The Pittsburgh Steelers have talked to almost 10 candidates for their head coaching vacancy. All of them are current NFL coaches or a former one in the case of Mike McCarthy. It hasn’t been reported that the Steelers have been in contact with any college coaches for their opening. However, Brian Baldinger revealed University of Miami (FL) head coach Mario Cristobal could be a name to watch as the Steelers’ next head coach.

“Not out here trying to play reporter or doing any of that nonsense, but I hear the Steelers are very interested in Mario Cristobal, the coach at the University of Miami,” Baldinger said recently on The Best Football Show podcast. “I think Mario Cristobal actually would really translate to the NFL. I watched his practice in the spring. The way that Mario coached that team reminded me of what old-school coaches used to do.”

It’s unclear who Baldinger has talked to, but Cristobal hasn’t been brought up by anyone else in connection to the Steelers. Curt Cignetti and Marcus Freeman were the college coaches who generated some buzz around the Steelers’ opening. However, reports have indicated that neither plan on leaving college football.

While the initial reaction might be to scoff, consider two facts. Cristobal grew up a “die-hard” Steelers fan, according to ESPN. He also was a front runner for the Pitt Panthers’ head coaching job when he coached at Florida International, according to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.

“Cristobal interviewed with Pitt last week — and he also interviewed with the school a year ago in the search after Dave Wannstedt was fired — but asked the school to hold off on any further discussions until after his team finishes the season tonight with an appearance in the Beef ‘O’ Brady’s Bowl against Marshall in St. Petersburg, Fla,” the paper wrote at the time.

While Baldinger usually wears his analyst hat, he seemed to know the team would sign RB Kenneth Gainwell hours before it happened last offseason.

Cristobal’s stock is high right now, though. He just guided Miami to the national championship game for the first time since 2002. The Hurricanes went on a stirring run and beat teams, such as Texas A&M, Ohio State and Ole Miss. However, they lost in the championship game to Indiana, although they put up a good fight.

Cristobal has been Miami’s head coach since 2022. He was the head coach at Oregon from 2018-2021, where he also had success, including winning the Rose Bowl in 2019. His background lies on the offensive side of the ball, being an offensive lineman during his Miami playing days.

He’s been an offensive line coach at several different stops throughout his career, including Alabama. Cristobal is 55 so he doesn’t fit the usual mold for a Steelers head coach. However, they’ve talked to several other candidates who don’t check all of their normal boxes.

While Cristobal has never coached in the NFL, he could opt to take that leap after the season he just had at Miami. He could want to try to win a national championship at Miami, but being the Steelers’ head coach could be too tempting for him to pass up. That job doesn’t come open often.

It remains to be seen if the Steelers actually have interest in Cristobal. Nothing has confirmed that they are done adding more candidates to their search. They already have had in-person interviews with some coaches with more on the horizon. Maybe they’ll check in on Cristobal in that time.