After Monday’s practice, head coach Mark Richt addressed the situation with QB N’Kosi Perry, who was seen in a video in which he had stacks of $100 bills on his lap.
“I saw that, it’s been addressed,” Richt said. “It was not very mature. He didn’t break any laws, he’s in good standing. But the image is not good, we don’t like that. He has to be more mature and more wise with what he does. I didn’t like it, he knows that. He knows it’s not a very wise thing to do. Like I said, it’s been addressed, no rules have been broken. He’s in good standing.”
Last week, Richt said Perry would see snaps against Boston College off the bench during Friday’s matchup. Today, Richt would not commit to that, saying only that the plan is to get him in the game.
“As far as if I was going to put N’Kosi in or not, that part of it – I think N’Kosi has come far enough to play in a game when it counts the most… Am I saying [with] 100-percent [certainty] that he’s going to get in the game? No. But the plan would be for our second-team quarterback to get in the game,” Richt said.
“At any time I’ve ever been coaching, if I had a second-team guy that’s ready enough to get in the game, and is only going to get better with game reps, I want to get that guy in the game, if I don’t think he’s going to hurt the team in some way, shape or form. I think N’Kosi has come far enough to at least earn the right to get into a game as a number two right now. Whether or not the situation is right and all that, like I said, we’ll manage that as it comes.”
Has Richt second-guessed himself at all for his decision to start Perry and bench Malik Rosier, before eventually going back to Rosier?
“Not really, because I believe what I believed," Richt said. "You have to go with your gut and your heart and what you believe is right. When you think something’s right, then you do it. And if you think making a change back is a better decision, regardless of what people might think, you have to do it. That’s what leadership is all about – to make decisions that may not be popular or may not be understood.
“We, as coaches, are trying to get the best players to get in the game that give us the best chance to win at all positions. That’s how we’re doing it. When I made the decision to go with N’Kosi, I thought that was the right thing to do at the time. When I made the change, I thought that was the right thing to do at the time. The good news is, Malik handled the demotion like a man and didn’t do a bunch of things that might hurt his chance to be the guy again. He just went back to work. He was supporting his teammate.”
Richt says that Perry and Rosier are actually good friends and “like each other a lot.”
“I think there’s a great camaraderie in the quarterback room. I think we all want the same end, and that’s to win,” Richt said. “If one guy felt like the other guy being in the game would help us win, I think he would say, ‘I’d rather he be in the game,’ unselfishly, and that’s hard to do. Anyway, I think we’re on a good track. I don’t think Malik’s credibility with the team has diminished at all. I think they still believe in Malik. And I think if N’Kosi was still in the game, they’d say, ‘Let’s roll.’ That’s just how I think the team would react.”
As Miami’s #3 QB with Cade Weldon suspended, Jarren Williams has been seeing extra work on the practice field.
“He is getting reps (in practice), more reps as a 3 than I’ve usually given the No. 3 quarterback because I want to see development, and he is getting better,” Richt said.
After watching more of what went wrong in the UVA game over the bye week, Richt identified the majority of Miami’s issues coming from sloppy execution.
“Mostly, like I said before after the [Virginia] game, it was mostly a matter of how we executed - or lack thereof,” Richt said. “Just too many missed assignments, too many opportunities that we had that we didn’t take advantage of, one way or the other. There was a dropped ball here and there, an inaccurate throw, a protection breaking down – when you added them all up, about 40 out of 60 plays we had our own self-inflicted wounds. You had a [Virginia] team that was well-prepared and had two weeks and did a really nice job of playing defensive football. Those things all added up [to] what happened. That’s why we have to make sure that everything we put in, we can execute. We have to practice well.”
This week is about preparing for BC though, in what Richt is expecting to be a tough task.
“Getting ready to play Boston College on Friday,” Richt said. “Coach (Steve) Addazio is doing a super job - he’s kind of a no-nonsense guy, likes things to make sense. … Very impressive what they’re doing offensively. They are plus-six in turnover ratio. … They rank No. 1 in the ACC for kickoff coverage, 43 yards net… They do a really good job in all areas, are super strong, mature, a solid football team that can get after you. Playing at their home where they haven’t been beaten will be quite a challenge for us.”
Eagles star RB AJ Dillon has been out the past 2 games with an ankle injury, but with BC coming off a bye week last week, has a decent shot of playing this week against the Canes.
“They don’t change their scheme if Dillon’s not in. He’s had a long time to get healthy, but I don’t know the type of ankle injury. People talk about a high ankle injury, how they’re a little more severe. My guess is they don’t want to play him until he’s really ready. Whether he’s not ready or not, I don’t know, but I don’t think it’ll change their scheme. You watch Dillon play, he’s a beast. There’s no doubt about it. He’s a giant man for a running back… and he’s just trucking people. They’re impressive running the ball.”
As for injuries on Miami’s side, Richt said WR Brian Hightower (who also sat for the UVA game) will miss the BC game with an undisclosed injury. In his place, the other freshman receivers have been seeing more reps.
“We’re sure [Hightower’s] not going to play this week… (Mark) Pope is getting more reps, and (Dee Wiggins) is getting starts as a freshman,” Richt said. “(Marquez) Ezzard is coming along. We have some guys that will be really good when they figure it all out.”
