UM to hold first scrimmage Sunday. ‘Big Job interview’ for three QBs vying to be No. 2
The Miami Hurricanes have officially known who their starting quarterback is since late July.
On Sunday, they’ll take a big step toward learning the identity of starter D’Eriq King’s backup.
The Hurricanes announced they’ll have their first scrimmage of fall camp Sunday night, and offensive coordinator Rhett Lashlee said Saturday night during a Zoom videoconference that the three top contenders are redshirt junior and former part-time starter N’Kosi Perry, redshirt junior Tate Martell and true freshman Tyler Van Dyke.
The scrimmage is closed to the media and public.
“Definitely wide open at the No. 2 spot,’’ Lashlee said. “N’Kosi, Tate, Tyler Van Dyke, those guys have been splitting the majority of those [No.] 2 reps. They’ve been competing hard ever since we went ahead and announced D’Eriq as the starter.
“All three of those guys knew where they stood and that they were going to get an opportunity to be that guy. Tomorrow will be one of their big job interviews for that.”
Last year Perry, listed as 6-4 and 190 pounds, started three of the eight games in which he played. In UM’s loss 42-35 loss to Virginia Tech, Perry played nearly the entire game after former starter and eventual transfer Jarren Williams threw three interceptions in his first seven passes.
Perry finished the season 85 of 159 for 1,045 yards and eight touchdowns, with three interceptions.
Martell, the highly touted Ohio State transfer who experimented at wide receiver but never got a chance to make a catch, finally got in as quarterback in the Independence Bowl last December. He completed his first and only UM career pass — a seven-yard slant to K.J. Osborn. Martell, listed as 5-11 and 205 pounds, was always known as a running quarterback, and the new up-tempo spread is better suited for him.
And Van Dyke, the biggest of the three at 6-4 and 220 pounds, was a consensus four-star recruit out of Suffield Academy in Connecticut. In 2019, he completed 123 of 200 passes for 2,260 yards and 21 touchdowns, with six interceptions. He threw for more than 4,600 yards and had 39 touchdowns over his final two varsity seasons.
“It’s almost like a preseason game for us,’’ Lashlee said. “So, it’s the first time to see how they handle a real-game situation. How [will] they handle if something bad happens? What do the next couple of plays look like? You gotta have a pretty short memory at quarterback. How they lead, how they move the team.
“Ultimately at the end of the day, to me the greatest measure of a quarterback is that our offense puts the ball in the end zone and scores points. All three of those guys get a great opportunity tomorrow. I couldn’t tell you anybody’s got the edge right now. There are the two older guys who have been here and then there’s the young guy, and he’s doing really well too.”
UM opens the season against UAB at home on Thursday, Sept. 10, less than four weeks away. The Canes finished 6-7 last season.
One of the most important starting units the Canes must soon solidify, Lashlee said, is their starting five offensive linemen.
Defensive concerns
Defensive coordinator Blake Baker said his defense is “still really very much a work in progress.”
“But at the same time I’m still very encouraged with this unit… Two things we’ve really been emphasizing is running to the football and hitting when we get there. We’ll clean up the mistakes as they come, but these guys, man, they love to compete.
“Every position is pretty much open for grabs. And you can see it. There’s a hunger among this group and they’re really competing every day to get on that bus here in about a month.”
Because of COVID-19 safety protocols, Baker said there “will be some differences obviously with social distance and spacing and having chairs on the sideline instead of benches to make sure we follow the guidelines to not trigger any contact tracing.”
“Outside of that,’’ he said, “in between the lines, it’s going to be the same. We’re going to put the ball down and we’re going to play and we’re going to have special teams. You know it’s been a long time. For us to finally get to roll the ball out there, even though it’s a scrimmage, I think it’s really important for a lot of reasons.”
Baker said he’ll be watching primarily for “effort and tackling.’’
“We have not been able to tackle live up until this point and that’s how every college program across the country probably conducts business. I’m definitely excited to see how well we tackle in the first scrimmage and just their effort, their ability to be relentless to the football.
“We’ll clean up some of the technical errors of their missed assignments. But as long as we do those two things I think we’ve got a chance to be pretty good this year.
Baker said he is pleased with the production of the safeties and cornerbacks, but that those positions are still open for grabs. He mentioned sophomore corner Te’Cory Couch as having an “outstanding’’ training camp, as well as sophomore Christian Williams doing well.
Baker said safety Bubba Bolden, who injured an ankle during last season’s FSU game in early November and missed the rest of the season, “is 100-percent healthy and definitely more comfortable...He’s making plays on the ball. He’s physical.
“You can see him growing more confident every day.’’
▪ Baker mentioned Jalar Holley, Jared Harrison-Hunte and Jason Blissett among the young players doing well at camp. Blissett was recently moved inside to tackle from previously concentrating on defensive end.
▪ At linebacker, formerly injured Waynmon Steed and Bradley Jenning “have exceeded any expectations that I have,’’ Baker said. “They both look great.’’
