Everything Miami Head Coach Mario Cristobal Said After Win Over Ohio State
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The No. 10 Miami Hurricanes defeated the No. 2 Ohio State Buckeyes 24-14 in the 2025 Cotton Bowl on Wednesday night to advance to the College Football Playoff semifinals.
After the game, Miami head coach Mario Cristobal spoke to the media about his team’s performance.
Below is a transcript of everything Cristobal said.
MIAMI HEAD COACH MARIO CRISTOBAL: Sorry I'm late to the party, guys. A lot of stuff going on out there. It starts and ends with these guys and their teammates. Their resiliency, their commitment to a program, and a level of work and dedication that is just rare. Their resiliency, their just desire to find a way to punch through and get better on a weekly basis has led us to this opportunity; and now has granted us another one. So, looking forward to getting back to work.
Q. Coach, you talked about resiliency. Talk about the resiliency of your team this year. And what specific position group do you think had the most improvement from last season to this season at this point?
COACH CRISTOBAL: That's a tough question. I think the defense is obviously the most improved unit. Last year, towards the end of the season, we had a tough time stopping anybody. But I think the entire team, and really the leadership -- these are two of the guys that really spearhead the leadership on our team. I think that part right there, playing as one, doing whatever it takes, finding a way to play with trust and confidence and just cutting it loose on game day, that's what these guys bring to the table. When you come out of the tunnel and these guys are beside you, you feel confident that it's going to get done. You guys should be happier. Everybody's really quiet here right now. Am I in the wrong room? Is this the right room?
Q. I know everybody's going to talk about the defense, but your three offensive drives tonight averaged six minutes and three seconds per drive. That kept the ball out of their hands and their explosive offense, didn't it?
COACH CRISTOBAL: No doubt. And they were starting to find some chunk plays, and they found some success in the running game to open up the second half. Those two drives, they did a nice job just checking and doing what we call the kills, right? Getting to an opposite side run, exposing the B gap. And they got themselves some chunk yardage, a couple gap schemes, and wide zone. But certainly, again, the line of scrimmage, the physicality of our tailbacks. Actually, Carson [Beck] with a nice scramble there, right?
RB MARK FLETCHER JR.: He said he was going to run somebody over.
COACH CRISTOBAL: He did say that. You sure he weighs 230? But it was. Mark [Fletcher], Marty (CharMar Brown), the offensive line, the tight ends. I can't speak highly enough about the tight ends because that was a big matchup in this game. Their defensive ends, their edge players -- and I think they had allowed 80 yards a game or something like that on the ground. I don't know what we had. 161, so I guess we doubled that. We had some more opportunities out there. So, I guess to sum it up, incredibly proud of these guys. They're the absolute best human beings and best competitors I've been around. And then for me, really just looking forward to all the things that I could have done better, we could have done better to keep improving so we could be prepared to go to Arizona.
Q. In this moment in Miami history, what does it mean for The U to take down the defending national champion Ohio State and just what it says about the road that you've been on all season.
COACH CRISTOBAL: They all made -- these guys make us better coaches, and I'll tell you why. It's because, again, they are elite human beings and have an incredibly high care factor and do whatever it takes all the time. And when you have that, you stay up at night as a coach and you try to think of ways, What else can I do to help
Q. Mario, you talked to Coach [Jimmy] Johnson on the field. I'm just curious what the conversation was.
COACH CRISTOBAL: The game wasn't over yet. I'm like, Coach, come on. You're the one that tells us not until the clock strikes zero. But at the end of the day, he changed our lives, my brother and I. We were still kind of a nobody. You know what I mean? We pride ourselves on that. He offered my brother and I scholarships. My parents, may they rest in peace, they didn't even know what a scholarship was. They're Cuban-Americans that came over and found a way and tried to make a living. And fast forward, almost 40 years later, and he's out there on the sidelines supporting us. He set such a high standard. Coach [Howard] Schnellenberg did as well. Coach [Larry] Coker. So many great coaches. Coach Rocco [Cristobal] was out there a little while ago. So many that have come through. So, really proud that this team is making him proud, and also, again, the first thing he says, remember, let's keep getting better. And we're on that. We think like that. We're on the same mindset.
Q. Mario, how important was it to set a tone in the trenches, especially with your outstanding pass rushers and the pressure they were getting on their offense?
COACH CRISTOBAL: We keep getting better and better up front. We don't think we have arrived by any stretch, but we certainly think we're getting better. When you play a team like that that's been the number one defense in the country the entire year, you have to. And you have to not only hit, but you've got to be willing to take the hits and keep coming, because that's what it's going to be. If you buckle, if you fold, and you know what, they're going to run right over you. And they had success in the second half. Credit to them.
