Arch-rival head coach Mario Cristobal is caught in a lie when discussing recruiting

Florida State football went 5-7 in the 2025 season. This is never an ideal situation, given that arch-rivals Miami made the College Football Playoff National Championship Game and Florida has a new head coach in Jon Sumrall.

This was the worst-case scenario for a Seminole team that finished 2-10 in 2024, which many individuals wanted to forget. Head football coach Mike Norvell was retained by the administration, which was an unpopular decision by the fan base.

One of the downsides to keeping Norvell in the fold is his ability to recruit at the high school level. It has been well-documented that Miami head football coach Mario Cristobal recruits at an elite level, especially in the trenches.

Mario Cristobal is lying about the topic of negative recruiting

The Hurricanes have focused on the idea of "coming back to the crib", but their irrelevance over the previous twenty years had recruits skeptical if they were cursed to be good enough again. However, once the NIL landscape comes into play, the Hurricanes have taken advantage of the legalization of "McDonald's bags".

Coach Cristobal went on to speak with On3's J.D. PicKell, where he speaks about recruiting in the state of Florida.

Cristobal speaks on negative recruiting when teams such as Florida State and Florida have been struggling. While Miami has been a model that the Seminoles want to follow, I don't believe that Miami's head man is telling the truth, as negative recruiting is a way to attract elite talent away from your rivals.

If I were in Coach Norvell's shoes, I would showcase Doak Campbell Stadium and all of the ACC Championship trophies in the pitch against Miami. Negative recruiting is part of college football, whether Cristobal wants to admit it or not.

Hats off to Cristobal for their run in 2025, but the hope is that Florida State can do enough to beat the Hurricanes this season in the rented-out stadium in Coral Gables.