Under Mario Cristobal's leadership, the Miami Hurricanes have slowly built toward being back to their standard of competing for ACC Championships and National Championships. In his first season, the Hurricanes went 5-7, but he righted the ship the next season with a 7-6 year. Last season, the Miami Hurricanes went 10-2 in the regular season, and for many, they would've expected was an exciting year for Mario.
The Hurricanes, however, were successful because Cam Ward led a historic offense while the defense was one of the worst in the history of the program. While the team was a high flying squad that was able to mask a ton of it's flaws it didn't feel like it was a true Mario Cristobal team.
When Mario Cristobal was winning at Oregon, he was doing so with one of the best teams in the trenches on both sides of the football. On Sunday Night, we may have seen the first iteration of that style of team for Cristobal at Miami.
Coming into the season, everyone declared that Notre Dame had the best offensive line in the Country as they returned so many key starters and added a few exciting pieces. The Notre Dame offensive line got demolished by Miami's front, especially when the game hung in the balance on the final drive.
The Fighting Irish have one of the best rushing attacks in the Country with two stars in Jeremiyah Love and Jadarian Price in the backfield. That duo behind this offensive line was supposed to dominate but, Cristobal's group held the two to 78 yards on 16 carries.
Last season, Miami desperately missed Rueben Bain when he was out with injuries the entire season, as he's one of the best pass rushers in the Country. On Saturday Night, he took over with an interception and half of a sack while he was constantly pressuring CJ Carr. Flying under the radar was Akheem Mesidor who racked up 1.5 sacks opposite Bain giving the Canes a dominant duo in the trenches.
On the other side of the trenches, the Miami offensive line looked like the best group in the Country. Notre Dame was only able to manage one sack, and for most of the night, Carson Beck had all day to find his receivers. The rushing attack, on the other hand, wasn't as great as they didn't open massive holes but they still finished just 0.2 yards per carry without the dominant duo Notre Dame had.
When you look at this roster and point to the best two players on the roster, it's easily edge rusher Rueben Bain Jr and OT Francis Mauigoa. Mario Cristobal has been slowly building this team up in the trenches, and it'll turn out to be the reason they can compete for a National Championship even if they don't have the firepower they had last season.
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