Mario Cristobal Previews Miami's First Scrimmage of Fall
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Miami head coach Mario Cristobal announced that the Hurricanes' first scrimmage of fall camp will happen Saturday night.
The former Florida International and Oregon head coach wants to see how his team will fare with the entire coaching staff watching from the sidelines in order to replicate a game-like atmosphere.
"We need to see ourselves execute with everybody off the field. No crutches, no assistant coaches trying to get a guy lined up, no cheating," Cristobal told reporters after Friday's closed practice. "We want to see who can block and tackle, throw and catch and run, execute, play football and start really evaluating what that's gonna look like cause we get closer and closer to the season."
The intensity and physicality of Miami's practices have ramped up throughout the second week of fall camp.
On Thursday, the Hurricanes put on full pads for the first time, and the energy was palpable. The thuds caused by tackles were heard throughout, and the pace of the practice was non-stop and completely focused.
This increase in overall energy has led up to Saturday's scrimmage, which will be an important one in figuring out what the positional depth charts will look like heading into the season.
"We wanna see drill transfer tomorrow amongst other things," Cristobal said.
"If we've been working certain combination blocks that require a certain hat placement and hand position at a certain angle, that has to show up tomorrow when that play is called and it has to be executed."
The game-like scenarios that UM will be replicating on Saturday extend beyond the offensive and defensive units. There will also be a heavy emphasis on special teams, as that has been an area that has plagued the Hurricanes in past seasons under previous coaching staffs.
And with around 150 plays expected to be run, players will get an ample opportunity to compete for playing time in Miami's first extended live setting with a mostly full and healthy roster.
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