ESPN names Tyler Van Dyke tier 2 QB in Heisman waiting room

Tyler Van Dyke was named by ESPN in “Tier 2: The Heisman waiting room” in their “Ranking all 131 college football quarterback situations in tiers” posted on Wednesday morning. Ohio State’s C.J. Stroud, USC’s Caleb Williams and Alabama’s Bryce Young were ranked in the “Tier 1: Heisman or bust” quarterbacks.

Tyler Van Dyke was listed with NC State’s Devin Leary and Utah’s Cameron Rising. Leary, Rising and Van Dyke were mentioned as candidates for the fourth member of the Mount Rushmore of QBs entering the 2022 season. Leary, Rising and Van Dyke posted similar numbers in 2022. Van Dyke has gotten the most buzz entering 2022.

Playing for Miami, Van Dyke will receive more national attention than Leary or Rising. Stroud, Williams and Young will be on the national stage at Ohio State, USC and Alabama far more than Van Dyke in 2022. The Miami games versus Clemson and Alabama this season will be critical for Van Dyke to have big performances.

Heisman voters nationally will pay attention to the Miami game at Texas A&M in week three. How well Miami and Van Dyke perform throughout the 2022 season will dictate where the Hurricanes QB stands in the Heisman Trophy race when Miami plays at Clemson on November 19. David M. Hale profiled all 131 FBS starting QBs.

"“College football’s QB Mount Rushmore (Mount Pass-more?) for 2022 is still waiting on its fourth member, and these guys are best poised to earn the spot. Van Dyke was forced into action after D’Eriq King went down with an injury, and it took him a few weeks to adjust.But in each of his final six games, Van Dyke threw for 300 yards and three touchdowns. The only other player to do that vs. six straight Power 5 foes in the playoff era was Joe Burrow in 2019. Solid company.”"

Van Dyke threw for 2,931 yards, 25 touchdowns and six interceptions in 2021. If Miami had not canceled its bowl game Van Dyke would have broken into the top 10 seasons in passing yards in Miami history. The Miami passing TD record of 29 set by Steve Walsh was within reach for Van Dyke in the Sun Bowl.

Van Dyke has had to learn a new offense during the 2022 offseason. Josh Gattis replaced Rhett Lashlee who left Miami to become the head coach at SMU. Gattis is expected to have a more balanced offense than Lashlee did in 2021. Miami had to rely on the pass with an inconsistent running game in 2021.

Many 2023 NFL Mock Drafts project Van Dyke as a first-round pick. Miami has not had a QB drafted since Brad Kaaya in 2017. Steve Walsh was the last Miami QB taken in the first round of the NFL Draft in 1989. Van Dyke projects to end both of those streaks in the 2023 NFL Draft.