REPORT: Miami "Making a Run" at Mario Cristobal for Potential Head Coach Job

As the No. 10 Oregon Ducks prepare for their third straight Pac-12 Championship Game appearance, Mario Cristobal seems to have options to weigh in the near future.

Miami is "making a run" at Cristobal in the coming days for a potential head coaching opening, as first reported by Miami Herald's Barry Jackson.

As UM makes a run at Mario Cristobal in coming days, there's this perspective today from Dolphins safety Jevon Holland, who played for him: "He's a hell of a coach, one of the best coaches I've had. As a recruiter, he's even better. You see that with the talent we get at Oregon."
— Barry Jackson (@flasportsbuzz) December 3, 2021

However, Miami still has its head coach, Manny Diaz, under contract through 2023, and the school does not yet officially have an athletic director, but there are rumors Jt Clemson athletic director Dan Radakovich is going to Miami.

I am told by a source that Clemson AD Dan Radakovich is going to Miami.

Next move will be decision on football coach.
— John Canzano (@johncanzanobft) December 3, 2021

Diaz has gone 21-15 in three years at Miami and has been on the hot seat for much of the past two seasons as the Hurricanes have underperformed. If Diaz is fired, Cristobal is believed to be one of the top targets for the Hurricanes.

Cristobal, who was born and raised in the 305 and played football at the University of Miami, is believed by some, according to Jackson, to strongly consider an offer from his alma mater, and others believe he is content at Oregon.

Other reports, first by the Oregonian's John Canzano, have come to light that Oregon is negotiating an "aggressive" contract extension for Cristobal, who is currently signed through 2026 as his deal was recently extended just last month. The report said that Cristobal's offer is within a similar monetary range to what Brian Kelly received with LSU ($95 million) and what Lincoln Riley got at USC (believed to be $110 million).

Rumors of Cristobal having interest in the Hurricanes' job ramped up when he quickly traveled to Miami to visit his mother, who had fallen ill. He returned to Eugene to help his team prepare for a rematch with Utah for a Pac-12 title.

Cristobal isn't the only coach on the Ducks' staff that is involved in the coaching carousel rumors of the past week. Offensive Coordinator Joe Moorhead is believed to the front-runner for the head coaching gig at Akron — a program he spent five years with as an assistant.

Cristobal has gone 35-12 in his more than four years as the Ducks' head coach, leading his team to two Pac-12 titles with a chance to win a third Friday night, a Rose Bowl win, and several elite recruiting classes that rank among the best in program history.

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