been able to just make some some plays that have been very impactful in the course of the game, has been awesome to watch. I mean, this means a lot to him. His teammates mean a lot to him. And I think if you ask him, he'll tell you that he says he's got a long ways to go. You know that he's improved a bunch, but that there's a lot of things that he's working on to continue to get better, and he's looking forward to getting a practice and get right at it."

On the special teams…

"Didn't get tested on Saturday. Obviously, they were tested more in game one, but from a coverage standpoint, and Dylan [Joyce's] ball placement, hang time, operation time. The entire thing has really improved, getting to a higher level, but still needs some more work. We got to be a little bit quicker getting it off. We got to hang the ball a little bit higher, place a little bit better. There's some things that can really help our coverage teams. And we're going to keep challenging the kickers every single week. They're competing against each other. That's going to keep them sharp. We look at the end of every week and see what's best for the team, and kind of decide from there."

On Miami's operations being sharp early on…

"Getting better. Getting better. As a staff, we spend a lot of time on them. We got to spend more time on it than we did yesterday on the importance of that. We got caught with 12 on the field the other day for a play, and that's 10s and 12s. Can't have those, right? So, put getting better. Let's go."

On Carson Beck's leadership on game day…

"Genuine. Real. Strong. Alpha. I thought the best thing was, after an interception, his response was to, 'give me the ball. Let us get to work.' And he uses the word 'us' and 'we.' That hits strong when you're a coach, right? When you're anything is part of a team, right? You don't talk in 'I's,' and 'my's,' and 'me this.' So his whole demeanor, his approach is very team-driven, and is his competitive response. It's what you want, and we challenge them every single day, every single week. So we expect that to continue to improve as the year goes on."

On Malchi Toney's decisions at punt returner…

"Yep, not good enough. Certainly some good decisions, and some other ones where we could make a better decision and not put ourselves at risk of turning the ball over or putting ourselves in poor field position. So he's talented, he's smart, he can do things that most people can't, and he's been a great decision-maker in the sense of, you saw one of his teammates about to get hit by a roller. He literally takes his teammate and pushes him off the field so he understands the game really well, and we have worked and we will continue to work him hard to make sure we get better at decision-making process."

On the tight ends…

"They've been playing good football, and still lots of areas where they can improve upon. The ball has found them sometimes, and other times it hasn't, but they're a huge part of our offense, and will continue to be so going forward."

On the physicality on the team…

"Well, when we watch ourselves on tape, we feel that we have a long ways to go. We feel that we've improved a lot, but we feel that every aspect of our game, from a physical standpoint, from pad level to technique of fundamentals, could get better. You always want to be a team that plays with toughness and physicality, and that's both mental and physical. So there is some progress there, but we certainly, we feel like we have a long ways to go."

On Mark Fletcher's performance and the type of player he is…

"There were a lot of dirty looks on Saturday, and initially, you probably saw there were a couple plays with penetration, they came out with a couple looks that we're a little bit off, and we're a little bit off. Okay, I won't get into all the details of that. So the onus is in on the back to, run through a guy, run by a guy, make a guy miss, and the fact that he is getting healthy is really exciting, because you see consistent improvement. His energy, his spirit, his heart, his leadership, his care factor is awesome. Mark Fletcher is a special, special young man. Big Mark is watching it from above. I know he's extremely proud of his son, and he's a guy that you can't wait to go to practice and watch him practice, because he's going to bring it. He's going to change the energy of the entire team. And so I guess, I know it sounds boring, but Mark's come a long way, and got a long way to go."

Justice Sandle is a graduate of Mississippi State University and is the site lead for the Miami Hurricanes on SI. He can be reached at Twitter @Justice_News5.