D’Eriq King got through Alabama intact, but the quarterback knows Miami should be better
D’Eriq King was not worried when a crunching hit from Christopher Allen sent him crumpling to the ground and hobbling into the medical tent on the Miami Hurricanes’ sideline at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. He was not concerned about the prospect of facing the top-ranked Alabama Crimson Tide in his first real action since he tore his anterior cruciate ligament in the 2020 Cheez-It Bowl. He was not too scared to take off and run a handful of times, even delivering some of Miami’s most productive plays in its 44-13 loss to Alabama on Saturday.
The quarterback did, however, hesitate when he tried to sort through another slow start for the Hurricanes against a ranked opponent. It was hard to find answers after a beatdown like the one Miami took at the hands of the Crimson Tide in Atlanta, especially after he decided to return for a sixth season of college football with hopes of vaulting the No. 14 Hurricanes back into national relevance.
“Yeah, um,” he said, then paused for about five seconds to gather his thoughts. “We started slow.”
He took another five-second break.
“We started slow,” he repeated. “We tried to get tempo going, but we just couldn’t get in a rhythm. I think the whole first quarter it was three-and-out, three-and-out, three-and-out, so we need to find a way to start faster.”
King was at the center of it all — the good and the bad. His injury scare in the second quarter nearly turned an ugly day into an outright nightmare and his three turnovers kept any potential miracle comeback at bay, but he also accounted for 197 of Miami’s meager 266 yards and directed a couple impressive drives in the second half.
As disappointing as the Hurricanes’ season-opening rout was, there was at least one true positive: King made it through unscathed and looked like something close to the player he was last year.
“That’s just football,” coach Manny Diaz said. “He’s a competitor, so he’s hurt because he came here to win the game, but I thought he was brave. I thought he was sharp, I thought he made some excellent throws and we’ll go on to next week.”
For a moment, it looked as if the nightmare scenario had arrived. With 13:49 left in the second quarter and Miami already trailing 17-0, Allen cleanly beat offensive lineman DJ Scaife Jr. and barrelled his way to King for a strip sack. Exactly eight months after King had surgery to repair his ACL, his right leg twisted awkwardly beneath him and he limped off the field and into the tent.
He stayed in there for about a minute — he said he just needed to get re-taped — and immediately returned to a game without missing an offensive play.
“I knew he was going to get back up,” wide receiver Xavier Restrepo said.
It was enough time for those on the outside to panic, though. A loss to Alabama — no matter how ugly — never could have officially crushed the Hurricanes’ season. A catastrophic injury to its starting quarterback could.
His performance wasn’t typical — he threw two interceptions and lost a fumble— but he survived and gave himself a chance to keep guiding Miami (0-1) in its quest to reach the 2021 Atlantic Coast Conference Championship Game.
In the second half, he flashed like the King of old. He began the second half by leading the Hurricanes’ from their own 25-yard line all the way down to the Crimson Tide’s 1. On fourth-and-goal with a chance to cut into Alabama’s 24-3 lead, King ran straight up the middle and got stuffed at the goal line.
The Crimson Tide (1-0) answered with a 99-yard drive and 94-yard touchdown pass.
“I just didn’t get in,” King said, agonizing after yet another missed opportunity. “Should have got in, should have dove or whatever, should have got in. I don’t know.”
King threw his lone touchdown came in the third quarter, quickly leading Miami on a 75-yard touchdown drive in 1:42. He scrambled for an 11-yard gain on third-and-6 from Alabama’s 40-yard line, then lofted a perfectly placed throw to Restrepo for a 29-yard touchdown.
After the throw, King jogged to the sideline and offensive coordinator Rhett Lashlee patted him on the back of the helmet with his play sheet. The Hurricanes were still down 41-10, but it was finally a bright spot that wasn’t just about staying healthy.
King will have to be better for Miami to make a run at the ACC Championship Game. Most importantly, they still have him.
“I think we have good enough guys to win,” King said. “I think we’re going to build on that the rest of the season.”
This story was originally published September 4, 2021 at 9:11 PM.
