“Jokes are over … jokes are over.”
The legendary Ed Reed repeated that phrase over and over during the walk-thru when Miami played at Florida State in 2001.
The clip was from the same The Season segment on ESPN where the injured safety famously went off at halftime about a 21-13 score and Miami not ‘dominating’ a hated rival the way he’d expected his team to, leading to the Canes outscoring the Noles, 28-14 in the second half.
Reed’s three-word phrase and introspective energy while walking around Doak Campbell Stadium the day before? It stemmed from what took place on that field four years prior when the safety was a true freshman and on the wrong end of a 47-0 ass-kicking at the hands of Florida State.
Losing is painful enough, but being down for so long—mocked, ridiculed and laughed at by rivals, critics, haters and opinionated outsiders—it can break one’s spirit … or it can fuel greatness, much like the run the Miami went on in 2001, en route to the program’s fifth national title.
None of this is to say the Hurricanes will win it all this season—as that’s definitely not a question for here or now on the eve of a Sunday night prime-time showdown with Notre Dame at HardRock.
No, the one-at-a-time mantra and focus on what’s directly in front of this Miami team is all that matters right now—but there’s more than enough reason to believe in what Mario Cristobal is selling in year four—and if the Canes do what they’re capable of doing to the Fighting Irish, the conversation could change quickly in the coming weeks.
BUILT-STRONG FOR YEAR FOUR
Miami is finally passing the eye test, as this roster received its share of portal upgrades—the third-best haul in the nation—beefed-up overnight when pulling in transfer quarterback Carson Beck, which is why Cristobal and staff are quietly bold and confident about the sky being the limit for this team.
Corey Hetherman took over a beat-down defense—and has a lot more chess pieces to play with this season—while Zac Etheridge and Will Harris will coach up the secondary and Damione Lewis joins Jason Taylor to work the defensive line.
There’s also a palpable intangible going into this new season, rooted in how Miami blew it in 2024—not to mention eating shit the first two years of the Cristobal era—playing with an arm tied behind this program’s back due to the broken roster and culture Manny Diaz left behind.
The Hurricanes took a big step forward last fall with Cam Ward, but the defense imploded and Miami spent the off-season living with the understanding they let one get away; especially Cristobal as the program leader—which is what led to the tireless rebuilding efforts the past nine months and the storyline going into opening weekend.
Of course that’s also why only insiders and those with a thumb on the pulse of the program believing; this feeling of knowing and seeing something others are missing—which is crystal clear when reading previews or listening to talking heads so flippantly giving their half-baked game predictions.
The narrative is consistent across the board; Notre Dame gets talked-up like this season is guaranteed to be an extension of what they pulled off in 2024, while the belief is that Miami can in no way top last year—not with Ward gone and what that defense looked like the last time the Canes took the field.
Beck? Damaged goods; no way he could actually come to Miami and get close to 2023 form—defined by who he was at Georgia last fall when the Bulldogs as a whole took a step back with their sub-par offensive line play, a running game ranked 202nd nationally and a receiving corps that led the NCAA in dropped balls.
CANES VS. IRISH; WHAT WAS AND WHAT IS
Shannon Dawson enters his third season running the offense for Cristobal and he’s been over the moon regarding what he has in Beck; a leader, a gamer, a baller with a high football IQ—as well as a humble player who settled in with the team in early spring, doing everything with his unit outside of actually throwing the ball as he rehabbed his elbow.
Without the injury, Beck would’ve been a first round draft pick this past spring and could easily be starting in NFL preseason games right now, a la Ward and others who made the jump to the pros months back.
Instead, he rolls into South Florida as a 23-year old sixth-year senior for one final year of college—no longer in the SEC, where he went 24-3 as a starter—but in the ACC, behind one of the biggest and best offensive lines in the nation; not to mention a three-headed monster at running back and a talented, albeit green, receivers room.
Notre Dame’s magical run ended in the championship game against Ohio State, while they saw six players get drafted, a few more picked up as free agents and nine players hitting the transfer portal—while defensive coordinator Al Golden bailed on his long-time position to takes over the same gig with the Cincinnati Bengals, sparking his return to the NFL.
The biggest loss for the Irish? Losing one-year transfer Riley Leonard; the former Duke quarterback going in the sixth round after his one productive season in South Bend.
Leonard didn’t possess jaw-dropping stats, but he brought senior leadership, a command of the offense and solid decision-making, rooted in years of experience—but most-notably, he rushed 184 times for 906 yards and 17 touchdowns—while throwing for 2,861 yards, 21 touchdowns and eight interceptions.