They were a very well-coached team. Schematically, they were very difficult to prepare for. We just kept -- our players kept responding. Our players kept coming with their counterpunch. And those last couple of counterpunches, that big stop after they converted a third and 18, and then the touchdown drive at the end, and then to finish it off with an interception, those are all -- those are great counterpunches. Those are just really left hooks to the body and to the head. Those are great, great counterpunches by our team.
Q. What has it been like for you -- you were born and raised in Miami, Columbus High School -- and to take the program back to where you want it to be, almost getting there? I know you've put in 20-hour days since you became the Miami coach. It's been a tireless work ethic. So what does this moment mean to you?
COACH CRISTOBAL: Again, I have very little care to do anything as it relates to me. And I'm being honest with you, and I'll tell you why. Because this operation is, like, 150 people. You tie in families, it's about 600 people. And we all live and die by the moves that we make and the work that we put in. So, it is 100% not about me. I'm part of their team. I'm part of that family. And it is my obligation as a former Miami Hurricane player -- and all the things that Miami did for my brother and I -- to do my best to try to provide these guys with even better opportunities so they can fulfill all the great things they are destined for. So, I am part of a great team, and I'm proud to be part of a great team.
Q. Coach, the last time I saw you here was the SMU game. What kind of changes did y'all do and adjustments did you make as far as the teams, your message going forward to drive them from where they were that game, the last time they were in Dallas, to now?
COACH CRISTOBAL: It was really the lowest moment for us in the season. And a credit to Coach [Rhett] Lashlee and his team. I don't think people realize how good the teams in the ACC are. And I hope now that they're realizing that more and more as we advance, because those teams that we play in our conference, they do great in the CFP. So that day was -- it was a low point. And we quickly -- we got together because we have really good people, and we work really, really, really hard. And we weren't achieving the results that we set out to have, and that's difficult.
That's a punch in the gut. So, before the players got back, we rounded up the staff and we just made a very simple decision. We called it like the meeting. We save those notes in a nice box that will always be with me forever. We told them that. We have awesome people. We work really hard. We're not getting the result, but we are going to have to be our very own best fans, our very own best supporters, our very own best family, and we're not going to let anything get in here. But we're just going to do it one day at a time. And every day, I'm going to lift you up. You're going to lift me up. We're going to bring great energy. We're going to have great practices, and we're just going to focus on getting a little bit better every day.
And if we do that, it's November 1st, and y'all saw the 5% chance we had to make the CFP. They all saw it. They said, if we do that at the end of the season, we will have an opportunity to continue playing into the postseason. And we just stuck to the plan. That's why I love those guys and what they stand for, you know? When they say they're getting ready to get back to work and get on the next one, it's what they are. They're kind of -- that's their DNA, but that's the way we've been working hard to wire our team, and probably the most important, we have a long way to go. But we are getting better in really good chunks and really good increments. So, certainly looking forward to doing it again.
Q. Two for you, Coach. One, Carter Davis, nearly a 50-yarder. Just what's that sense -- not a sense of relief, but the trust in him to go ahead and knock in that field goal. And two, having Marty (CharMar Brown) to go out there in the closing stretch, what did you see from him, especially leading up to that, to give him that opportunity?
COACH CRISTOBAL: I'm glad you bring up Carter, because last week was very difficult. You saw those conditions. Those were 30-mile-per-hour gusts, and everybody's all over the guy. He walked into my office like, "I'm good." I go, "I know you're good," you know? And he was just drilling them in practice like he always has. We have our two-minute drills at the end of practice. And in fall camp, I believe we had 14 opportunities where he was kicking field goals at 50-plus and he made 12 or 13 of them. So that's been second nature for him. Proud of him.
You had a second question, but I forget -- Oh, Marty. Yeah, this was a -- and [Girard] Pringle [Jr.] did a nice job when he got in there, too. This game leaned more towards Marty, [Mark] Fletcher [Jr.] and Marty, that combination, because of how big and physical Ohio State was. This was going to have to be a slug-it-out, contact, balance, yards after contact type of game. And those guys, they did a great job. And actually, Pringle did a really good job with that as well. Our backs, our entire room, we trust them to get it done.
Q. Can you talk about your fan base coming to College Station, and then coming to Arlington and how they traveled really well? I feel like they traveled real well compared to what people have criticized your fan base for in the past.
COACH CRISTOBAL: And hopefully they're online right now just buying up flights and tickets to go out West again. I mean, who really cares about the criticism? That's one thing I never understand. When I hear questions that are kind of framed that way, as it relates to noise, I don't quite digest that. I don't get it. I don't understand how that ever becomes part of a process where you're dedicating your entire existence, every ounce of blood and sweat and time to getting things going. Like, the outside stuff, it doesn't matter. I'm glad to see them enjoy a moment like this. I know it's been a long time for them. And you know what? It's great for the city and great for the community. When the Miami Hurricanes do great things, the city of Miami and the community really, really comes together, all the way back to the -- you know. So, just really, really proud of our people.
