Rosier: "If we don’t come back and dominate the ACC, something’s wrong.”
As a returning senior at the game’s most important position, Malik Rosier is the unquestioned leader within the team walls coming into the spring. But a lackluster finish to 2017 that saw Miami drop three straight games left the door open a crack for a talented and hungry young signal-caller to take the job. Rosier, however, welcomes the competition, and he talked about where in his game he would have to improve for him to keep the position.
“The first area is just accuracy, that’s what coach Richt talks about,” Rosier said. “That’s something all the quarterbacks are working on. Secondly just urgency, a couple of times my energy level isn’t up, so it affects the guys around me. So those are the biggest two areas. And pushing the guys around me to greatness.”
N’Kosi Perry worked with the second unit and is assumed to have the best shot to unseat the incumbent Rosier. What does Rosier see in Perry’s play that jumps out at him?
“The big thing with N’Kosi is he’s very athletic,” Rosier said. “There were a couple of plays where the defense ran the right coverage for the right play and you see N’Kosi break the pocket and get eight or nine yards, which is exciting to see. He’s an explosive kid, and you finally see him starting to understand the offense and why he’s doing what he’s doing out there.”
Jarren Williams was one of UM’s freshmen early enrollees and Rosier gave his take on how the young QB is adjusting to life at the next level so far.
“The big thing with Jarren is to come in here and complete as many balls as he did on our defense is really good,” Rosier said. “He’s throwing accurate balls. The big thing for him is, when we get in actual team periods, do the same thing, just relax and play ball.”
On Cade Weldon:
“Cade had a couple of nice pulls, you see the defensive end crashing and you see Cade pick up 10 yards,” Rosier said. “You see the ball come out of his hands a lot better this spring.”
One of the most noticeable aspects about Day 1 of spring for Rosier was the team speed he was facing off against on the opposite side of the ball. Despite some personnel losses on the line, it seems as if Manny Diaz’s unit will pick up right where they left off after finishing as the nation’s #28 scoring defense.
“It was nice, nice being back on the field with the guys. The biggest thing you see is our defense is so fast,” Rosier said. “They’re still as fast as they were during the fall. They didn’t drop off any, especially in the secondary. They have a lot of experience, are better at disguising. They’re even throwing a new coverage at us which is nice to see.”
When asked for any freshmen defensive standouts, Rosier was quick to praise early enrollees Gilbert Frierson and Gurvan Hall, who look the part and are starting to build some hype of their own on Greentree.
“Those guys are in the secondary running balls down,” Rosier said. “There was one play where the guy was open and you see a lot of grass and he (Frierson)… collapsed that grass, knocked the ball away.”
Another early enrollee was freshman RB Lorenzo Lingard who was universally considered Miami’s highest-rated incoming 2018 recruit. Rosier gave his take on how Lingard is progressing.
“He definitely stands out. He’s a rookie and you can tell he’s fast, explosive,” Rosier said. “Once he figures out what he’s doing on every play he’s going to be a freak.”
It was a long off-season for Miami after their Orange Bowl defeat to the Wisconsin Badgers, their third straight loss: all the coaches and players took time to reflect and look in the mirror a bit, including Rosier. Its led the 2018 version of the Canes to come out with something to prove this spring.
“It kind of ****es me off, that’s not how we wanted to end it,” Rosier said. “The big thing is putting that behind us. I know the coaches are walking around like `We didn’t end right.’ And it kind of ****es me off, the fact that we ended the last three games with losses. That’s not how you want to end any season. I kind of have a chip on my shoulder about it, am not humbled by it. I’m more ****ed off and we have a point to prove now. We have a lot of guys back so if we don’t come back and dominate the ACC, something’s wrong.”
Although Miami won the ACC Coastal Division for the first time ever in 2017, Rosier won’t be satisfied with just getting to Charlotte next year.
“I have to come out here and lead, show guys I am the guy, and just take us to the ACC championship game and this time win it.”
Gauthier sees young linemen progressing, will stay at Center for now
With the first spring practice in the books, offensive lineman Tyler Gauthier is now looked to as a senior leader on this Hurricanes team. On Day 1, he was more concerned with effort than perfection and it seems the young bucks on the line passed his test.
“The new kids came out and they’re learning it, it’ll take time to learn all the drills,” Gauthier said. “But they came out and they worked, everyone else worked too. It was good.”
Gauthier started all 13 games last season at center and, while he has potential to play guard as well, will stay anchoring the middle of Miami’s offensive line for the time being.
“As of right now, I started out at center, but I can play guard too. Wherever they put me is where I’ll play my best,” Gauthier said.