Irish faithful will talk up Jeremiyah Love and Jadarian Price—two super-solid backs—but seems to downplay the importance of Leonard captaining the ship; not just in his distribution of the ball, but also knowing when to pull it down and to get necessary yards that kept drives alive, or chains moving.
CJ Carr replaces Leonard and while the highly-touted r-freshman quarterback came with a hefty NIL price tag; he undoubtedly lacks game experience—not only making his first-ever collegiate start at Miami this weekend, but also throwing his first-even pass for the Irish in what will be a sold out, raucous primetime season-opener at HardRock.
Notre Dame fans—and players—want to downplay 2017 as being two completely different teams, but fact remains that was the craziest environment the Canes have ever been a part of in that stadium and everyone headed to ‘The Rock’ for the 2025 edition; they want their place in rivalry folklore, topping what went down eight years ago.
Carr has a whole season to get his bearings and to start carving out his Notre Dame legacy, but it’s hard to imagine a worse career-opening environment than Sunday night at HardRock with all eyes on the only show in town.
The Irish do boast a solid offensive line, quality receivers and the hype for their running backs is mentioned at every turn; but how does Marcus Freeman choose to have second-year offensive coordinator Mike Denbrock scheme this thing up without Leonard, with Carr and against a new-look Miami defense he has no film on?
Hamstrung with a’rookie’ quarterback, needing to overly-rely on the ground game and scheming against an aggressive, film-junkie, first-year defensive signal-caller for Miami; Hetherman fielding a Top Five defense with less-talented Minnesota last year, against Big Ten talent?
Golden’s departure opened the door for Chris Ash to take over; the new coordinator having spent last year as a scout for Jacksonville, after coaching up defensive backs for Las Vegas a couple years and last in the college game in 2020—a one year-stint a coaching up Texas’ defense.
Regarding what’s at stake for both teams; bragging rights in a renewed rivalry—as the teams have several more games inked over the next decade—but also post-season implications, as Notre Dame and Miami could each be vying for a College Football Playoffs spot in December, where head-to-head competition could be a difference maker.
HOW WILL IT ALL UNFOLD AT HARD ROCK?
Weather could be a factor for both; scattered showers expected—as well as 90º temps and a muggy, South Florida night on deck—which could become a late-game factor the Fighting Irish, no matter how much their fans play up a hot summer in Indiana.
Scattered showers could also impact a passing game where Carr is trying to get his bearings—while Beck works on timing with a new group of receivers—leaving both offensive lines and running back rooms to both create holes, while churning out important yards.
No better situation for either quarterback than getting in and-short situations if running backs make their mark on the game—as third-and-long will be problematic for either offense in a high-stakes opener like this.
Of course even that ground-game conversation seems one-sided as Love and the Notre Dame offensive line get all the hype—despite Miami averaging 188.92 yards-per-game last season, while the Irish were just slightly better with a 200.94 yard average.
A bigger misconception; while Miami’s shoddy defense was prone to give up the big play in 2024, the Canes’ rushing defense ranked 20th overall, allowing 112.77 yard on the ground per game—compared to the Irish’s rush defense ranked 49th, surrendering 138.1 yards per outing.
Translation; both teams will aim to successfully run the ball on Sunday night—while Hetherman’s defense should be the stronger unit when it comes to shutting down the ground game; zeroing in on Love and Price, while theoretically putting the game on Carr’s arm and pressured decision-making.
A steady diet of Mark Fletcher, Jordan Lyle and transfer ChaMar Brown—expect a running back by committee approach for Miami, much like last year—where fresh legs come in late, looking to break something big or meaningful against another defense that could be on the ropes.
Defensively, it really does feel like Miami is going to be the story on Sunday night—as the expectation is high for Notre Dame, despite losing Golden as the shot-caller—while the bar is set low for the Canes, as enough outsiders haven’t been paying attention to the Hetherman hire, or the personnel moves made to beef up the Canes on that side of the ball.
Xavier Lucas joining OJ Frederique at cornerback, while Zechariah Poyser and Jacobe Thomas hold it down at safety—with Keionte Scott in the nickel package.
Damari Brown is healthy and returns bigger, stronger and faster than last year at corner—while other transfers like Ethan O’Connor and Charles Brantley are plug-and-play and ready for reps; depth-galore at a position that was a massive weakness last fall.
Adding a Mohamed Toure to the linebacking corps—another veteran that will impact Miami’s ability to slow down the run—while the defensive line doesn’t just get back a healthy Reuben Bain and Akheem Mesidor; the Canes pulled David Blay out of the portal, while 5-Star linemen from the 2024 class are ready to breakout this fall; Justin Scott, Armondo Blount and Marqise Lightfoot about to make their presence felt.
LOSSES BECOMING GAINS?
