Podcast: Emotional reactions and fallout from Miami QB D’Eriq King’s torn ACL in bowl
The Miami Hurricanes lost the Cheez-It Bowl, 37-34, and it was the least of their worries this week.
In the second quarter Tuesday, Miami was starting to make a comeback against the Oklahoma State Cowboys when disaster struck. D’Eriq King scrambled to his right, planted his right foot awkwardly and grabbed at his right knee as he tumbled to the turf at Camping World Stadium. He limped off the field with the help of trainers, and spent the second half on the sideline in street clothes with a massive brace on his right leg and crutches tucked under either arm. On Thursday, the quarterback confirmed everyone’s worst fears.
He tore his right anterior cruciate ligament in the loss. He will need surgery. His status heading in 2021 is uncertain.
It ended a whirlwind week for the No. 18 Hurricanes and the Eye on the U podcast is here to break it all down. David Wilson and Susan Miller Degnan, the Miami Herald’s Hurricanes beat writer, talk through the highs of King announcing his plan to return to Coral Gables for one more season and the lows of his tragic injury in Orlando.
It all started Saturday when King announced his intention to return for a sixth season, using the an NCAA rule granting all players an extra year of eligibility because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Two weeks after Miami’s embarrassing loss to the North Carolina Tar Heels on Dec. 12, King’s decision flipped the script for the Hurricanes and temporarily vaulted them into the national conversation for next season.
The bowl game alone was a roller coaster of emotions. Miami (8-3, 7-2 Atlantic Coast) played as bad a first quarter as imaginable, put together a thrilling start to the second and then ended the quarter with the worst possible outcome as King collapsed to the ground in pain.
What does it mean for 2021? It starts with quarterback N’Kosi Perry, who nearly completed the Hurricanes’ comeback in relief of King. He looks the part of a starter, so will Miami be able to keep him around with the promise of playing an important backup role to a recovering star?
