With 14 career starts, Malik Rosier has vastly more experience at quarterback than anyone else on Miami’s roster. He is the only QB on the Miami Hurricanes roster that has ever thrown a pass. In spite of his vast edge in experience, Rosier is still being pushed this spring.
Rosier’s struggles during the three-game losing streak to end the season have many Miami Hurricanes followers wanting one of the Freshmen to replace him at quarterback.
Redshirt Freshmen N’Kosi Perry and Cade Weldon and True Freshman Jarren Williams are all competing this Spring for a chance to supplant Rosier as the starting quarterback.
Rosier led the Miami Hurricanes to a 10-3 record, their first ACC Coastal Division title, first appearance in the ACC Championship game and first major bowl game in 14 years last fall. He played poorly as Miami lost its last three games of the season. In spite of that Head Coach Mark Richt said in February that “Malik is our starting quarterback”. Canes Warning documented Rosier’s struggles.
"“Many of Rosier’s interceptions came late in the season. He threw five of his 14 on the season in the last two games. Rosier also struggled with accuracy late in the season. He completed just 44.9 percent of his passes in the final three games. That compared to 54 percent for the entire season.”"
Perry and Weldon got to sit last season and learn the offense. Perry frequently ran the scout team offense.
Williams arrived on campus in January and is said to be progressing quickly with his grasp of the offense. The Miami Herald discussed the competition that Rosier has at quarterback with Offensive coordinator Thomas Brown.
"“I think competition helps everybody, at any position. And I think we’re deep enough at the point right now where we have legitimate competition at every single spot. In the past, I think we’ve given the illusion of competition, but if you don’t have guys behind you that can push you or take your spot, it’s not really true competition… From a quarterback standpoint, tailback, up front, tight end and even receiver, there are guys that back up our starters who can push them every single day to either become better or beat them out and take their spots. I think it’s great for everybody.”"
When Rosier struggled last season the only real alternative was Evan Sheriffs. Sheriffs played in parts of three games last season. He completed just two of seven passes for 16 yards. The only game that was in relief of an ineffective Rosier was the regular season finale against Pittsburgh.
Sheriffs left the Miami Hurricanes for Charlotte after the season. He will be eligible for the 49ers this fall as a Graduate Transfer.
Head Coach Mark Richt spoke about the competition Rosier is facing for his starting job this spring.
"“Yeah, I like what N’Kosi is doing. He made some really great plays [Tuesday]. Weldon is a little bit behind N’Kosi, in my opinion, but not by a lot. They’re both competing well. Malik knows he has to do it. He tends to do better when he knows somebody is right behind him. Those two guys aren’t redshirting this year. They could have gotten redshirted last year and they did. This year, there’s no redshirting. They’ll be there all year long, ready to go in case we need them. Or they may win it. We’ll see.”"
For all his struggles last season Rosier accomplished a lot. He finished the season with 3,120 yards, 26 touchdowns and 14 interceptions. Rosier’s 2017 season was the ninth in Miami history in yards and tied for fourth with Vinnie Testaverde and Rosier’s predecessor Brad Kaaya in touchdown passes.
Related Story: Malik Rosier sets Miami touchdown record
Rosier’s touchdown passes combined with his four rushing touchdowns set a Miami record for most touchdowns accounted for in a single season. Rosier is well aware of the progress that Perry and Weldon made last season while redshirting. He was also quoted by the Herald.
"“They’re pushing me a lot. The big thing with N’Kosi is he’s very athletic. There’s a couple plays where the defense got us. They ran the coverage for the right play and you’d see N’Kosi break the pocket and get 8, 9 yards, which is exciting to see. He’s an explosive kid. And you can finally see him starting to understand the offense, not just doing it right, but understanding why he’s doing what he’s doing. That’s really nice to see,”"
Weldon was a three-star prospect coming out of high school. Perry and Williams were both four. The Hurricanes incumbent quarterback was also complimentary of Weldon and Williams.
"“With Cade, same thing, Cade had two pulls, defensive end crash and you see Cade pick up 10 yards and you see the ball come out of his hands a lot better and then with Jarren, Jarren went with the 3s … The big thing with Jarren is to come in here and complete as many balls as he did on the first day versus our defense is really good. He’s throwing accurate balls. The big thing is for him, once he gets into actual team periods, to just do the same thing, relax and play ball.”"
Saturday’s scrimmage will give Perry, Rosier and Williams a chance to compete in game action. The game will be closed to both the fans and the media It will be difficult to get a completely accurate description of what goes on.
The Spring Game that is scheduled for April 14 will be open to both the fans and the media. Richt commented on the quarterback play this Spring.
"“Malik still is the one that really gets it the most. N’Kosi and Weldon have come a long way. You don’t have to babysit them, as far as so they can function… Jarren is brand new, so [quarterbacks coach] Jon [Richt] is really keeping a close eye on him – every time [Jarren] gets team work, in case he gets lost on what to do, he can be right there to tell him. We haven’t had to do that much. He has been a very good student of the game.”"
Next: How are Miami Hurricanes QBs progressing in Spring Practice?
It would be surprising for any of the Freshmen to supplant Rosier as the starter at the beginning of the season. Weldon is a long shot and Perry seems to be ahead of Williams right now, The difference between this year and last is that if Rosier stumbles, Richt and Brown will have an option off the bench.