Others are talking and acting in absolutes on both sides of this as if they have talked directly to Cristobal and he has told them anything concrete. So here is what I know:
- Anyone in media (or other fan sites) who insinuates that Mario Cristobal or his family has told them directly anything about his future plans is being disingenuous. It just did not happen. What they speak of are generalities that we all know such as:
- The family absolutely loves Oregon and the atmosphere. Eugene is a fairly quiet, college town and great place to raise a family.
- Mario obviously is also from Miami and went to college there. He has great memories of growing up and playing there. Most of his family are still there (he has a brother who is a police officer in the area and clearly his mom still lives there).
- Neither of these things are proof of a decision either way.
- Miami has not fired Manny Diaz
- Miami does not have an athletic director in place.
- There has yet to be discussion of a contract and I don't believe anything would be said until Saturday.
There are some impediments to taking the Miami job if it were to be open:
- Their facilities and support system are pathetic and are going to take a LONG time to get up to where Oregon is at the moment
- Mario has shown time and time again that his own compensation is not his main concern. So not only would Miami have to offer him a buttload of money, they would have to add a lot of money to the assistant coaching pool
- Boosters control the roost down there and that is NOT something that is appealing. People can talk trash about Phil Knight from the outside all they want, but the elite boosters at Oregon do NOT get involved in the football part of the gig. They let coaches coach.
What to think about:
- Don't get too worked up about no extension being signed yet; the extension/new contract has been in the works for quite some time. The market has changed and I imagine that a deal structure has also likely changed.
- I saw some ridiculous comment that Phil Knight would just 'recognize Miami is his home and let him go' Uh, no. First of all, that's not how this works at all. Technically, boosters cannot dictate how much a coach makes. Do they do it? Absolutely. So if anyone thinks the Duck athletic department let's Cristobal walk for some nonsense nostalgic reasoning, they are just not very smart. Business is business and Knight will do what it takes to keep Oregon near the top.
- If Miami does fire Diaz this weekend, that might not be a great sign for Oregon retaining Cristobal. They would be absolutely insane to do so this late in the cycle without someone already in place.
- I can guarantee you Oregon will do everything within their power to keep Mario Cristobal at Oregon
- The Ducks are FAR closer to being a national champion than Miami. The Hurricanes had a good stretch of football, but have been a disaster for over a decade. Even with Florida and Florida State in down cycles, they have struggled to get elite talent and coach it up. This matters to someone like Mario as Miami is a major major rebuild in both talent and culture.
- Anyone in media (or other fan sites) who insinuates that Mario Cristobal or his family has told them directly anything about his future plans is being disingenuous. It just did not happen. What they speak of are generalities that we all know such as:
- The family absolutely loves Oregon and the atmosphere. Eugene is a fairly quiet, college town and great place to raise a family.
- Mario obviously is also from Miami and went to college there. He has great memories of growing up and playing there. Most of his family are still there (he has a brother who is a police officer in the area and clearly his mom still lives there).
- Neither of these things are proof of a decision either way.
- Miami has not fired Manny Diaz
- Miami does not have an athletic director in place.
- There has yet to be discussion of a contract and I don't believe anything would be said until Saturday.
There are some impediments to taking the Miami job if it were to be open:
- Their facilities and support system are pathetic and are going to take a LONG time to get up to where Oregon is at the moment
- Mario has shown time and time again that his own compensation is not his main concern. So not only would Miami have to offer him a buttload of money, they would have to add a lot of money to the assistant coaching pool
- Boosters control the roost down there and that is NOT something that is appealing. People can talk trash about Phil Knight from the outside all they want, but the elite boosters at Oregon do NOT get involved in the football part of the gig. They let coaches coach.
What to think about:
- Don't get too worked up about no extension being signed yet; the extension/new contract has been in the works for quite some time. The market has changed and I imagine that a deal structure has also likely changed.
- I saw some ridiculous comment that Phil Knight would just 'recognize Miami is his home and let him go' Uh, no. First of all, that's not how this works at all. Technically, boosters cannot dictate how much a coach makes. Do they do it? Absolutely. So if anyone thinks the Duck athletic department let's Cristobal walk for some nonsense nostalgic reasoning, they are just not very smart. Business is business and Knight will do what it takes to keep Oregon near the top.
- If Miami does fire Diaz this weekend, that might not be a great sign for Oregon retaining Cristobal. They would be absolutely insane to do so this late in the cycle without someone already in place.
- I can guarantee you Oregon will do everything within their power to keep Mario Cristobal at Oregon
- The Ducks are FAR closer to being a national champion than Miami. The Hurricanes had a good stretch of football, but have been a disaster for over a decade. Even with Florida and Florida State in down cycles, they have struggled to get elite talent and coach it up. This matters to someone like Mario as Miami is a major major rebuild in both talent and culture.
