Against FSU, What Should Canes Fans Expect from Jake Garcia?
Fans for the Miami Hurricanes will likely always have high expectations for the starting quarterback. Against Florida State, that’s doubly true. They should with the history of the quarterback position at The U.
Playing quarterback for Miami carries great responsibility. The list of greats that set the Hurricanes’ foundation is well known – Jim Kelly, Bernie Kosar, Vinnie Testaverde, Steve Walsh, and Gino Torretta – and should always be under consideration for what the fanbase can expect of a Miami starting quarterback.
Miami went 10-3 versus Florida State from 1980-1992, the true reign of the Hurricanes that started the tradition. Old-school Canes remember that, and they would love nothing more than for the quarterback tradition to be rekindled.
It does not make it easy for a quarterback that’s now suddenly starting though.
With now-starting quarterback Jake Garcia being the main man after prior starter Tyler Van Dyke went down with an injury in Game 6 of the 2022 season, there are some unenviable facts to sort through.
Garcia not getting the chance to gain all the No. 1 reps during fall camp, or prior to each game this season, is hard to overcome. It’s nobody’s fault but the Canes need Garcia to suddenly rise up and be a quality quarterback without Van Dyke available.
Realistic? Maybe and maybe not, but fans of the Canes are still hoping for a good result despite what the odds say for Garcia. He has shown to be able to make a play when it counts.
How often can Garcia make that type of play? That's the better question.
Looking at the current top 40 FBS quarterbacks in terms of quarterback rating, there are two areas that stand out regarding truly big-time passers. One, being in at least a quarterback’s third year removed from high school. This is Year 2 for Garcia after redshirting last season.
Yes, just flat-out time to learn, get bigger and stronger, and develop chemistry with everyone in the program (coaches included), has proven to be important.
Of the 26 Power 5 quarterbacks within the top 40 of quarterback efficiency, only four of those 26 (15.4%) are in their second year of college football. All the other 22 are juniors, seniors or fifth-year seniors.
The other category is coming back into the 2022 season after having started at least one game in 2021. From the Power 5 and minus North Carolina’s Drake Maye, who completed just seven of his 10 passes in 2021 and was not a starter, there’s not another quarterback from the aforementioned 26 that did not start a game prior to the 2022 season beginning.
Thus, Garcia is up against the odds. Can he still improve and help the Hurricanes win football games? Absolutely. He does not suddenly need to be Maye or USC’s Caleb Williams, or any of the other Power 5 signal callers from that list of 26, for the Canes to get a “W” against the Seminoles. But he does need to play better.
For one, what Garcia does need to do is improve upon his last game against a Virginia defense that held him to just 15 of 29 for 125 yards, only a 4.3 yards per completion average, and no touchdowns. At least he did not throw an interception. That’s key.
Garcia cannot revert back to what he did versus Duke.
Five total turnovers – three interceptions and two lost fumbles – need to be remembered during every drive against the Noles. It’s not likely that Garcia can just suddenly take over and lead the Canes back if they fall behind the Seminoles after turnovers gave them easy points.
Having started a game on the road should help Garcia and the Miami offense with protecting the football. It will also help every Miami offensive skill player to now possess some sense of a rhythm of playing with him in live action; all of the No. 1 quarterback practice reps this week are also a valuable commodity.
So what level of defense will Garcia be facing versus the Noles?
It’s only the No. 37 scoring defense by allowing 21.9 points per game, and they come in at No. 70 in rushing defense with the 145.6 yards rushing they are permitting. The passing defense for Florida State is legit, however. This is where it gets very interesting for Garcia and the Hurricanes.
The Seminoles are No. 14 in the land by allowing 177.9 yards passing per contest. They are not picking off many passes, but they do get to the quarterback. Whether blitzing or getting home with four rushers, FSU is causing havoc in the backfield and ranks No. 21 in the nation with 23 total sacks this season.
Think the Noles will come after Garcia? You're darn right they will.
Moving fronts, changing the defensive look after the snap, and even showing something that FSU has not done prior to the Miami game are all areas to expect in an effort to confuse the inexperienced quarterback. Garcia and Miami’s coaching staff will be attempting to delicately balance moving the football against missteps that lead to negative plays and turnovers.
Jake Garcia is likely to lean on Henry Parrish, Jr. against Florida State.
Lee Luther Jr.-USA TODAY Sports
Look for the Canes to run the football, obviously. They went for 147 yards on the ground against the Cavaliers, so there’s been an improvement. That total includes 19 yards lost to sacks, too.
Look for a heavy dose of Henry Parrish, Jr. and other Miami running backs. Parrish went for 113 yards against Virginia. It's a good way to keep from turning over the football and keeping the defense of the Canes rested.
If Miami can establish at least a solid running game, it should give Garcia a chance to throw for 200 yards. In his second career start against a solid FSU defense, that’s a reasonable possibility.
Finally, quarterback rating aside, Garcia needs to make clutch plays like during the fourth overtime against Virginia. It does not need to be as dramatic either.
That clutch play can be an audible to a run play that gives the Canes an edge on one side of the formation. It could also be hitting a check down instead of forcing a pass into traffic, or even just throwing the football away and mitigating the chances of a turnover.
Punts are okay. Turnovers are not!
Garcia has the ability to make a few clutch plays like that, and if he also strings together a handful of accurate passes to playmakers like Colbie Young and Will Mallory, to go along with good decision-making, he’s going to give Miami a chance to beat Florida State.
That’s all Miami fans can and should expect at this point, despite the lustrous history the Canes have behind center. In time Garcia could join the likes of Torretta and Testaverde. For now, just find a way to help the Canes beat the Noles. That will make Miami fans happy.
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