After weeks of uncertainty surrounding the quarterback position, the Miami Hurricanes have a new permanent starting quarterback: Tyler Van Dyke.
Head coach Manny Diaz announced Monday morning that D’Eriq King is having season-ending surgery to repair his shoulder injury. The redshirt senior sustained the injury against Michigan State on Sept. 18, and hoped to rehabilitate his shoulder before playing again later this season.
“There was a narrow avenue that he could rehab it and potentially come back and play this season without needing the surgery,” Diaz said. “We knew the odds were, with the injury he suffered to his shoulder, that he would probably need surgery to correct it. And if he had surgery, it would end his season.”
Van Dyke started both games since King’s injury, splitting time with fellow freshman Jake Garcia in the 69-point rout of Central Connecticut State on Sept. 25th and playing every snap of the game against Virginia on Sept. 30th. Garcia is also out for the foreseeable future while nursing an ankle injury, using crutches and a support boot to help him walk.
Between the two games he played in, Van Dyke averaged a 62.5% pass completion rate, passed for 473 yards, and rushed for a net of six yards. Against the Cavaliers, the second-year freshman rushed for 24 yards for a touchdown, closing in on Virginia’s nine-point lead. That game, he also completed 15 out of his 29 pass attempts, and threw for 203 yards and one touchdown.
With another blow dealt to the Hurricanes’ roster through the loss of King, Miami now looks for its young, talented players to elevate the team’s performance after a 2-3 start. The Canes will get their next chance on the gridiron on Saturday, Oct. 16, when they play the University of North Carolina Tar Heels in Chapel Hill at 3:30 p.m.