Cristobal talks Miami spring game details, format, expectations. What you need to know
The fans are back, and after several disappointing seasons, they are famished to see the newest version of the University of Miami football program.
The next phase of the new era of Miami Hurricanes football will be on display at noon Saturday, when the 2022 University of Miami spring game takes place at Fort Lauderdale’s DRV PNK Stadium, on the grounds of the former Lockhart Stadium.
The Stadium, used by Inter Miami CF of Major League Soccer, seats 18,000, but more are expected to cram into it for the first UM spring game with fans (other than family members last year) since 2019.
“This is the spring football phase and we’re closing it,’’ coach Mario Cristobal, who replaced Manny Diaz in December, told reporters Thursday after the last on-campus practice session heading into Saturday’s 15th and final one. “How we close this will determine how we start the offseason phase.
“So, this is a full-throttle approach for us. We’re practicing for game day from the way we treat our bodies — what we put in them — to our film session to our walk-through, to how we go to class, what time we get to bed, the psychological part of it, the approach to it, the bus ride over there. All that stuff will be treated just like game day and we’ll play the first half just like a game.”
The long-term objective, of course, is to “get really, really good at football,’’ Cristobal said, and to do that the Canes have to play.
“In terms of schematically what we will show, I mean you’ll be in some base stuff I’m sure people have seen before,’’ the coach said. “Nothing that you wouldn’t be able to get off film if you have film on us. And everybody does, right? You have an entire summer. But will we get deep into detail in some of the real intricate parts of our scheme? No one will do that. Nobody does.
“You want to see who can block and tackle, throw and catch and run, all that other stuff. We’re not trying to win the drill, we’re trying to have a really successful, competitive day where guys can get better and we can improve our football team.”
The format
Cristobal said the format will be “offense vs. defense.’’
“We’ll kick off to start the whole thing. After that, special team involvement will be more punt and field-goal oriented. After the first kickoff we won’t do much in terms of the return game and kickoff game. It will be more punt. We’ll have our field-goal team ready to roll, our field-goal block team ready to roll, but everything else will be playing live football with a full officiating crew.”
Expect to see several quarterbacks on display, including starting third-year sophomore Tyler Van Dyke, redshirt freshman Jake Garcia and newcomer Jacurri Brown — all considered top-notch talents with varying degrees of experience.
Those quarterbacks, of course, cannot be touched by the defense, which, as always, makes the spring game a bit frustrating for the D.
“It’s definitely tough,’’ USC graduate defensive tackle transfer Jake Lichtenstein said this week when asked if it’s hard to not hit the quarterback. “Sometimes they don’t want to give you your sacks.
“I”m just looking to show a lot of effort and that I can stop the run because it’s always important. “If you can’t stop the run, the defense is never going to do anything. So, stop the run, have some fun, definitely be tough in there and have gap inegrity.’’
Said defensive coordinator Kevin Steele: “That’s OK, we know when we’ve got a sack. We want to see the guys play together as a unit. It goes back to the base rudiment: relentless effort, physical and mental toughness, and tackling.
“Obviously, we’re a new staff, so we’re not going to open up our playbook. We’re not going to put our scouting report on TV or the news. We’re going to leave a little bit of figuring for what we are and who we are, so that’ll be a challenge because you stand over there, and you want to make a certain call in a certain situation and you can’t do it because of the situation we’re in, so you bite your tongue and keep moving.”
Offensive coordinator Josh Gattis indicated no matter how vanilla the offense is Saturday, he just wants the players to execute it well and continue throughout the summer with confidence.
“Everybody in America will be watching,’’ Gattis said. “There’s a lot they’re seeing. And we do the same thing. We’re watching every other team’s spring game and putting the information in the system... But for us, most importantly, rather than sacrifice what we show, it’s about giving our kids the ability to play confident in what they do. If we hold back, we just want our kids to go out there and execute it confidently... so they can piggy-back off of it in the summertime to make them excel in their workouts.’’
UM SPRING GAME
▪ When: Noon Saturday
▪ Where: DRV PNK Stadium, 1350 NW 55th St, Fort Lauderdale, FL 33309
▪ Admission: Sold out.
▪ Parking: Opens 9 a.m. and gates open at 10:30 a.m.
▪ TV: ACC Network.