The QB battle on the team will receive heavy scrutiny this spring and Gauthier likes what he’s seen from Rosier so far in terms of work ethic.
“You can tell Malik’s determined,” Gauthier said. “Coming to work every day, he tries to be first in sprints, tries to be the best in the weight room. He’s always in the film room trying to get better. Malik has a chip on his shoulder this year and I think it’s going to be good to see.”
On N’Kosi Perry:
“He’s more assertive. He wants eyes on him in the huddle, he’s going to make a play call and we’re going to run it,” Gauthier said. “It’s definitely good to see him step up as a leader like that.”
Junior O-Lineman George Brown got some first team reps today, although he got some first team reps last spring as well before becoming buried on the depth chart. What’s different in Brown’s game this season that will help him avoid a similar fate?
“Watching him work today you can tell he’s a different kid from the fall,” Gauthier said. “He got in the weight room this year, got a little heavier, a little stronger and his footwork looked really good. I’m impressed with him.”
Navaughn Donaldson was a freshman All-American on the line for Miami in 2017, and now after dropping more weight and a season under his belt, is primed for a truly monster sophomore year.
“You can tell with Navaughn walking around he’s lost weight, is able to move a little quicker, run a little quicker,” Gauthier said. “After playing a full season he’s got the playbook (down), makes calls up there with me when we’re getting ready to run the play and it’s definitely good to see.”
On offensive linemen Zalon’tae Hillery and Kai-Leon Herbert, who both redshirted last year, Gauthier had this to say:
“They’re out here working. Zalon’tae, when we’re in the film room asking questions he’s quick, you can tell he’s been studying a lot. Kai got better it the weight room. From my first day impression, pretty much all the young guys did pretty good.”
Gauthier squared off against likely NFL draft picks in Kendrick Norton and RJ McIntosh every day during practice last season. Will Miami feel the brunt of the two DT’s early departures or are they equipped to reload immediately?
“There’s not that much of a drop-off,” Gauthier said. “Gerald Willis is an amazing athlete, a heck of a player. (Jon) Ford’s a big dude and he can definitely stuff the middle. Pat Bethel, he’s one of the stronger kids in the weight room. So I wouldn’t say there’s much of a drop-off. Maybe more of a playing time drop-off. That’s not going to be as big a deal after these 15 spring practices.”
As a returning senior at the game’s most important position, Malik Rosier is the unquestioned leader within the team walls coming into the spring. But a lackluster finish to 2017 that saw Miami drop three straight games left the door open a crack for a talented and hungry young signal-caller to take the job. Rosier, however, welcomes the competition, and he talked about where in his game he would have to improve for him to keep the position.
“The first area is just accuracy, that’s what coach Richt talks about,” Rosier said. “That’s something all the quarterbacks are working on. Secondly just urgency, a couple of times my energy level isn’t up, so it affects the guys around me. So those are the biggest two areas. And pushing the guys around me to greatness.”
N’Kosi Perry worked with the second unit and is assumed to have the best shot to unseat the incumbent Rosier. What does Rosier see in Perry’s play that jumps out at him?
“The big thing with N’Kosi is he’s very athletic,” Rosier said. “There were a couple of plays where the defense ran the right coverage for the right play and you see N’Kosi break the pocket and get eight or nine yards, which is exciting to see. He’s an explosive kid, and you finally see him starting to understand the offense and why he’s doing what he’s doing out there.”
Jarren Williams was one of UM’s freshmen early enrollees and Rosier gave his take on how the young QB is adjusting to life at the next level so far.
“The big thing with Jarren is to come in here and complete as many balls as he did on our defense is really good,” Rosier said. “He’s throwing accurate balls. The big thing for him is, when we get in actual team periods, do the same thing, just relax and play ball.”
On Cade Weldon:
“Cade had a couple of nice pulls, you see the defensive end crashing and you see Cade pick up 10 yards,” Rosier said. “You see the ball come out of his hands a lot better this spring.”
One of the most noticeable aspects about Day 1 of spring for Rosier was the team speed he was facing off against on the opposite side of the ball. Despite some personnel losses on the line, it seems as if Manny Diaz’s unit will pick up right where they left off after finishing as the nation’s #28 scoring defense.
“It was nice, nice being back on the field with the guys. The biggest thing you see is our defense is so fast,” Rosier said. “They’re still as fast as they were during the fall. They didn’t drop off any, especially in the secondary. They have a lot of experience, are better at disguising. They’re even throwing a new coverage at us which is nice to see.”
