Dennis Smith couldn't believe the mess Manny Diaz left Mario Cristobal to clean up at Miami

It's been five years since Dennis Smith joined Mario Cristobal to help rebuild the Miami Hurricanes, and to hear it from his mouth, it's been quite the undertaking.

Smith, who has been tasked with helping Cristobal manage the football operations and navigate the NIL era of college football, told CBS Sports' Adam Breneman that he was shocked at the lack of talent he saw on the roster during the first spring practice under Cristobal in 2022. He told Breneman that the lack of playmakers on both sides of the ball were so evident that he and Cristobal needed to use the transfer portal more than they wanted to simply field a competitive team while the high school recruiting plan was being executed. 

READ MORE: Dennis Smith reveals the secrets behind Miami's roster-building success

"I just came from a place, Louisiana Tech, where we had 4-5-6 players in Group of Five football, that were better than the players on the field here," Smith told Breneman in an interview on the 'Next Up with Adam Breneman show. "I ask myself, 'how does that happen?'"

Cristobal replaced Manny Diaz, who went 21-15 in three seasons with the Hurricanes. The peak under Diaz was the pandemic season of 2020 when Miami went 8-3 and lost to Oklahoma State in the Cheez-It Bowl. The record was nice, but it featured a 42-17 blowout loss to Clemson and a shocking 62-26 demolition at the hands of North Carolina. The cupboards that were decently stocked by Mark Richt were bare in 2022 and it showed on the field in blowout losses to FSU, Duke and Middle Tennessee of all teams.

Diaz's failure to put together a great roster at Miami isn't a shock to anyone. He wasn't the guy that Hurricanes football needed to go through the transition from the old way of college football to the widespread use of the transfer portal and NIL deals. Add that to the fact that we were going through a global pandemic that eliminated nearly all the recruiting tools that coaches used (high school football, prospect camps, etc.) and here we were. 

Dennis Smith and Mario Cristobal never wavered from the plan

It's easy to look at the current Miami product and think that it was easy for Smith and Cristobal to get the roster to where it is. I mean, how tough is it to recruit in Miami? Well, it's never been easy, and it's definitely not as easy as it used to be because current recruits have a lot more exposure to everything. And the Hurricanes are fighting for talent with schools that have plenty of financial resources to lean on. Top recruits from Florida didn't go to Texas A&M 10 years ago. They barely went to Texas in those days. What's changed? The money, obviously. 

This is where Smith and Cristobal's philosophy comes into the picture. Miami has some money to spend. The Hurricanes can compete with the big boys when it comes to getting players, and they have shown that. But as Smith points out, it's not just about spending money like a drunken sailor, it's finding the right fits. Finding the guys that could help Miami reach the next level and wanted to work toward that goal.

"I don't know that people appreciated what it was to be a Miami Hurricane. They felt like they deserved it," Smith added. 

The results speak for themselves. The Miami roster is loaded for action and the plan of placing high school recruiting and player retention over rampant portal use is an example for other programs to follow. 

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