Hopes for Miami are high in 2017. The Hurricanes were the media's pick to win the ACC Coastal Division at the ACC Football Kickoff in July, and on Monday, they showed up in the preseason AP Top 25 for the first time since 2010. After a nine-win showing in Mark Richt's debut as Miami's coach, almost all of the pieces are in place for 2017.
The most popular topic of conversation about the Hurricanes' outlook so far has been uncertainty at the quarterback position. The battle between redshirt junior Malik Rosier, redshirt sophomore Evan Shirreffs and freshmen N'Kosi Perry and Cade Weldon has dominated the headlines coming from Miami's fall camp, but that competition was settled on Tuesday with an official announcement from Mark Richt tapping Rosier as the starter for week one against Bethune-Cookman.
"Malik has been named the starting quarterback," Richt said. "Evan is currently No. 2 on the depth chart. The young guys, N'Kosi Perry and Cade Weldon, will continue to learn and compete."
Here are three things to know about Rosier, Perry and what this means for the Hurricanes in 2017.
1. Experience and reliability separated Rosier from the pack: Brad Kaaya's former backup has 13 games on his resume with one start (at Duke in 2015). According to the school's scrimmage stats, he's done a good job taking care of the ball during camp's live action and shared QB1 reps with Shirreffs. The two freshmen had opportunities to compete and prove themselves to be game-ready, but with the start of the season less than two weeks away, the more reliable options have ended up at the top of the depth chart.
2. Perry remains an exciting option for 2017, even if he's not the starter: There's something interesting about Richt's "continue to learn" statement in naming Rosier the starter. Perry has unique athleticism and a high ceiling, but the sense we're getting from Miami is that he's just not ready yet. The former four-star prospect from Ocala, Florida, has flashed that playmaking ability in spots -- like this sick juke of linebacker Darrion Owens -- but failed to join Rosier and Shirreffs in the top tier for starter's reps.
What shouldn't be ruled out is the potential for Miami to install some offensive packages specific to Perry's skill set, particularly as he "continues to learn" throughout the season.
3. The schedule requires stability early: Miami just doesn't have that much time to deal with a learning curve. The Bethune-Cookman game should (you'd think) be one where the backups will get some time on the field, but a road trip to Arkansas State in Week 2 is a more challenging task requiring a steady hand under center. Then one week later Miami heads to Tallahassee for the much-hyped matchup against Florida State. Ideally, Rosier gets off to a strong start in Week 1, faces the challenges of a road environment at Arkansas State in Week 2 and enters Florida State week ready for arguably the biggest game of the year.