Richt listed the team captains for BC: Travis Homer, Shaq Quarterman, Mike Pinckney, and Jaquan Johnson.
“I saw that, it’s been addressed,” Richt said. “It was not very mature. He didn’t break any laws, he’s in good standing. But the image is not good, we don’t like that. He has to be more mature and more wise with what he does. I didn’t like it, he knows that. He knows it’s not a very wise thing to do. Like I said, it’s been addressed, no rules have been broken. He’s in good standing.”
Last week, Richt said Perry would see snaps against Boston College off the bench during Friday’s matchup. Today, Richt would not commit to that, saying only that the plan is to get him in the game.
“As far as if I was going to put N’Kosi in or not, that part of it – I think N’Kosi has come far enough to play in a game when it counts the most… Am I saying [with] 100-percent [certainty] that he’s going to get in the game? No. But the plan would be for our second-team quarterback to get in the game,” Richt said.
“At any time I’ve ever been coaching, if I had a second-team guy that’s ready enough to get in the game, and is only going to get better with game reps, I want to get that guy in the game, if I don’t think he’s going to hurt the team in some way, shape or form. I think N’Kosi has come far enough to at least earn the right to get into a game as a number two right now. Whether or not the situation is right and all that, like I said, we’ll manage that as it comes.”
Has Richt second-guessed himself at all for his decision to start Perry and bench Malik Rosier, before eventually going back to Rosier?
“Not really, because I believe what I believed," Richt said. "You have to go with your gut and your heart and what you believe is right. When you think something’s right, then you do it. And if you think making a change back is a better decision, regardless of what people might think, you have to do it. That’s what leadership is all about – to make decisions that may not be popular or may not be understood.
“We, as coaches, are trying to get the best players to get in the game that give us the best chance to win at all positions. That’s how we’re doing it. When I made the decision to go with N’Kosi, I thought that was the right thing to do at the time. When I made the change, I thought that was the right thing to do at the time. The good news is, Malik handled the demotion like a man and didn’t do a bunch of things that might hurt his chance to be the guy again. He just went back to work. He was supporting his teammate.”
Richt says that Perry and Rosier are actually good friends and “like each other a lot.”
“I think there’s a great camaraderie in the quarterback room. I think we all want the same end, and that’s to win,” Richt said. “If one guy felt like the other guy being in the game would help us win, I think he would say, ‘I’d rather he be in the game,’ unselfishly, and that’s hard to do. Anyway, I think we’re on a good track. I don’t think Malik’s credibility with the team has diminished at all. I think they still believe in Malik. And I think if N’Kosi was still in the game, they’d say, ‘Let’s roll.’ That’s just how I think the team would react.”
As Miami’s #3 QB with Cade Weldon suspended, Jarren Williams has been seeing extra work on the practice field.
“He is getting reps (in practice), more reps as a 3 than I’ve usually given the No. 3 quarterback because I want to see development, and he is getting better,” Richt said.
After watching more of what went wrong in the UVA game over the bye week, Richt identified the majority of Miami’s issues coming from sloppy execution.
“Mostly, like I said before after the [Virginia] game, it was mostly a matter of how we executed - or lack thereof,” Richt said. “Just too many missed assignments, too many opportunities that we had that we didn’t take advantage of, one way or the other. There was a dropped ball here and there, an inaccurate throw, a protection breaking down – when you added them all up, about 40 out of 60 plays we had our own self-inflicted wounds. You had a [Virginia] team that was well-prepared and had two weeks and did a really nice job of playing defensive football. Those things all added up [to] what happened. That’s why we have to make sure that everything we put in, we can execute. We have to practice well.”
This week is about preparing for BC though, in what Richt is expecting to be a tough task.
“Getting ready to play Boston College on Friday,” Richt said. “Coach (Steve) Addazio is doing a super job - he’s kind of a no-nonsense guy, likes things to make sense. … Very impressive what they’re doing offensively. They are plus-six in turnover ratio. … They rank No. 1 in the ACC for kickoff coverage, 43 yards net… They do a really good job in all areas, are super strong, mature, a solid football team that can get after you. Playing at their home where they haven’t been beaten will be quite a challenge for us.”
Eagles star RB AJ Dillon has been out the past 2 games with an ankle injury, but with BC coming off a bye week last week, has a decent shot of playing this week against the Canes.
“They don’t change their scheme if Dillon’s not in. He’s had a long time to get healthy, but I don’t know the type of ankle injury. People talk about a high ankle injury, how they’re a little more severe. My guess is they don’t want to play him until he’s really ready. Whether he’s not ready or not, I don’t know, but I don’t think it’ll change their scheme. You watch Dillon play, he’s a beast. There’s no doubt about it. He’s a giant man for a running back… and he’s just trucking people. They’re impressive running the ball.”
As for injuries on Miami’s side, Richt said WR Brian Hightower (who also sat for the UVA game) will miss the BC game with an undisclosed injury. In his place, the other freshman receivers have been seeing more reps.
“We’re sure [Hightower’s] not going to play this week… (Mark) Pope is getting more reps, and (Dee Wiggins) is getting starts as a freshman,” Richt said. “(Marquez) Ezzard is coming along. We have some guys that will be really good when they figure it all out.”
Richt listed the team captains for BC: Travis Homer, Shaq Quarterman, Mike Pinckney, and Jaquan Johnson.
