The calendar may read March, but that doesn't mean people aren't counting down the days for Miami to get its 2026 season underway. Thankfully, spring ball is around the corner and we'll get a first look at the potential this team is going to have.
Carson Beck overcomes classless Indiana fans to perform well at NFL Combine
Is another memorable year on the way for the Canes and Mario Cristobal? That's what a lot of people are expecting, but leave it to CBS' Brad Crawford to add even more hype to things. Crawford just dropped his early 2026 CFP projections and not only does he have Miami in the field, but he's also got the Canes taking home the No. 1 seed. Wow:
.@BCrawford247's updated 2026 College Football Playoff projection 👀
— CBS Sports College Football 🏈 (@CBSSportsCFB) March 2, 2026
FULL bowl projections 🔗 https://t.co/f8uVM88gAT pic.twitter.com/na5hSzDWAq
CBS' Brad Crawford thinks Miami will take home the No. 1 CFP seed next season
This appears to be the first bracket that has the Canes holding the top spot and you know what, we don't hate it. This particular bracket would set up quite the matchup in the quarterfinals, as Miami would potentially take on Ohio State if Ryan Day and Co. manage to take down Lane Kiffin and LSU.
This past season, Cristobal and his men stunned the country by taking down the Buckeyes in the CFP, as Ohio State was fresh off a first-round BYE and ready to prove its doubters wrong after losing to Indiana in the Big Ten title game.
Miami had other ideas, taking down the Buckeyes and ending their hopes of repeating as the champs. Come next season, there are going to be plenty of changes for the ACC powerhouse, of course highlighted by Darian Mensah taking over behind center.
The veteran quarterback is now going to run the offense in place of Carson Beck, who is off to the NFL. Mensah is a stud QB and he knows that the pressure is going to be on for him to play at a stellar level from start to finish next campaign. If he fails even once, people will be all over him.
Despite that, Cristobal has all the confidence in the world in him and all the new faces to perform quite strong for Miami. After finishing as the national runner-up this season, the Canes are going to do everything possible to get over the hump next year and win it all. Not many people think Miami has what it takes to pull that off, but Crawford appears to have a different take on things.