MIAMI BEACH, Fla. – Miami coach Mario Cristobal repeatedly tried to eradicate the phrase "The U is back" during his tenure.
Why not permanently change that slogan to "The U is here?"
Here, as in Miami, where the past and present will be always intertwined when it comes to the Hurricanes. Here, as in No. 10 Miami (13-2) takes on No. 1 Indiana (15-0) in the College Football Playoff championship on Monday. Here, as in Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Fla., which might just awaken the echoes of the Orange Bowl and legendary games past.
Here, as in star defensive end Rueben Bain Jr., who is one of 12 Miami natives on the Hurricanes' roster. You want to talk about "It just means more?" Hear what Bain has to say.
"It's just something you got to feel, man," Bain told AllSportsPeople. "When you're down here you automatically know you got to have spirit growing up. Wearing orange and green, man, growing up that's all you talk about and ever hear about. When you got the opportunity to play for it, it's something you just got to experience to understand.
That spirit launched when No. 5 Miami pulled out a 31-30 victory against No. 1 Nebraska in the 1984 Orange Bowl for the program's national championship. It will be rekindled when the Hurricanes try to ruin the Hoosiers' so-called Cinderella story led by Heisman Trophy winner Fernando Mendoza, a Miami native. The Hurricanes are the underdog here. It is the most unique championship chapter to date.
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Miami native Mario Cristobal embodies 'The U'
Cristobal has brought a lot of "The U" mentality back to Miami.
Jimmy Johnson – his coach – and program legends such as Michael Irvin, Ray Lewis and Andre Johnson have been on the sidelines throughout a College Football Playoff run that included upsets against No. 7 Texas A&M and No. 2 Ohio State and a thrilling last-minute victory against No. 6 Ole Miss.
Cristobal still remembers Johnson walking through the hallways at Christopher Columbus High School in what would be a life-altering moment. The coach encouraged Mario – who was focused on baseball – to try football with his brother Luis. Both were recruited to Miami, and Irvin was one of Cristobal's hosts.
Cristobal recalled the roll call of NFL talent on that field.
"I went to practices all the time, and I was so attracted to that brotherhood," Cristobal said at the CFP Coaches press conference on Sunday. "I wanted to be one of those dawgs. Those guys were dawgs. They were competitors. They were relentless, and I wanted to be part of it.
"That was a day and age that I don't know if it'll ever be duplicated," Cristobal said. "I say all the time, I'm a nobody."
Yet in this space Cristobal will always be somebody. Miami is a football fraternity unlike most blueblood programs – and the irony is their opponent in this CFP championship matchup is shaking up the establishment in a different fashion.
Yet this is different. The transfer portal and NIL have made it possible for programs such as Indiana to break through. Miami built that dynasty with mostly South Florida talent and that fraternity. The new age features a national roster and several players from the portal, but the Miami influence remains strong. It has come together at the right time.
"I soon learned that once you were part of that brotherhood, you're forever different," Cristobal said. "I think unless you're a Miami Hurricane, that's hard to understand."
A new generation of talent for 'The U'
Maybe running back Mark Fletcher Jr. Can help.
Fletcher – one of eight Fort Lauderdale natives on the Miami roster – was three years old when Sean Taylor died on Nov. 7, 2007. So, Fletcher's first memory of Miami is the tragic death of one of its superstars he never saw play in a Hurricanes' uniform.
"That's what my dad, he would show me old videos, not even of running backs, but like of great defensive players," Fletcher said. "Sean Taylor, I remember watching him and learning about how he died. And I was like as a little kid, I was hurt. I'm like, bro, this legend died?"
Fletcher remains a fan of Hall of Famers such as Edgerrin James and Ray Lewis. Knowing that, there is an added responsibility with being from Miami and playing for the Hurricanes. That will never change.
"It's very different because these kids, we need this football," Fletcher said. "Like we definitely need this because some of these boys, it's either jail or, shoot, early grave. We need this football to do something positive in the world. It's just such a beautiful thing that a lot of kids are able to come and do this."
Star freshman receiver Malachi Toney is from Liberty City, Fla. He made an incredible one-handed catch in the Vrbo Fiesta Bowl against No. 6 Ole Miss where he landed out of bounds. Toney was asked to pick the best catch of his career.
"Probably my catch versus Chaminade," Toney said.
High school matters. Toney played at American Heritage, and that is an important detail. Listen to Cristobal recount a district championship game from his senior season during Monday's teleconference. Thirty-seven years have passed, but the details are still clear.
"Carlos Huerta, great Miami kicker, kicked the winning kick," Cristobal said. "We won the district title. We played No. 1 Southridge. They had a couple Hurricanes on there, Robert Bailey and Herbert James We punted. Robert Bailey fumbled the punt. He'll deny it, but he did. We recovered. Huerta kicked the field goal and we beat the No. 1 team in the state."
That hasn't changed. Toney likely will be matched up against Indiana cornerback D'Angelo Ponds, who played at Chaminade Madonna.
"It says a lot about South Florida, about how much talent we produce. We've got a lot of South Florida kids playing in this game, and I wish the best of luck to all the South Florida kids that's playing in this game."
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Toney was asked to name his Miami "Mount Rushmore" on Saturday.
"Michael Irvin, Ray Lewis," Toney said before stopping. "I can't do that. I don't want to disrespect nobody." When a reporter interjected Taylor's name into the conversation, Toney stopped again.
"I can't do it," Toney said. "Don't want to disrespect nobody. … The whole '01 team."
The 2001 Miami team was the last national championship team and on the short list of greatest college football teams of all time. There is a sense this team is acutely aware of that team's legacy, which pulled the program out of a lull.
The 2001 team broke a 10-year drought. It has been nearly a quarter century since the Hurricanes celebrated a national title, and this is the first time a Florida school has played for the CFP championship. Bain recalled a conversation with tackle Francis Mauigoa. Bain and Mauiga were talking about this path.
"We came up from 5-7, 7-6 to this, so it's just crazy," Bain said. "Even like the last game looking around in the facility, the field, seeing that we going to a national championship from 7-6 my freshman year. We didn't know how the program was going to turn out."
The pride in the programs is back, and it's a combination of the past, present and perhaps future. Fletcher can feel it.
"Little kids can look up to us and they all want to be the Miami Hurricanes one day, because that's what I was when I was a kid," he said. "I was, like, 'I want to be a Miami Hurricane.' It's a blessing to be here and to have people come join together like that. That's a beautiful thing."
Past and present will come together in Monday's games against the Hoosiers. Irvin – frequently seen in a T-shirt that says "Greentree made me" knows exactly what that slogan means. It has a deeper meaning for Cristobal more than 40 years after Johnson showed up at his high school.
"Not just the Hall of Famers and the popular guys but the third- and fourth-string guy that maybe never got a chance to play but is doing so well in life and has an awesome family," Cristobal said. "Seeing all these guys come back after 20 years of not being around and really not having the support that Miami needed, I think it's awesome. Our players love seeing them."
It's clear no matter what era is being talked about in Miami.
The U is here.