Miami football pushed back spring practice because of King funeral

The Miami football program pushed back the start of spring practice to Monday to allow graduate transfer quarterback D’Eriq King to attend the funeral of his father and be able to begin spring practice with his teammates.

Multiple reports came out this weekend that the Miami football program pushed back the start of spring practice from Saturday to Monday to allow quarterback D’Eriq King to attend the funeral of his father and begin spring practice with his teammates. Getting the new offense down this spring will be critical for the Hurricanes.

Eric King, a prominent high school football coach in Houston died at the age of 48 earlier this month. D’Eriq King, a graduate transfer from Houston to the Miami football program last month has been back and forth between Houston and Coral Gables since his father passed away February 15.

New Miami offensive coordinator Rhett Lashlee reported that King is in good spirits and that the Hurricanes football program is giving their new star QB the necessary time to grieve. King learned a lot about leadership from his father and will bring that with him in what is sure to be a bittersweet season.

King has been mentioned among the early favorites for the Heisman Trophy in 2020. In his last full season with Houston in 2018, King threw 36 touchdown passes and added another 15 on the ground. King played in a spread offense at Houston under Major Applewhite. He will lead Miami’s transition to the spread in 2020.

"“He’s a phenomenal young man…He’s a great kid, a great leader, a great person. He has been raised well. He was very close with his dad. I know their family is grieving right now. But he’s in as good spirits as you would hope someone would be in. We’re doing everything to allow him to grieve and go through that with his family.Family first for sure.’’"

The Miami football team will have a different look this fall with the spread that Lashlee is installing led by King and an uptempo style that will eschew the huddle often. Hurricanes QBs will be expected to learn the uptempo spread quickly this spring. The Miami offense will have an extreme transformation from the Pro-Style.

"“There’s no real easing into it…We just have to throw them into the deep end and let them go. There will be some growing pains and a learning curve the first few days. Organized chaos is probably a good way to put it.’’"

During the 2019 offseason former Miami Hurricanes wide receiver K.J. Osborn quickly became a leader and earned a trip to Charlotte to represent the offense during ACC Kickoff. The largely new offensive coaching staff for the Miami football program will take a similar approach rewarding the hard workers during the inaugural practice.

"“How they’re performing will determine the pecking order through spring…I’m not one who thinks the first snap of spring really matters. So, the first couple of days when we’re all figuring everything out, there probably will be fairly equal reps, regardless of who takes the first one. And then, after three or four days you’ll start to see separation.The guys who are earning more reps will get them.’’"

Miami needs King to be the clear starting QB when spring practice concludes in April. King is by far the most experienced signal-caller in the spread that the Hurricanes have. King needs to be impressive this spring. Miami needs leadership on offense and particularly in the QB room. That has to come from King first.