Sun Sentinel Palm Beach Edition
Leadership game
Rosier, Perry gear up for quarterback competition
CORAL GABLES — For most of the season, they practiced together, helping each other improve, each learning in some ways from the other.
And so, after Miami’s 34-24 season-ending loss to Wisconsin in the Orange Bowl this past Saturday night, it was hardly surprising both Malik Rosier and N’Kosi Perry were on the same page when it came to discussing one area where the Hurricanes need to improve at quarterback.
“As soon as the game was over with, [quarterbacks coach Jon Richt] walked up to me and said, ‘Listen, game’s over with. Season’s over with. It sucks we lost the last three, but we have to do a better job of leading and it starts off when we get back and work out,’” said Rosier, who opened the season with 10 straight wins but was spotty and inconsistent during the Hurricanes’ late three-game losing streak. “I’m probably going to have [strength coach Gus Felder] come up with some type of workout plan so when I come back, I’m not out of shape. It starts now. I have to start leading now and I have to do a better job.”
Added Perry, a rising redshirt freshman who will challenge Rosier for the starting job this spring, “We all need to be [bigger] leaders than we were this previous year. I feel like that’s one of the things we were missing this year, from all the quarterbacks. Quarterbacks should be the leader of the team and I feel like next year, it’s going to happen.”
Since arriving at Miami a little more than two years ago, Hurricanes coach Mark
“It starts now. I have to start leading now and I have to do a better job.”
Malik Rosier
Richt has made it clear — competition is healthy and no one, even the starting quarterback, is immune from having to compete to keep his job. And so, even after helping lead Miami to its first Coastal Division title and keying big wins against Florida State, Virginia Tech and Notre Dame, Rosier understands the reality that awaits him.
Perry will push him for his job. So too, will Evan Shirreffs, who saw action briefly during Miami’s regular-season finale loss at Pittsburgh when Richt briefly pulled Rosier as he struggled. Newly signed fourstar prospect Jarren Williams is expected to enroll at Miami this month and take part in spring ball, adding his name to the quarterback mix, which also includes another redshirt freshman in Cade Weldon.
And Rosier, who finished the season completing 54 percent of his passes for 3,135 yards with 26 touchdowns and 14 interceptions, reiterated yet again before and after the Orange Bowl that he welcomes the competition.
“You can ask N’Kosi himself. He’ll come up to me in practice [and ask] ‘What’d you see? Why’d you do this?’ and I still help him. I want him to be as great as he can be because if there’s no competition, I won’t get to be better,” Rosier said. “That’s the biggest thing. The only way I can grow is if someone pushes me to grow. That’s what I tried to do with [former Hurricanes quarterback Brad Kaaya], and I need N’kosi and Jarren to do it with me. … If they wind up beating me, then I’ll shake their hand, I’ll tell them congrats and I’ll support them the whole year.”
Perry, who did not play this year, has been a sort of fan favorite since signing with the Hurricanes last February as a former four-star prospect who was rated the No. 7 dual-threat quarterback in the nation. Once he arrived on campus last summer, it didn’t take long for him to impress teammates and coaches with his throwing ability and athleticism.
Praise for Perry has only continued since, with offensive coordinator Thomas Brown calling him a “great competitor” who can “put the ball anywhere on the football field, has a really good touch, and [has] just a great, great mindset.” Departing senior receiver Braxton Berrios, who caught passes from both Rosier and Kaaya during his Miami career said Perry’s arm is “by far the strongest on the team.”
“He’ll learn, hopefully, how to use it,” said Berrios, who finished the year as Miami’s leading receiver with 689 yards and nine touchdowns. “But strong arm and he’s getting a lot better with the offense. It’s hard to expect a guy coming in the summer to just pick everything up and run with it. It’s tough. But next year, year after, I don’t see absolutely any problems with him [playing].”
And for his part, Perry said immersing himself in Miami’s offense and learning it were his big challenges last season. With help from Hurricanes nutritionist Kyle Bellamy and the rest of Miami’s strength staff, he added 10 pounds to his now 6-foot-4, 187-pound frame. And after working with Jon Richt, Rosier and the rest of Miami’s quarterbacks, he feels ready to take the next step in his development and hopefully, help the Hurricanes reach their full potential.
“You feel like there’s only one direction we can go and that’s forward,” Perry said. “It’s good, the accomplishments we had this year. But we’re not done yet. This is not where we want to be stopping. … I’m looking forward to [spring football]. I’ve got to stay preparing, even before the spring starts.”
“We all need to be [bigger] leaders than we were this previous year. I feel like that’s one of the things we were missing this year, from all the quarterbacks. Quarterbacks should be the leader of the team and I feel like next year, it’s going to happen.”
N’Kosi Perry