Mario Cristobal wants to make sure the Miami Hurricanes have a game to end the spring practice season even if there have to be some changes to make sure not to lose the opportunity to practice.
Cristobal announced the format of Saturday's spring game, and it's going to include a lot of elements you would see in a practice, like one-on-one, two-on-twos and other drills designed to get players the necessary reps. There will also be a live football portion, with both 7-v-7 and 11-v-11 work likely.
Coach Mario Cristobal explains the Spring Game NEW format. pic.twitter.com/E6OA97kbwE
— Grant Reacts (@GrantReacts1) April 16, 2026
"It's a little different than what we've done. The first half will be practice and the reason being is that we felt like we don't want to compromise a day of fundamental work that we can do," Cristobal said. "We will play live football on Saturday. It will be an extended practice, we'll be in full pads. We've been in full pads the entire spring."
I love the little part Cristobal added in at the end. He wants to remind everyone that Miami always has tough, physical practices in full pads, whether it's spring, fall, during the season, playoff season or any other time.
Mario Cristobal makes necessary changes to spring game
With many of the top programs deciding to, or considering, ending spring games in general because...well, let's be honest, it's because they really don't want the public to see and pick apart players based on a game after a few weeks of practice. With the transfer portal leading to major roster changes at most programs, coaches value the extra few hours of practice to build chemistry will all these new players over playing a game in front of a lot of people.
But Cristobal gets it. The spring game is simply what it's called. It doesn't have to be a game. It could simply be a open practice or a controlled scrimmage or some combination of several things. There's no demand that you keep score or play a set amount of plays or use a running clock. The spring game can be whatever a coach wants it to be and Cristobal has smartly decided that it will be used as another day of practice with some ample time for players to compete and showcase their skills in front of the fans.
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