The Miami Hurricanes announced on Tuesday afternoon that Redshirt Freshman third-team quarterback Cade Weldon has been suspended for four games.
Weldon has played in two games this season completing two of three passes for 14 yards and rushing twice for five yards and a touchdown. Weldon is third on the Miami Hurricanes depth chart behind fellow Redshirt Freshman N’Kosi Perry and Redshirt Senior Malik Rosier.
Weldon’s suspension “due to a violation of team rules.” No further explanation was given. Weldon’s suspension is not likely to have a big impact on the Miami Hurricanes football team.
The suspension is retroactive to Saturday’s win over Florida State and includes the upcoming games against Virginia, Boston College and Duke. Weldon will be eligible to return for the November 10 game at Georgia Tech.
Miami Head Coach Mark RIcht spoke to the media Tuesday about Weldon’s suspension, the standards he expects from his players and if he is concerned about players who get suspended leaving the program.
"“We have certain standards around here…If you don’t do what you’re supposed to do and how you’re supposed to do it, there will be consequences. But we love Cade.You know, people don’t understand sometimes, when you discipline your child it means you love him. And if you break down the word and what it means in Greek or wherever it came from, it has to do with loving someone enough to hold them accountable to the things they need to be held accountable to. So, we’re disciplining him.There’s the punitive damage of games not being able to be a part of, and there will be some early-morning fun. But there will also be counseling. And we’ll hug him and love him and once he handles his discipline like a man, then he’ll be in good standing and we’ll move on…You can’t worry about that (players transferring)…You just can’t get tired of doing things right and doing things in a way that you think is in the best interest of the program and the player. And if it works for somebody, great. If it doesn’t, I can’t control that.But I know everybody is treated fairly and everybody knows what’s up on the front end. There’s no shock value going on right now.’’"
No official announcement was made regarding the parameters of the suspension. Weldon was seen practicing during the media’s viewing on Tuesday. He likely won’t travel with the team either. Weldon competed with Perry, Rosier and True Freshman Jarren Williams for the starting job during August training camp.
Despite the hyperbole to the opposite Weldon likely never really a serious contender to earn the position of starting quarterback for Miami. Rosier eventually held on after starting all 13 games in 2017.
Perry took over as the starter for the North Carolina game September 27 and started on Saturday against Florida State. He also played the majority of the game September 22 against FIU.
With Rosier graduating next Spring, Perry and Williams are likely to battle for the starting quarterback job in training camp next August. A lot of that will depend on how the rest of this season plays out. Weldon will get his chance but doesn’t pose as serious of a threat as Perry and Williams.