The conversation around Clemson after Week 1 has kept circling back to Dabo Swinney, and for good reason. When a program that spent more than a decade near the top of college football gets blasted on national TV, the criticism is going to stick.
Swinney has been here before. Two years ago, Clemson took a beating from Georgia in the opener, only to regroup, win the ACC and reach the College Football Playoff as a 12-seed.
That game was supposed to be a warning sign, though: a reminder that the sport had changed and that he needed to change with it. He didn’t see it that way.
He’s still built his image around being the old-school, nuts-and-bolts coach who does things the right way and doesn’t need to bend.
Mario Cristobal fits that same description in some ways. He’s all about work, physical play and making things hard. But where Cristobal separates himself is in how he adapts without giving up his standards.
That point is especially clear in how he and Miami football GM Dennis Smith approach the modern game. NIL and the transfer portal are part of the landscape now, whether coaches like it or not.
Cristobal knows that, and he’s operating inside those rules instead of fighting the reality of them. When he can use them to Miami’s advantage, he does - as with the Darian Mensah transfer.
Once the players are in the building, though, the expectations don’t soften. Cristobal still demands everything from top to bottom, and the roster responds.
A player like Malachi Toney is expected to work because he holds himself to that same standard, not just because of what he’s paid. The money is there because the players have earned it, but the identity still belongs to Cristobal, and it shows in how Miami carries itself on and off the field.
That’s part of why the Hurricanes’ rise feels so different from Clemson’s slide. Swinney’s roster construction is under the microscope now, and he was asked directly whether he regrets how he built it.
"We've played one game. One game.
Did you play football? Okay, well they give you 12 games and at the end of the year you count them up.
That's when those types of questions are fair to me."
The problem is that the first game looked nothing like a team stocked with the kind of explosive players Clemson used to be known for. Quarterback, wide receiver, defensive line, secondary - those were always the areas where the Tigers could lean on elite talent. None of that was obvious in the opener.
Cristobal’s Miami, meanwhile, already looked like a program moving in a different direction when it went into the Swamp and beat Florida in the 2024 season opener. That game marked Cristobal’s third year, and it read like a statement that the Hurricanes were ready to climb back to the top level.
Now, two years later, Miami is being talked about as a real national championship threat, with expectations matching the standard Cristobal has set. Clemson, after winning the ACC two years ago and entering the season as the team Miami had to chase, now looks like the program that’s been left behind.
In Other News...
Former Miami CB D'Yoni Hill Lands In A Strange New Situation
DYoni Hills football path has already taken him from Marshall to Miami and then Wisconsin, and now he is set for another stop, with Oklahoma planning to add the veteran cornerback as a midseason transfer. Hill has experience starting games at both Miami and Wisconsin, which gives him the kind of rsum teams look for when they need help in a hurry, even if his role this time is expected to be more about depth than jumping straight into the lineup.
For Miami fans, the odd part is not just the new destination, but the timing and the larger question hanging over his career. Hill is also tied up in a lawsuit seeking an additional year of eligibility, so the move to Oklahoma comes with another layer of uncertainty beyond simply getting cleared to join the roster. If the process goes through, it would give Oklahoma a seasoned defensive back with a familiar track record, but the full shape of his next chapter is still far from settled. [Read more 🡒]
Miami May Have Found A Freshman Defender Ready For More
Miamis defense got a closer look at true freshman J.J. Dunnigan in his college debut against Stanford, and the early signs were encouraging. Dunnigan logged 33 snaps and finished with a tackle for loss, a useful first impression for a player who arrived as a four-star recruit in the 2026 class and picked the Hurricanes over several other programs.
Mario Cristobal and defensive coordinator Corey Hetherman both singled out Dunnigans physical traits and versatility, which is usually the kind of praise that matters most when a young defensive back is trying to earn more than a cameo. The intriguing part for Miami is how he might fit moving forward, since the staff sees him as someone who can line up in more than one spot and potentially give the secondary another piece to work with sooner rather than later. [Read more 🡒]
Mario Cristobal Just Sent A Message About Miamis Most Hyped Newcomers
Damon Wilson II and Jackson Cantwell arrived in Coral Gables with plenty of buzz, but Miami opened the 2026 season by easing both into backup roles rather than handing them jobs on reputation alone. Wilson worked 44 snaps as a second-team edge rusher, while Cantwell logged 34 snaps at right guard behind starter Max Buchanan, a reminder that the Hurricanes are still sorting out the depth chart even for some of their most talked-about newcomers.
Mario Cristobal has made the message plain: nothing is promised, and young players have to earn their way onto the field. For Miami, that approach may be the point, especially with a roster built around development as much as immediate impact. The early usage of Wilson and Cantwell suggests the Hurricanes are willing to be patient, even with players many expected to push for bigger roles right away. [Read more 🡒]