Tate Martell, N’Kosi Perry, Jarren Williams face Miami media. Their take on QB race
There is still no clear starting quarterback at the University of Miami.
That was to be expected after only four days of preseason practice.
What wasn’t expected when camp opened last Friday was that all three quarterback contenders — redshirt sophomore N’Kosi Perry, redshirt sophomore Tate Martell and redshirt freshman Jarren Williams — would face the media as early as Monday.
Coach Manny Diaz reiterated that the contenders are “in a battle.’’
“If we sit there and try to make an assumption off of one good throw or one bad throw, or one good day and one bad day, that’s not the point,’’ Diaz said. “To me it’s about being consistently good.
“...There are all kinds of guys in college football who make good throws, or have a good quarter, or heck, even have a good game. This is the University of Miami. Our standards are so far beyond that. We need a guy that can bring it every week. To me, it’s about being consistently good.
“The only way we can replicate that is coming at it from the long term, bringing it every day over the course of the month of August.”
Monday highlights from each contender:
▪ Martell:
On his offseason work and what offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach Dan Enos did to correct some things:
“We had to all do like a quarterback analysis thing. Went through and my biggest thing was shortening my stride and moving one of my fingers [on the ball] up a little bit. It’s helped me out where I’m able to spin the ball out there. We all kind of went through the same thing and corrected different things. That’s why we’ve all got so much better.”
On how much he’s embracing this competition:
“We just got to keep going. Every day, you just got to keep enhancing in your game really. Go out there and do what he asks, be perfect. That’s what he expects — or as close to it as we can be. I mean, obviously, I just transferred. I didn’t come here to not play. I want to go out there and take this competition. It means everything.”
On the chemistry among the three contenders:
“Those are my boys. We always have so much fun together. I mean, we’re all like good friends, we all root for each other and different things. At the end of the day, they’ve got to put the best guy out there.”
On his thoughts about being a Miami Hurricane:
“I mean, I love it here. This is where I wanted to transfer to. This is where I had the opportunity to come to, and this is where I want to be. I know we have a great team. We have great coaches, and it’s gonna be good for us. We’re going to do really well this year.”
On knowing when to throw or run:
“Well, when I know a guy can sack me I just take off. That’s really what it is. I go out there, make my reads. If I get some pressure that’s up to my face and I know I’m probably not going to get rid of the ball, I want to go make a play. I mean, that’s just how I’ve always played. I mean that’s just how I have played my whole life. I just go out there and make plays when I have to when the play breaks down.”
▪ Perry:
On the difference between now and spring:
“I feel great about what’s going on, but more importantly the team is doing a whole lot better than what we was looking like in the spring. I’m very confident about where we at for it to only be the fourth practice and I feel good about us.”
On why he feels great:
“Preparation, that’s the main thing. As long as I’m prepared [and] I come out here and know what I’m doing, I’m going to be confident.”
On how he is showing the coaches that he has to be the starting quarterback:
“Show them that this is what I’ve been working for for the longest, doing everything I need to do on the field, off the field. Showing them that I know what to do mentally. It’s more than about your talent, your ability. It’s not even about that, to be honest.”
On what it’s like in the quarterback room amid the competition:
“We know that we’re competing against each other, but we don’t let that get in the way of our brotherhood, our friendship. When we get on the field, we help each other out if we got questions, we tell them what happened. We competing, but we’re still together, we’re still a team.”
On if he’s more focused on school and how he represents himself as a quarterback:
“Yes, sir. I just know that that’s a part of being a quarterback. You gotta do it, like I said, on the field and off the field. You gotta go with academics and the community, everything. I just felt like it was more important to me now. I know what I needed to do and I did it.
“Everything goes into that. It all has to do with maturity.’’
▪ Williams:
On how he can show Diaz he has to be the quarterback rather than he wants to be the quarterback:
“That means that without a doubt, you’ve got to just, every day, you’ve got to have that … how can I put it … trying to find the word … not urgency, but, you’ve got that passion. This is me. There’s no choice. I have to be the guy. I have no other option. That’s what I feel when he tells me that.”
On the difference in his body:
“I lost body fat. I was like at 15 [percent]. I’m [now] at 11. It’s really just putting in a lot of work during the summer. Got my body right. Lifting weights, benching a lot. I feel a lot more agile. I’m at 211 [pounds].’’
On what he did to focus on improving his lower-body techniques:
“What he was talking about, really, was mainly my back foot when I throw the ball, just make sure I drive through and sometimes, you know, in the spring you could see on film I would drive through and I would kind of go back a little bit. That just comes with staying level and really driving through, finishing a throw all the way. He gave me some drills I could do to help fix that.”
On working with Dan Enos and what he has learned:
“I mean he comes with it every day. He pushes us hard every single day. And the thing about Coach Enos is he expects perfection every play. And if you don’t give that, he’s going to correct you on the spot. Being with him, through the spring and going through the summer and all that, I feel like I’ve been getting a lot better every day because he pushes us so hard.”
On the competition and if it feels awkward with the other quarterbacks:
“I wouldn’t say that at all. We’re working toward the same goal, and that’s to win games for this school. So, I mean, honestly, we go out there every day and take it one play at a time. The main thing we’re working on is getting better. That’s our main focus.”
Diaz previously said he’d likely name the starter after the second scrimmage, expected to be a bit after two weeks of camp.
He added Monday that he would not name co-starters “until they find a way we can have two footballs on the field at one time.’’
The coach said he will learn soon enough which quarterback has to be the starter, rather than just wants to be.
“You’re going to find that out when everybody’s mind starts to feel sorry for themselves here. It might be tomorrow. It might be mid next week. Right now everybody still feels good.
“‘Oh, my arm is sore’ or ‘My legs are sore...’
“Then we’ll find out who...”
This story will be updated with more quarterback videos from Monday.
This story was originally published July 29, 2019 at 1:39 PM.
