Mario Cristobal is viewed as one of the best coaches in college football, but is that because of his coaching or his elite recruiting?
Greg McElroy believes that Cristobal is in his top 25 head coaches entering the 2025 season, but he barely cuts, ranking him at No. 20.
1. Kirby Smart, Georgia
2. Ryan Day, Ohio State
3. Steve Sarkisian, Texas
4. Marcus Freeman, Notre Dame
5. Dan Lanning, Oregon
6. Kalen DeBoer, Alabama
7. Dabo Swinney, Clemson
8. Jeff Brohm, Louisville
9. Brian Kelly, LSU
10. James Franklin, Penn State
11. Lane Kiffin, Ole Miss
12. Josh Heupel, Tennessee
13. Matt Campbell, Iowa State
14. Chris Klieman, Kansas State
15. Eli Drinkwitz, Missouri
16. Bielema, Illinois
17. Lance Leipold, Kansas
18. Shane Beamer, South Carolina
19. Lincoln Riley, USC
20. Mario Cristobal, Miami FL
21. Kalani Sitake, BYU
22. Deion Sanders, Colorado
23. Curt Cignetti, Indiana
24. Rhett Lashlee, SMU
25. Kenny Dillingham, Arizona State
If you remove your typical SEC and Big 10 coaching, Cristobal ranks third in ACC coaching on this list. Clemson’s Dabo Swinney (No. 7) is consistently viewed as the best head coach in the conference, but McElroy also had Louisville head coach Jeff Brohm (No. 8)ahead of him as well. On the list, he only had four ACC coaches, with SMU’s Rhett Lashlee (No. 24) being the last coach in the conference listed.
What more does Cristobal have to do to be respected as a top-10 coach in the country? He has consistently improved year after year, bringing the once-lost program from five to seven wins, now finishing last season with a 10-win season and a game out of the College Football Playoff. Some teams were not close, and their coaches are still ranked higher than Cristobal, but only more work for him to do.
He can change the way people view him on a consistent basis with success this season and an appearance in the ACC Championship game.
Read More Football News From Miami Hurricanes On SI:
Follow all social media platforms to stay up to date with everything Miami Hurricanes-related: Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Youtube, and BlueSky.
This post was originally published on this site be sure to check out more of their content.
