RELIEF FOR ROSIER
Being named starting QB last month took a little pressure off, but redshirt senior knows he must compete each day.
CORAL GABLES — When coach Mark Richt named Malik Rosier the Miami Hurricanes’ starting quarterback last month at the ACC’s annual kickoff event, many were surprised.
In his first interview with report
ers Monday since spring practices in April, Rosier described his reaction to Richt’s declaration as “a sigh of relief.”
“A lot of the guys, we didn’t know, but we knew we’d be in compe- tition. And it still is,” Rosier said after Richt spent the spring insisting the quarterback race had not been decided yet.
“Even though I’m the starter, if I come out and have a bad day, he can be like, ‘Hey, listen, (N’Kosi) Perry’s the guy, or (Cade) Weldon’s the guy.’ For me, even though I’m named the starter, I can’t just let my guard down. I still have to compete, still have to come out here and show these guys that I am the guy and I can be the starter.”
That’s why Rosier, a redshirt senior, spent the offseason working on his passing mechanics in hopes of improving his accuracy. He completed 54 percent of his passes
last season, which ranked 98th in the country.
That’s just not good enough. So Rosier received feedback from coaches — including Richt and his own quarterback coach David Morris — and made tweaks to his throwing motion and footwork.
“Two things me and coach Mark
Richt talked about a lot: One was shortening up my throwing motion, and so I really harped on that,” said Rosier, who in his first season as the starter led the Hurricanes to a 10-3 record and their first appearance in the ACC Championship game while throwing for 3,120 yards, 26 touchdowns and 14 interceptions.
“The second one was, I talked to David Morris and he was like, sometimes I overstride, which gets my body wide, gets my arm down. And he said I’m starting to overthrow balls. Those were the two biggest things I worked on with my accuracy.”
The results have been positive so far, as running back Travis Homer said one of the biggest differences he’s noticed in Rosier over the first three days of fall camp is “he’s completing more passes.”
“I feel like the biggest thing is accuracy,” Rosier answered when asked how he’s an improved quarterback this season. “And I feel like the second one is just vision. I’m starting to see the bigger picture now. Sometimes I would get funneled into seeing one side of the field and now I’m seeing the whole field. It’s a lot better.”
Rosier feels a lot better physically, too. After playing the second half of last season with an injury to his throwing shoulder, he feels “100 percent” now.
“I had that rest,” Rosier said. “I worked with (head athletic trainer Vinny Scavo) and the whole training staff. They’re doing a good job taking care of me. Even now, I’m pretty sure yesterday I got four calf massages, I got my quads massaged. They’re doing a great job. Anything I ask for, they’re taking care of me and they’re doing a great job.”
Rosier is also in a good place mentally. After struggling during the Hurricanes’ three-game losing skid they ended the season on (he threw for three touchdowns and five interceptions during that time), he’s used the outside criticism that attracted as motivation.
Wide receiver Ahmmon Richards said at ACC media day that that experience has pushed Rosier “to just be better and lead better and do everything to possibly be better to prove everybody wrong.”
“I feel like we went a long way (last year) and we did something that Miami’s never done, but we didn’t finish right,” Rosier said. “For me, that’s the chip on my shoulder.
“It’s also my last year, so for me, I’m trying to leave a legacy. I’m trying to leave my last statement as ‘Hey, we won the ACC Championship. Hey, we played for the national championship.’ That’s something I want to bring back to Miami because we’ve got the talent to do it.”