Followed Manny Diaz. Mario Cristobal moved Miami from Power Program II to Power Program I in 5 seasons.
We were in the market for a quarterback
His real stature score, season by season, across every program he’s coached — so a stretch that stays in one tier the whole way can still climb or sink on the line, not just flatten out. Node color marks the tier reached. Which program a stretch belongs to is carried by the shaded lane behind it.
Reached Power Program in his 7th career season — faster than 21% of the 395 FBS coaches who have ever reached Power Program (rank #297 of 395 by seasons-to-arrival).
Where each stint’s offense sat between run-first and pass-first, and how far it moved from one season to the next. The band is that stint’s real season-to-season range, not a fixed-width box.
Season-to-season pass-rate range for all 258 FBS coaching stints with at least three covered seasons, 2014–2025.
How he does in the games that matter most — rivalry record, performance broken out by real opponent tier, one-score games, and his toughest historical matchup.
8–3 against his rivals. Just 1–4 against Howard Schnellenberger.
A statistical estimate of this coach’s contribution to team performance, separated from that season’s roster talent, returning production, and his coordinators — pooled across his whole head-coaching career.
Model fit as of 2026-09-04.
Fan claims · every quote verified verbatim
Mario is a hell of a recruiter. He's getting 4 & 5 Star QB's after going to the portal 3 years in a row! These kids could go and possibly start at big schools yet they choose to come to Miami to learn.
Based on 1 comment from 1 poster across 1 thread · Jul 5, 2026 · via Locked On Canes
6th-best Miami tenure of 20 by the numbers.
Performs about as expected for his recruiting talent, on both sides of the ball.
Followed Manny Diaz (2019–2021).
| Season | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 | 2026 | Trend |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Record & result | ||||||
| Record | 5–7 | 7–6 | 10–3 | 13–3 | 0–0 | |
| Postseason | — | L bowl | L bowl | Title game L | — | |
| Recruiting rank | #16 | #7 | #4 | #13 | #9 | |
| Style — pass rate | ||||||
| Pass rate | 49.9 | 49.8 | 53.2 | 46.8 | 45.7 | |
| Coordinators | ||||||
| OC | Josh Gattis | Shannon Dawson | Shannon Dawson | Shannon Dawson | Shannon Dawson | |
| DC | Kevin Steele / Charlie Strong | Lance Guidry | Derek Nicholson / Lance Guidry | Corey Hetherman | Corey Hetherman | |
| Outcome — opponent-adjusted efficiency percentile | ||||||
| Offense | 24 | 69 | 98 | 89 | 100 | |
| Defense | 45 | 53 | 45 | 94 | 95 | |
| Tendencies — play-by-play, neutral script (2021+ only) | ||||||
| 1st-down pass% | 50.5 | 45.0 | 54.4 | 41.4 | 48.6 | |
| Red-zone pass% | 41.6 | 44.1 | 51.2 | 38.1 | 33.3 | |
| 4th-down go%opp. territory | 41.5 | 33.3 | 31.0 | 40.5 | — | |
A typical amount of portal roster-building.
Typical size for position, once adjusted for position mix.
Recruits older, more experienced transfers than most.
24 NFL Draft picks: Jonathan Ford (2022), Tyrique Stevenson (2023), Will Mallory (2023), DJ Ivey (2023), Kamren Kinchens (2024), Jaden Davis (2024), Matt Lee (2024), James Williams (2024) + 16 more
7 player-seasons honored (All-America / national award): Kamren Kinchens (2022), Xavier Restrepo (2024), Rueben Bain Jr. (2025), Francis Mauigoa (2025), Malachi Toney (2025), Malachi Toney (2026), Mark Fletcher Jr. (2026)
AI Narratives — “Miami's Offseason Losses and Future Outlook” and 11 more on the team page.
5th-best Oregon tenure of 16 by the numbers.
Performs about as expected for his recruiting talent, on both sides of the ball.
Followed Willie Taggart (2017–2017) · succeeded by Dan Lanning (2022–2026).
| Season | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | Trend |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Record & result | |||||
| Record | 9–4 | 12–2 | 4–3 | 0–1 | |
| Postseason | W CFP | W bowl | L bowl | L bowl | |
| Recruiting rank | #13 | #7 | #12 | #6 | |
| Style — pass rate | |||||
| Pass rate | 44.2 | 46.7 | 44.5 | 43.4 | |
| Coordinators | |||||
| OC | Marcus Arroyo | Marcus Arroyo | Joe Moorhead | Joe Moorhead | |
| DC | Jim Leavitt | Andy Avalos | Andy Avalos | Joe Salave'a / Ken Wilson / Tim DeRuyter | |
| Outcome — opponent-adjusted efficiency percentile | |||||
| Offense | 59 | 77 | 73 | 68 | |
| Defense | 68 | 94 | 52 | 41 | |
| Tendencies — play-by-play, neutral script (2021+ only) | |||||
| 1st-down pass% | 34.5 | 39.5 | 41.6 | 41.0 | |
| Red-zone pass% | 37.0 | 36.9 | 37.7 | 33.6 | |
| 4th-down go%opp. territory | 45.5 | 40.0 | 20.0 | 37.8 | |
Barely touches the portal — recruits and develops his own.
16 NFL Draft picks: Royce Freeman (2018), Tyrell Crosby (2018), Ugochukwu Amadi (2019), Justin Hollins (2019), Dillon Mitchell (2019), Jalen Jelks (2019), Justin Herbert (2020), Troy Dye (2020) + 8 more
2 player-seasons honored (All-America / national award): Kayvon Thibodeaux (2021), Verone McKinley III (2021)
3rd-best Florida International tenure of 6 by the numbers.
Followed Don Strock (2004–2006) · succeeded by Ron Turner (2013–2016).
6 NFL Draft picks: Antwan Barnes (2007), Chandler Williams (2007), Anthony Gaitor (2011), T.Y. Hilton (2012), Johnathan Cyprien (2013), Tourek Williams (2013)