Freshman TreVonte' Citizen is impressing Mario Cristobal, Miami early

As camp gets started for teams around the country, coaches begin to learn things about their players. New coaches, in particular, are getting a feel for the program that they’re walking into. Mario Cristobal at Miami is no different. One player, in particular, freshman running back TreVonte’ Citizen, has already impressed him.

“He gets after it,” Mario Cristobal said of TreVonte’ Citizen. “There’s no backing down in that guy. That guy is tough. He’s physical, he works, he wants to compete. He’s a big guy, now. That’s no little skinny dude, now.”

“TreVonte’ has taken great pride in, number one, choosing and coming to Miami, and adapting quickly to being in a different environment. And taking to a strength and conditioning regimen that is very demanding. As a freshman, those are, right, the most difficult parts of your path–your initial path. He’s done a great job with it and he’s gonna be in there competing right with the rest of them.”

TreVonte’ Citizen is a four-star running back from the Class of 2022. He chose Miami over the Florida Gators and the LSU Tigers, among others. If he continues to impress Mario Cristobal and Miami’s coaches, he could force his way onto the field early in his career.

Mario Cristobal expected TreVonte’ Citizen to thrive

It shouldn’t be a surprise how well TreVonte’ Citizen is playing for Miami. Mario Cristobal knew that he was talented when the Hurricanes signed him.

“What can you say, 6-foot-1, 215, every-down back… He can run through you, can run around you,” Mario Cristobal said on Signing Day of TreVonte’ Citizen. “He can get the ball out of the backfield and line up outside as a receiver. Explosive power. Hard to tackle guy…Power runner, inside zone, outside zone. This guy does it all. He was a guy we really, really needed. He’s a different type of back. Credit to our guys for getting him on board.”

Clearly, expectations were high for TreVonte’ Citizen. However, no matter how excited Mario Cristobal was to have in his program, he has to be just as excited about the progress Citizen has already made.