Miami Hurricanes Football: Head Coaching Roundtable

Oct 16, 2015; New Orleans, LA, USA; Houston Cougars head coach Tom Herman against the Tulane Green Wave during the second half at Yulman Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Derick E. Hingle-USA TODAY Sports

Finally, who would you want Miami to go after? And who do you want Miami to stay away from?

Juan Toribio: I’m still waiting to see who Miami shows interest in and who shows interest back, but if I had to pick a coach today, I think Rob Chudzinski would be my guy. I think his offense would bring some much-needed creativity to the table and with the right defensive coordinator, Miami could have something on their hands. Chudzinski did a nice job with a terrible Cleveland Browns team in his only season there, and I think he could turn this around, even if he’s not considered a “splash” hire. The key for me, however, is hiring the right coordinators and hiring Chudzinski already takes care of one side of the ball. The guy I want Miami to stay away from? Butch Davis. I don’t think hiring a 63-year old coach is what Miami needs at this time. I’ll welcome Butch as a consultant, but that’s it. I’m also not high on the idea of bringing in Mario Cristobal.

Andrew Ferrelli: I want Miami to go after Tom Herman(Houston HC), Hue Jackson(Cincinnati Bengals OC), Justin Fuente(Memphis HC) and Kirby Smart(Alabama DC). I believe all of these candidates will be a good fit with the talent we already have at Miami and also know how to recruit well. These candidates are also realistic and should be affordable. I would like Miami to stay away from Butch Davis and Mario Cristobal as unpopular as that may be. Butch leaves an NCAA mess wherever he goes and hasn’t coached in half a decade. I would be all for him coming in as a consultant or recruiting assistant, but I just don’t really want him as a HC. In regards to Cristobal, I personally see him as another Al Golden, just one that graduated from Miami. Cristobal is a good recruiter, but has had limited success as a head coach. His head coaching record is 27-47 and his best season was an 8-5 year that included a loss to a 6-6 Marshall team in the 2011 Beef O Brady’s Bowl. Regardless of who Miami hires, it will be of upmost importance to surround them with a competent staff if the Canes hope to return to national relevance again.

Daniel Nordwall: I want Miami to go after the favorites such as: Cristobal, Davis, Chudzinski, and Schiano. All those guys have been part of the Miami family, I don’t see how you good go wrong with any of these guys. For an outside presence, I would like to see Miami go after Tom Herman or Justin Fuente. Unlike Al Golden, they have proven resumes from big times schools and have both of their teams ranked in the top 25. Miami needs to stay away coordinators. They need head coaching experience who knows how to win right away. I would hate to see Miami hire Lane Kiffin because there is reason why USC left him off the bus. The guy can’t motivate his players.

Sam Jacobs: Miami should definitely go after Mario Cristobal because of his local ties and recruiting success. I don’t think Butch Davis would be a great fit because his teams at North Carolina were generally mediocre and his name probably doesn’t do much for recruits today.

Shanon Culiner: I’ve read that Charlie Strong would be interested in the Miami position (even though he’s in his second year at Texas). Thus, my top choices would be: Charlie Strong, Jeremy Pruitt, Mario Cristobal and Greg Schiano. Outside of Alabama’s Cristobal, they’re all defensive-minded guys that understand the state of Florida and how to recruit it. Strong spent many years at Florida as a D-Coordinator and went on to lead Louisville (with primarily Florida-grown players) to impressive seasons. Pruitt is defense all the way and won a National Championship at FSU as their D-Coordinator and is now coaching for Georgia in the SEC. Schiano was once Miami’s D-Coordinator and he turned around Rutgers. He’s also very strict and hard-nosed and I think Miami currently needs someone like that to whip them (and this talent) into shape. And, Cristobal is a Miami-guy, proven as a head coach and now has experience under one of the greatest college coaches ever (Nick Saban) in the SEC.