Mario Cristobal generally keeps an even keel about the Miami Hurricanes performances from week-to-week. The coach rarely gets too high or too low, understanding that it's a marathon and not a sprint.
But there were a few things that happened in the Week 8 win over Pitt that clearly annoyed Cristobal, and he didn't hide his frustration during his weekly radio spot with Joe Rose.
Mario Cristobal told Joe Rose this morning that the late game defensive breakdowns were ''complete bullshit''. Alright, THAT's the power of negative thinking -- Bobby Knight would approve.
— Steve Kim - the Thomas Sowell of Boxing (@SteveKim323) October 27, 2026
That's elite proGRUM behavior, right there... #Canes
"The four 3-and-outs were elite, the lapses, like on that touchdown early, complete bu------," Cristobal said on the show. "The corners should very clearly get a signal from the sidelines, be clear on assignment and get it done. All focus on getting better. Those things are fully correctable."
Despite the lopsided 52-23 win over the Panthers, Miami yielded 334 yards through the air to the Pitt quarterbacks, who had been pushed into duty after the injury to Mason Heintschel. The Hurricanes defense gave up two long touchdowns that were clearly coverage busts and, at times, the Panthers wide receivers were running wide open across the middle of the field.
Mario Cristobal knows Miami has to fix the lapses on defense
As Cristobal pointed out to Rose, the gains came from a lack of communication. That could be a focus issue with the players, it could be an issue with the right calls coming in from the sidelines or a combination of both, but giving up explosive plays in the pass game is the thing that can ruin an otherwise solid defensive performance.
There were plenty of good things that we saw from Miami's defense. The focus on stopping the run game was good and Miami gave up just 69 yards on 26 carries. They contained running back Damon Ferguson Jr. and didn't allow the Panthers to slow down the game. But Pitt averaged 15.9 yards per completion . . .that's crazy.
The secondary gave up plays of 53, 49 and 36 yards. It's the kind of thing that should sound off alarms for a team that has plans to compete for a championship. The Hurricanes have to prove that they can shut down these mid-level passing attacks in the ACC because they will face much better quarterbacks and wide receivers in the postseason.
Week 8 is a good place for Miami to start to turn things around with the pass defense. The North Carolina Tar Heels have some players on the offense that can present problems.
Jordan Shipp is one of the top receivers in the conference, and he's recorded at least 75 receiving yards in his past four games. The bigger threat might be North Carolina's 6-foot-6 tight end Jelani Thurman, who looks like a legitimate NFL dude.
The good news is that Miami continues to crawl back to good health in the secondary. Xavier Lucas missed some time Saturday with an injury, but Cristobal says he'll be ready to roll against the Tar Heels and Ja'Boree Antonie is a player that could return to the field in November. But Cristobal believes in the guys he has put on the field each week, they just have to reward his faith.
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