Miami football head coach Manny Diaz made the announcement on Wednesday after practice that N’Kosi Perry will continue to be the Hurricanes starting quarterback.
The decision to start N’Kosi Perry at quarterback was made with the statement that Jarren Williams is still not 100 percent physically. Perry relieved Williams two weeks ago against Virginia Tech after the Miami football team threw three interceptions on their first three drives of the game.
Williams reportedly has had soreness in his shoulder. Diaz stated that Williams has responded well mentally after sitting out last week against Virginia, but that he is not able to do everything expected of him physically at quarterback to start against Georgia Tech this week. Williams has been more efficient than Perry this season.
Williams has completed 72.4 percent of his passes for 1,073 yards with seven touchdowns, three interceptions and a 159.6 passer rating. Perry has completed 62.2 percent of his passing attempts for 673 yards, six TDs, one interception, and a 153.9 passer rating. Perry gives Miami a bigger downfield passing game.
Under Williams, Miami has 28 first downs via the pass, 17 completions of 15 or more yards and six completions of 25 plus yards. Perry has 30, 18 and eight on 40 fewer attempts. Perry looks to get the ball downfield more often, has a bigger arm and quicker feet to avoid the pass rush or scramble.
to name Perry the starter against Georgia Tech on Saturday following Wednesday’s practice. Williams could play if he is needed according to the Hurricanes head coach in his inaugural season.
"“It has been good to get Jarren back on the field. He has taken more reps than he did a week ago, but after watching the last couple of days, we will still start N’Kosi Perry.He has responded well mentally, but physically he can’t quite do everything he wants to do and from our preparation standpoint, I am a believer in getting the team to rally around a guy.”"
The last part of Diaz’s statement is code for giving the team and Perry time to process the information that the Hurricanes redshirt sophomore will be the starter against the Yellow Jackets. Perry was inconsistent against Virginia last week.
After a 78 yard drive to open the game Miami had 40 yards from there through the end of the third quarter. Perry and the offense rebounded well in the fourth quarter to lead the Miami football team to a 17-9 victory over the Cavaliers. Miami scored ten points in the fourth quarter.
Miami offensive coordinator Dan Enos spoke about how Perry played last week against Virginia. Enos reiterated the importance of Perry’s mobility, leadership and composure. He has come a long way since last season. Perry shared the QB position with Malik Rosier in 2018.
"“He played good…He played well enough for us to win. I thought on the first drive he made a couple of great plays. He brings the element of mobility, like I said after the Virginia Tech.He has some things to clean up on as well, but I thought he competed and played hard and he was composed throughout the entire game and he did a good job with his teammates as well.It wasn’t a perfect performance, but he gave us a chance to win and made some crucial plays late in the game to help us win the football game, so I was really proud of him."
It’s tough to project how the Miami offense will play from game to game or even drive to drive this season. Miami faces another stout pass defense against Georgia Tech. The Yellow Jackets are one spot ahead of Virginia nationally against the pass, 22nd. Georgia Tech who is 1-5 allows 183.2 passing yards per game.