COACH… “fired up and impressed”

Miami silenced the ‘haters” on Saturday as the Canes dominated a hyped #18 South Florida, 49-12. Miami head coach Mario Cristobal met with the press after the game.

He was very pleased.

"I am really fired up and impressed with the way our players and our organization handled the week of preparation for a team that had been playing really, really good football and handling what they do best, which is tempo,” said Cristobal. “They try to wear people down. So hats off to our scout team, who simulated them as good as you can possibly do all week long because that is a challenge. The level of physicality and the energy that we played with tonight, albeit outside of a couple critical mistakes. It was progress for our football team.”

On the team handles the pregame hype…

"We don't really talk about that. We have an awesome group of dudes that don't care about anything outside of Miami. The time and effort and true connection they have and the way they approach their daily tasks supersedes all that. You will never not accept some extra fuel, but these guys are internally driven and I think it showed up tonight.”

On Miami’s defense…

"I thought they were awesome. They (USF) got down there and they had to kick a couple of field goals. They had an interception and a fumble and we sputtered on offense. We really could have widened the gap more and we didn't. We have a lot to get better on. The amount of pressure we put on the quarterback and the job they did on first and second down to put us in favorable third down situations played to our strengths and allowed us to get the ball back.”

On containing USF’s Byrum Brown…

"He is a great player. Preparing for him is as difficult as you can imagine because he does throw a great football. You saw some of the long passes he hit tonight. It is a lot of diligence in watching film and schematic adjustments. It was also some hard play at the line of scrimmage and getting 11 hats to the football and trying to get him on the ground and you have to wrap him up. You have to wear him down. You saw what he did last week. He was running through people.”

On RB Mark Fletcher…

"It was a loaded box. It was plus-one and then some. I wouldn't say they were in cover-zero, but they were as close as possible. There was going to be some muddy, bloody runs in there. He finds a way to make space and make holes. As the game wears on, people take chances and try to tackle him earlier and not let his momentum get going and that is when he is really dynamic and he can make people pay. His jump cut is outstanding and he can make people miss and run through people. He has great eyes and he sees things great. He gets better as the game goes on. His third and fourth quarter is better than the rest.”

On Miami’s offensive line…

"It was going to be a dirty yards type of game. Todd Orlando is an awesome defensive coordinator. Kevin Patrick does a great job of coaching that front as well and they are a very physical bunch. You saw what they did the last couple of weeks. Every angle and hat position and hand placement, leverage, and pad level was going to be important. Being able to fit and move piles was going to end up being the difference between third and short and fourth and short. I see physical plays and guys chasing down the field and the type of culture coach Mirabal sets on a daily basis.”

On freshman WR Josh Moore…

"He is gifted beyond measure. He is an unbelievable human being. Great upbringing and great parents. Hard worker. Spends a lot of time with and benefits being around CJ Daniels and Keelan Marion, who both had great games. What you saw today, we see in practice. All of our young receivers are coming on really strong too. We are feeling better and better about our depth and caliber of player at wide receiver. Josh shined tonight and he is only going to get better.”

On Carson Beck ability to run…

"He is a big guy that can flat out run. He is a winner and he can hurt you in so many different ways. There are a couple he would like to have back, but we also have to do a better job as a supporting cast and have a better distribution relationship down the field. He has his entire career. He is really good at it and it only adds to our offensive package and makes us a little bit more dangerous.”

Was this a statement game?

"We have to give them credit because they are good. They have a lot of speed and they have a lot of athletic guys that make plays. That scheme is hard to deal with. Our guys didn't want to be a part of the narrative of being a stepping stone for somebody's successful season. There was a lot of motivation going into this thing besides the fact that they are a ranked football team. I have a lot of respect for their players and coaches. It is an in-state game. You have to play at your very best because you are never really out of these games. Our guys took it personal to not let anything get in the way of doing their job: intensity, physicality, urgency, and discipline all came together very nice.”

GO CANES!