Entering his fourth season at his alma mater, Miami Hurricanes head coach Mario Cristobal looks to shore up a position that he’s well acquainted with.
Who is Ben Congdon?
For Mario Cristobal, Miami isn’t just another coaching job. It serves as his football destiny. He played offensive tackle at Miami, winning two national championships, as an all-conference lineman in the Big East.
After leaving Miami assistant jobs twice, the coach always figured the program would eventually call again. Now, he is charting the program’s most positive course in years.
To that point, he can recruit the best of the best to Coral Gables. For example, Steve Wilfong from on3.com details Miami’s pursuit of tackle Ben Congdon, a top offensive line recruit in the 2026 recruiting cycle.
At 6’8″ and 285 pounds, Congdon’s play and potential caught the eyes of Miami and two dozen other schools. Teams love his ability to actually use leverage to win versus defenders.
Normally, taller tackles struggle with bend and the ability to keep defenders from getting under their pads. In contrast, Congdon uses the leverage he learned from wrestling to not play as tall, compacting his frame and using core strength to anchor versus the bull rush.
Congdon visited Miami and came away really struck by the school and the relationship with the coaching staff.
“Miami was amazing,” Congdon said. “They checked off all the boxes. It was great to sit down talk ball and learn from a legendary offensive line coach like Coach Mirabal. Also, how beautiful campus and the community. I also just was blown away by how genuine the whole staff was they treated me along with my mom very elite and told me I’m a priority.”
Miami’s 2025 Season Outlook
Cristobal attacks the recruiting cycle for help at the line of scrimmage. For example, three of the team’s top five 2025 high school recruits play along the line of scrimmage. Hayden Lowe (Edge), Seuseu Alofaituli (IOL), and Brock Schott (TE) look to make them impact this fall and for the foreseeable future to come.
Ten of the 21 high school recruits play along the line of scrimmage. Additionally, four of their eleven transfers will also battle in the trenches. Cristobal quadrupled dipped in the tight end pool.
This year, paying attention to the line will benefit Miami greatly. That’s because, in landing Carson Beck for a reported eight figures, Miami pushed its chips firmly in the middle of the table.
Beck owned the misfortune of replacing Stetson Bennett at the University of Georgia. He took the reins when Georgia’s talent dipped a bit, and in the end, the fanbase and media pointed the finger at the quarterback. They blamed him for everything, even getting injured.
Now, Beck takes the keys to the offense from Cristobal, hoping that a deep playoff run will lead to even more recruiting success.
KEEP READING: 2025 Way-Too-Early College Football Top 25 Power Rankings
For the years before Cristobal took the reins, people always touted The U as being “back.” Whenever the program would win a big game, the airwaves filled with these odd proclamations, only to see the Hurricanes lose down the stretch, erasing whatever good faith built.
However, Cristobal’s recruiting may finally make that real.
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