1. Mario Cristobal previously served as the head football coach at Florida International University from 2007 to 2012 and the University of Oregon from 2017 to 2021.
28 Facts About Mario Cristobal
1. 2.
Mario Cristobal was an all-conference offensive tackle on the Miami Hurricanes football team that won national championships in 1989 and 1991.
3.
Mario Cristobal then went to play for the University of Miami, where he was a four-year letterman between 1988 and 1992.
4.
Mario Cristobal played under Hall of Fame coaches Jimmy Johnson and Dennis Erickson during the rise of the University of Miami as one of the nation's most elite college football programs.
5.
In 1992, Mario Cristobal earned First-team All-Big East Conference as an offensive tackle.
6.
Mario Cristobal is one of several University of Miami players from the late 1980s who appears in the documentary The U, which premiered December 12,2009, on ESPN and chronicles the program's rapid ascent and national championships and the era's associated scandals that proved costly to it.
7.
Mario Cristobal played for the Amsterdam Admirals of NFL Europe in 1995 and 1996, and then launched his collegiate coaching career.
8.
Mario Cristobal's coaching career began at the University of Miami, where he served as a graduate assistant under head football coach Butch Davis from 1998 to 2000.
9.
From 2001 to 2003, Mario Cristobal was the tight ends and offensive line coach at Rutgers University under Greg Schiano.
10.
Mario Cristobal returned to Miami to serve as tight ends coach and offensive line coach under Larry Coker for three seasons from 2004 to 2006.
11.
On December 19,2006, Mario Cristobal was named the second head coach in FIU's history.
12.
Mario Cristobal was the first Cuban-American head coach in Division I-A.
13.
Mario Cristobal inherited a team with a winless record the previous season.
14.
Mario Cristobal implemented a spread offense, and stated that he expected FIU to achieve success "faster than what we did at Rutgers", a process which "took five years".
15.
The third season under Mario Cristobal came with high expectations after winning five games the previous year.
16.
Mario Cristobal carries a reputation of being an excellent recruiter, setting up for his third season at FIU by putting together an impressive recruiting class of 23 student athletes, at least 20 of them from Florida.
17.
Mario Cristobal was named the fittest coach currently in the FBS according to an ESPN blog to which he confirmed on The Dan Le Batard Show on May 29,2009.
18.
Mario Cristobal was an elite recruiter at Alabama, finishing No 1 in the national 247Sports.
19.
Mario Cristobal was named the National Recruiter of the Year by 247Sports in the 2015 cycle and in 2016 he was ranked as the nation's No 2 recruiter in the country by 247Sports.
20.
Alabama's offensive lines produced standout players and NFL draft picks under Mario Cristobal, including first-team All-American and 2015 first-round draft pick Ryan Kelly and 2014 freshman All-American Cam Robinson, who went on to win the Outland Trophy in Mario Cristobal's final year with Alabama.
21.
In January 2017, Mario Cristobal joined Willie Taggart's staff at Oregon as offensive line coach, with additional duties as co-offensive coordinator and run game coordinator.
22.
On December 5,2017, he was given the title of interim head coach upon Willie Taggart's departure to Florida State; then, three days later, on Friday, December 8,2017, Mario Cristobal was officially announced as permanent head coach of the Ducks.
23.
On December 6,2021, Mario Cristobal was named head coach of the University of Miami Hurricanes football team, replacing Manny Diaz.
24.
Mario Cristobal signed a 10-year, $80 million contract with the Hurricanes.
25.
Mario Cristobal is known for his accomplishments and skills as recruiter of elite collegiate football prospects.
26.
Mario Cristobal was a key part of the Tide's recruiting dominance as the primary recruiter for multiple 5-star recruits and future first round NFL draft picks.
27.
Mario Cristobal was named the top recruiter in the nation by 247Sports, ESPN, Rivals and Scout.
28.
In 2017, Mario Cristobal joined Willie Taggart's staff at Oregon, where he helped the Ducks sign the 13th ranked recruiting class.