QB Rosier thought career was over after demotion

CORAL GABLES — On the morning after Miami’s game against FIU — while his teammates were still basking in the win and fellow quarterback N’Kosi Perry had moved into the spotlight — Malik Rosier wondered if his football career had ended.

Rosier, who’d started that game against the Panthers and the Hurricanes’ 16 games before it, had been pulled after two offensive series and replaced with Perry. And Perry, viewed by many Miami fans as the Hurricanes’ quarterback of the future, had delivered, completing his first 10 passes and eventually throwing three touchdowns in the 31-17 win.

And so, Rosier sent a text to his coach, Mark Richt, and asked for a meeting, hoping a heartto-heart conversation would help him understand why he’d not only apparently lost his job, but give him some clarity on what his future at Miami would hold.

It wasn’t exactly the most encouraging of meetings, Rosier conceded.

“He was like, ‘We want to give the kid a chance. He’s been getting better,’ which obviously he has. He’s gotten so much better, especially at dissecting a defense and knowing what the coverages are,” Rosier said. “After that, I just kind of came to the realization that football is going to end some day, and I thought then it was going to end for me.”

The redshirt senior then continued, “Luckily, it didn’t.”

While Perry would go on to start the Hurricanes’ next three games against North Carolina, Florida State and Virginia, the young signal caller had his share of struggles, particularly in his first road start against the Cavaliers in Charlottesville.

He started that night 3-of-6 with two interceptions and with the offense sputtering and the Hurricanes behind 10-0, Richt turned to Rosier and tasked him with trying to lead a comeback, something the quarterback had done a year earlier against that same Virginia team at Hard Rock Stadium.

While Rosier did engineer three scoring drives, that comeback never happened. The Hurricanes were upset 16-13 and in the days since, both Richt and Rosier have been criticized for the decisions made that night.

Still, with Miami heading into a critical ACC game Friday at Boston College, Richt has — more than once — said he feels Rosier, not Perry, is more prepared to lead the Hurricanes in what is essentially a must-win game if Miami wants to contend for a second straight Coastal Division title.

And Rosier, who has completed 52 percent of his passes this season and thrown for 781 yards and five touchdowns, made it clear he intends to make the most of his second chance.

“I just kind of go by day by day. I think coming into this year, I was like ‘Okay, this is the big goal’ instead of taking every day and just being thankful that I’m able to practice, thankful I’m able to play this game,” Rosier said. “I’m just thankful for every day I come out here and practice with these guys. Like I said, I never know when I’m going to get a chance to play with them.”

All of the ups and downs, which Rosier himself described as “a lot,” have provided another set of learning experiences, too. Yes, Rosier acknowledges he needs to be better. Yes, he says he has to appreciate the chances he’s been given. But the quarterback has also learned about his support system.

As he’s struggled on the field, Rosier has been a target for many Hurricanes fans on social media, fans who have directed plenty of vitriol his way after Miami’s losses against LSU and Virginia.

Several of his teammates, though, have stood by him. And his coaches have praised how he’s handled the challenges that have come his way.

“I think you find out who’s really here for you and who’s really not. There are people that I haven’t talked to in forever who have hit me up,” Rosier said. “And (I’ve) had a lot of players behind my back, like (Michael Jackson) and DeeJay Dallas telling me, “We’ve got your back no matter what.”

Rosier