There’s so much conversation surrounding Notre Dame’s roster and depth—understandably—but too many professionals paid to know better; they just don’t seem to be in-the-know with Miami’s off-season upgrades across the board and what this should mean to the 2025 season.
Yes, the offense loses an Xavier Restrepo, Jacoby George, Sam Brown, Isaiah Horton and Elijah Arroyo from the receivers and tight ends rooms—but Miami has reloaded the position with a healthy mix of portal pick-ups and high school recruits.
Reeling in veteran CJ Daniels from LSU, slot-man Tony Johnson from Cincinnati and dual-threat Keelan Marion from BYU—the Canes finally with a legit kick-returner back there ready to break games open—and that’s without touching on traditionally-recruited wideouts like JoJo Trader, Josh Moore, Ny Carr, Chance Robinson and instant-impact Malachi Toney, who will fast become one of the bigger freshman in college ball this year.
Elijah Lofton isn’t just a tight end; he’s a Swiss Army Knife for Miami and a multi-faceted tool for Beck—while transfer Alex Bauman is that traditional tight end option that will fast make an impact.
Wild how there will be so much talk this season about senior leadership for a program like Clemson, simply because it was all home-grown by Dabo Swinney—while Miami doesn’t get the same love because of the portal pulls.
Upgrades like Beck, Toure and Daniels—they’re all NFL-aged players and have been in the college game five-plus years; yet little credence is being give to instant-impacts that will have on quarterback, linebacker and wide receiver rooms ready to accept their leadership.
Beyond age, maturity and experience—these are also right-fit players who can advance the culture Cristobal and staff are hell-bent on building.
For context, Carr was in eighth grade when Beck rolled into Athens for the 2020 season, backing Stetson Bennett and being a part of a Georgia program that won two national championships with him as a back-up—before the reigns were handed over and the two-year starter took control, leading the Bulldogs to some big wins on his watch and a conference title.
Yet the Carr and Beck backstories remain a footnote as the pundits talk about this match-up; an over-focus on who each of these teams was last year, without any authentic conversation regarding additions, subtractions and just the general growth trajectory for both going into a new season.
Breaking it all down, that truly appears to be the x-factor going into this season-opener for both programs; the nation quickly learning who will fast live up to the hype as the tone for 2025 gets set on Sunday night.
SEEING WHAT OTHERS ARE MISSING
Cristobal and staff have a quiet confidence—and those with ties to the program; the ones watching every practice and open with what they’re seeing—all signs are pointing to as solid a roster that Miami has had in well over a decade.
Beck appears to be all he was advertised to be—and then some—while the critics and rivals play up the elbow injury and play down what he’s accomplished in the past; while the Hetherman hire and defensive personnel upgrades are barely a blip on the radar for those who only talk about Miami on a surface level.
Year four also is generally a step-forward year when good coaches put their fingerprints all over a program—which is where Cristobal is going into 2025 with this roster.
Freeman experienced year four last year—and did so having inherited a Notre Dame program that put together a 54-9 record under Brian Kelly his final five seasons in South Bend; the Fighting Irish program in great shape with the same head coach for a dozen season.
Conversely, Cristobal was Miami’s third head coach in five years and the sixth head coach over a 17-season span at Miami—the broken culture and shoddy roster discussed here ad nauseam in regards to what the Canes rolled out for the 2022 season.
Like anything else, college football is a bit of a popularity contest—one where perception becomes reality—and opinions surrounding Cristobal are rooted in his leaving Oregon or Miami, while the microscope on him for any gaffe is amplified in a way it wouldn’t be on other coaches tied to other programs.
Cristobal had made his rounds on Miami-themed podcasts as of late; his love or his alma mater palpable, where he’s gone as far as to say the biggest accomplishment of his life would be returning the Hurricanes to glory.
He lives and dies with this program—and he simply doesn’t get enough credit; not just for what he built and walked away from in Eugene—but for making moves over a decade ago to become all he could be if his dream gig ever surfaced.
TAKING THE LONG WAY HOME
A short stint on Golden’s staff in early 2013 coaching tight ends; taking a step backwards after being sandbagged as head coach at Florida International—Cristobal left for Alabama six weeks in because getting tapped by Nick Saban was worth leaving home for.
Four years in Tuscaloosa coaching up the offensive line and heading up recruiting for The Godfather; it paved the way to a four-year run and a 35-12 stint with the Ducks—two Pac-12 titles, a Rose Bowl win, a few double-digit win seasons and an upset of No. 3 Ohio State in Columbus in 2021; his final year with Oregon.
The media and fans love current Ducks head coach Dan Lanning; to the point where Cristobal pretty much gets no credit for what Lanning inherited—much like Freeman isn’t painted as a beneficiary of what Kelly built with the Fighting Irish.
