No. 3 ND to face No. 7 Miami with QBs in spotlight
SOUTH BEND, Ind. — Notre Dame coach Brian Kelly has seen quarterbacks like Malik Rosier of No. 7 Miami before.
He sees one every day at practice in his signalcaller, Brandon Wimbush.
“Rosier is a gritty kid, he finds way to make plays,” Kelly said of the 6-foot-1, 216-pounder. “He’s a lot like Brandon when you look at him.”
Wimbush is a little taller and a little heavier than Rosier, but there are a lot of similarities. The juniors are firstyear starters, and their abilities to run, throw and make good decisions are big reasons why Saturday night’s showdown between the third-ranked Fighting Irish (8-1, No. 3 CFP) and the unbeaten Hurricanes (8-0, No. 7 CFP) has added spark, as if the rivalry needed anything more combustible.
Miami receiver Braxton Berrios said Rosier’s poise has rubbed off on the rest of the offense — and was steeled by the Hurricanes needing to pull out four straight close wins before getting past Virginia Tech relatively comfortably this past weekend. Rosier completed 11 of 22 passes for 202 yards,
overcoming three interceptions, and rushed for 84 yards while accounting for three scores (two passing, one rushing) in the 28-10 victory.
“I think he gained all that from those big moments that we had earlier in the year,” Berrios said. “At Florida State, the last two drives we had, we executed and that builds confidence, that builds a culture of finding a way to win.”
Rosier isn’t just doing
it with his arm.
Miami has never been known for having the most mobile quarterbacks — the great ones have usually been the pro-style, pocket-presence types — but Rosier is a weapon as a ball carrier as well. He has three rushing touchdowns, the first Miami quarterback with that many since 2007, and has a penchant for turning near-sacks into positive yardage.
“It is actually something
new you see with Miami,” Virginia Tech defensive coordinator Bud Foster said.
Foster isn’t the only coach who’s faced Rosier this season who is giving the Miami quarterback high marks.
“I think he’s done a great job,” Florida State coach Jimbo Fisher said. “Kept great composure, very accurate, athletic, gets the ball out of his hand . ... He’s done a tremendous job and playing very well.”