When asked for any freshmen defensive standouts, Rosier was quick to praise early enrollees Gilbert Frierson and Gurvan Hall, who look the part and are starting to build some hype of their own on Greentree.
“Those guys are in the secondary running balls down,” Rosier said. “There was one play where the guy was open and you see a lot of grass and he (Frierson)… collapsed that grass, knocked the ball away.”
Another early enrollee was freshman RB Lorenzo Lingard who was universally considered Miami’s highest-rated incoming 2018 recruit. Rosier gave his take on how Lingard is progressing.
“He definitely stands out. He’s a rookie and you can tell he’s fast, explosive,” Rosier said. “Once he figures out what he’s doing on every play he’s going to be a freak.”
It was a long off-season for Miami after their Orange Bowl defeat to the Wisconsin Badgers, their third straight loss: all the coaches and players took time to reflect and look in the mirror a bit, including Rosier. Its led the 2018 version of the Canes to come out with something to prove this spring.
“It kind of ****es me off, that’s not how we wanted to end it,” Rosier said. “The big thing is putting that behind us. I know the coaches are walking around like `We didn’t end right.’ And it kind of ****es me off, the fact that we ended the last three games with losses. That’s not how you want to end any season. I kind of have a chip on my shoulder about it, am not humbled by it. I’m more ****ed off and we have a point to prove now. We have a lot of guys back so if we don’t come back and dominate the ACC, something’s wrong.”
Although Miami won the ACC Coastal Division for the first time ever in 2017, Rosier won’t be satisfied with just getting to Charlotte next year.
“I have to come out here and lead, show guys I am the guy, and just take us to the ACC championship game and this time win it.”
Gauthier sees young linemen progressing, will stay at Center for now
With the first spring practice in the books, offensive lineman Tyler Gauthier is now looked to as a senior leader on this Hurricanes team. On Day 1, he was more concerned with effort than perfection and it seems the young bucks on the line passed his test.
“The new kids came out and they’re learning it, it’ll take time to learn all the drills,” Gauthier said. “But they came out and they worked, everyone else worked too. It was good.”
Gauthier started all 13 games last season at center and, while he has potential to play guard as well, will stay anchoring the middle of Miami’s offensive line for the time being.
“As of right now, I started out at center, but I can play guard too. Wherever they put me is where I’ll play my best,” Gauthier said.
The QB battle on the team will receive heavy scrutiny this spring and Gauthier likes what he’s seen from Rosier so far in terms of work ethic.
“You can tell Malik’s determined,” Gauthier said. “Coming to work every day, he tries to be first in sprints, tries to be the best in the weight room. He’s always in the film room trying to get better. Malik has a chip on his shoulder this year and I think it’s going to be good to see.”
On N’Kosi Perry:
“He’s more assertive. He wants eyes on him in the huddle, he’s going to make a play call and we’re going to run it,” Gauthier said. “It’s definitely good to see him step up as a leader like that.”
Junior O-Lineman George Brown got some first team reps today, although he got some first team reps last spring as well before becoming buried on the depth chart. What’s different in Brown’s game this season that will help him avoid a similar fate?
“Watching him work today you can tell he’s a different kid from the fall,” Gauthier said. “He got in the weight room this year, got a little heavier, a little stronger and his footwork looked really good. I’m impressed with him.”
Navaughn Donaldson was a freshman All-American on the line for Miami in 2017, and now after dropping more weight and a season under his belt, is primed for a truly monster sophomore year.
“You can tell with Navaughn walking around he’s lost weight, is able to move a little quicker, run a little quicker,” Gauthier said. “After playing a full season he’s got the playbook (down), makes calls up there with me when we’re getting ready to run the play and it’s definitely good to see.”
On offensive linemen Zalon’tae Hillery and Kai-Leon Herbert, who both redshirted last year, Gauthier had this to say:
“They’re out here working. Zalon’tae, when we’re in the film room asking questions he’s quick, you can tell he’s been studying a lot. Kai got better it the weight room. From my first day impression, pretty much all the young guys did pretty good.”
Gauthier squared off against likely NFL draft picks in Kendrick Norton and RJ McIntosh every day during practice last season. Will Miami feel the brunt of the two DT’s early departures or are they equipped to reload immediately?
“There’s not that much of a drop-off,” Gauthier said. “Gerald Willis is an amazing athlete, a heck of a player. (Jon) Ford’s a big dude and he can definitely stuff the middle. Pat Bethel, he’s one of the stronger kids in the weight room. So I wouldn’t say there’s much of a drop-off. Maybe more of a playing time drop-off. That’s not going to be as big a deal after these 15 spring practices.”