Cristobal doesn’t even get the benefit of the doubt regarding transparency with the program that Diaz left behind and just how much heavy-lifting was required to rebuild Miami from the ground-up—mocked for getting upset by Middle Tennessee year one or not taking a knee against Georgia Tech year two.
Good recruiter, trash game day coach.
Quarterback killer.
Loses games he should win.
Micromanages coordinators.
Second-tier guy.
Media, outsiders and rivals consider Cristobal a punchline—while guys like Lanning or Freeman get the benefit of a feel-good narrative—but such biased storytelling can leave out facts, or steer things in an inaccurate direction.
Mocking this Miami program for losing three of the final four games last fall, wasting a season with Ward at the helm, not reaching the ACC Championship—or earning a College Football Playoffs berth after a 9-0 start—what was funny to outsiders, only fueled a fire within this program.
Again, jokes are over, remember?
Cristobal, this staff, what’s left of last year’s roster—as well as all the new pieces added this off-season—everyone is well-aware what slipped away in 2024, which is the driving force in a prove-oneself, bounce-back year.
Miami isn’t looking for favor in the court of public opinion. Quite the opposite, actually.
An us-against-the-world mentality has served the Hurricanes well over the years, but it’s also not something that can be manufactured.
Nor does that attitude help in years Miami doesn’t have the roster, talent or staff to do anything to channel that energy into fuel—but when it’s becomes an authentic rallying cry or building block, look out.
Every season seems to have its breakout stars, its surprise teams and its teams of destiny.
Notre Dame fit that bill last year; looking dead in the water after Northern Illinois upset them in South Bend—before they turned it around.
Managed the rest of their rather pedestrian schedule—rolling into a cushy CFP run with non-battle tested Indiana, a Beck-less Georgia and a perennial-choking Penn State program that reinvents ways to blow games—before Ohio State out-talented them in the championship.
STARS ALIGN FOR 2025 OPENER
Miami might not have two-deep Ohio State talent here in 2025, but a stellar offensive line, a sound ground game, a sky’s-the-limit room full of receivers and a completely revamped defensive roster and mindset—Hetherman a disciple of Greg Schiano, whose attack-style defense was a rebirth for the Hurricanes in 1999—this team is built to surprise this fall if things go as planned.
The Fighting Irish getting a top five ranking coming off a solid 2024; rolling south week one with a green quarterback—everything about that sounds like a gift, as Carr and the Irish will gain steam as the year rolls on.
Miami also gets Notre Dame the final day of August in what will be a loud, rowdy, humid affair—while the Canes’ famous 2017 pounding of the Irish not only lives in infamy as the loudest and biggest moment for the program since moving to HardRock in 2008.
That 41-8 beatdown and that fabled evening gives this 2025 fan base something to chase; wanting to up the ante and to be louder, rowdier and more-impactful that those who showed up and left their mark eight years ago.
It’s easy to overuse the phrase “perfect storm” when referring to Hurricanes football, but when you take year four, how year three ended, Cristobal’s efforts to right last season’s wrongs, the addition of Beck, bringing in Hetherman, a third-ranked portal class—and monster 2024 class ready to make a mark—it truly feels like stars are aligning.
Especially in regards to trench-warfare; which hasn’t always been the Canes on both lines—Cristobal’s efforts to beef up the offensive line, while adding depth, talent and experience to the defensive front four; Miami legit as solid as any of the top programs in way this program hasn’t been since the Butch Davis era.
Toss in Notre Dame returning to South Florida a year after they reached the title game—but doing so week one with an inexperienced quarterback and no runway to get the juices flowing—while Miami opens at home and starts their 23-year old, sixth-year senior transfer … calling it a competitive advantage feels like an understatement.
This could really be setting up in a manner the Hurricanes deserve—and by late Sunday night, one group will be proven right and the other dead wrong.
Here’s rolling with a Miami squad that looks ready to put it all together and to make a statement—shocking doubters, while proving the haters wrong—putting an exclamation point on a hell of an opening weekend of college football.
THE CALL: Miami 31, Notre Dame 20
Christian Bello has been covering University of Miami athletics since the mid-nineties. Getting his start with CanesTime, he eventually launched allCanesBlog—which led to a featured columnist stint with BleacherReport. He’s since rolled out the unfiltered, ItsAUThing.com where he’ll use his spare time to put decades of U-related knowledge to use for those who care to read. When he’s not writing about ‘The U’, Bello is a brand storyteller for some exciting companies and individuals—as well as a guitarist and songwriter for his Miami-bred band Company Jones, who released their debut album “The Glow” in 2021. Hit him on Twitter for all things U-related @ItsAUThingBLOG.