Home runs have very little to do with the employment process. But in the case of the University of Miami’s hiring of Mario Cristobal as its 26th head football coach and Dan Radakovich as vice president and director of athletics, the phrase—arguably the most familiar in baseball vernacular—couldn’t be more appropriate. AT LEAST, THAT’S HOW RUDY FERNANDEZ, THE UNIVERSITY’S EXECUTIVE VICE PRESIDENT FOR EXTERNAL AFFAIRS AND STRATEGIC INITIATIVES AND CHIEF OF STAFF TO PRESIDENT JULIO FRENK, PUTS IT. “In both cases, we swung for the fences and ended up hitting back-to-back home runs,” says Fernandez, who, along with University CEO Joe Echevarria, B.B.A. ’78, helped guide the process to bring Cristobal and Radakovich back to Miami. The two hires, announced only days apart in early December 2021, have been hailed by many as being transformational for University of Miami Athletics. “A commitment to our student-athletes to provide them with a great education and an opportunity to develop their special talent to the very best of their ability, a recognition of the impact our sports teams have on the University’s brand, and an understanding of how football is so vitally important to the long-term sustainability of our athletics program were all deciding factors in bringing Mario and Dan here. And each of those three principles will be greatly impacted by their presence,” Fernandez explains.
BY RO B E RT C . J O N ES J R .
Home Run Hires 16 MIAMI Spring 2022 miami.edu/magazine
In this issue: We profile Cristobal and Radakovich, both University graduates, who have arrived at what could be the most critical period in Miami athletics history.
