Mario Cristobal did not dodge the Carson Beck question this week. In fact, he leaned into it, and, more importantly for Miami fans, made it clear he believes his veteran quarterback and this offense are finally turning into what they were paid to be.
Speaking ahead of Saturday's trip to Virginia Tech, Cristobal was asked how Beck has settled into Shannon Dawson's system after transferring from Georgia and missing most of spring practice. He immediately went back to those lost reps and what they meant. Spring ball "has a lot of value," Cristobal said, noting that when a quarterback cannot go through it, "you don’t" ever fully get that time back. Still, he added that Miami feels great about the last couple of weeks and all that is happening with the offense right now.
"Certainly we feel great about the last couple of weeks of all the things that are transpiring offensively. And there's a very distinctly higher level of just energy, and I would say, just approach by everyone in the building and the complimentary football when that thing kicks in. Now it's special to watch, and I think that's what we all witnessed on Saturday, and we're looking forward to improving upon that, because there's a lot of stuff on tape, a lot of stuff on tape, that we have an opportunity to improve upon."Mario Cristobal
That reassurance comes at a moment when the numbers around Beck have been pulled apart from every angle. Through 10 games with Miami, Beck is completing more than 73 percent of his passes for 2,485 yards with 18 touchdowns and nine interceptions, good for a passer rating over 159.2.
The last two weeks, he has looked like the quarterback Miami thought it was getting. Beck threw for 247 yards and a touchdown in a 38-10 rout of Syracuse, a game in which he also caught a touchdown pass and passed the 10,000-yard mark for his college career. He followed that with 291 yards and three touchdown passes in a 41-7 demolition of NC State, completing his final 13 throws.
Cristobal's answer on Monday sounded like a direct response to the narrative around Beck without mentioning it too directly. He also stressed that there is still "a lot of stuff on tape" to clean up, which is as close as you will get to a public acknowledgment that the consistency has to improve.
Beck and Miami will go on the road Saturday to play a 3-7 Virginia Tech squad in Blacksburg.