Miami football obvious worst case scenario D’Eriq King recovery slows
The Miami football program received a huge boost when quarterback D’Eriq King announced he would return in 2021 shortly before the Hurricanes played in the Cheez-it Bowl3 last December. Disaster struck in 37-34 loss to Oklahoma State in the Cheez-It Bowl when King tore his ACL.
By all accounts, King is ahead of schedule in his rehab. If he suffers any setback, which is always possible, Miami would be put in the situation of his backup receiving their first significant playing time of his career in the season opener against Alabama. Tyler Van Dyke barely played in 2020 and Jake Garcia is a true freshman.
King was sensational for Miami in 2020. Several times, King willed the Hurricanes to victory. Miami enters the 2021 season with a chance to challenge to win the ACC Coastal Division title. In their second season working together, offensive coordinator Rhett Lashlee and King are expected to take the offense to a higher level.
The worst-case scenario was examined for each ACC team by 247 Sports last week. The obvious worst-case scenario for Miami would be that King doesn’t progress in rehab as he through the present. King was dynamic for Miami in 2020. If King plays at the same level in 2021 as he did in 2020, the Miami offense will thrive.
Rhett Lashlee, on how D'Eriq King's rehab process is going: "He's doing excellent. He's doing what we thought he would do...he's exceeding expectations...I think our team is doing a great job both medically and with the rehab process."
— Christy Chirinos (@ChristyChirinos) April 8, 2021
"“D’Eriq King’s injury takes too long to recover — Quarterback D’Eriq King suffered a major injury at the end of last year, tearing his ACL in the team’s Cheez-It Bowl appearance against Oklahoma State.King was impressive in 2020, completing 64.1% of his passes for 2,686 yards, 23 touchdowns and five interceptions and establishing himself as a reliable quarterback. The Hurricanes just have to hope King can make it back to a full recovery and be healthy so he can post similar numbers to that.But if it takes longer than expected to recover, the Hurricanes could get off to a brutal start.”"
During spring practice, Miami head coach Manny Diaz said that King is smashing rehab. Diaz and Lashlee have repeatedly praised King for his work ethic. The work ethic King has combined with smashing the benchmarks during rehab has Diaz and Lashlee confident the Hurricanes QB will be ready for the season opener.
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It would be difficult to expect Garcia or Van Dyke to thrive in their first college start against the defending National Champions on September 4 in Atlanta. The Hurricanes like the long-term potential of both Garcia and Van Dyke. With King rehabbing this spring, Garcia and Van Dyke were exceptional.