By August 15, Mario Cristobal’s Miami Hurricanes were ranked 16th in the preseason AP poll and picked by media to win the Coastal Division of the Atlantic Coast Conference.
By November 26, the unranked, underperforming, almost unbelievable University of Miami football team couldn’t come close to the expectations, finishing 5-7 and losing five home games in a row for the first time in 59 years — starting Sept. 24 with Middle Tennessee State and continuing October 8 with North Carolina, Oct. 22 with Duke, Nov. 5 with Florida State and finally Saturday night with Pittsburgh.
Miami’s 42-16 season-ending loss to Pitt was especially heart-wrenching, as the Hurricanes failed to qualify for a bowl for the first time in 15 years and sent out the seniors in a decidedly depressing way.