Miami Looks to Their King for Salvation

The kick to open the 4th quarter was low, but hooked over the bar. Chris Dunn, the NC State kicker, celebrated wildly after nailing the 53-yarder. Those celebrations included gesticulating wildly at the Hurricanes’ bench imploring them to fellate him. And as well he should. The kick put NC State up 10, with a Win Probability of 85.7%. Surely, the Wolfpack had the game.

The problem with that logic is you can’t put a percentage on D’Eriq King. He immediately responded, leading his troops back. But the most impressive thing was the completeness. On one possession it was the wild, darting scamper for 28 yards to set up a score, having seemingly been trapped multiple times. It was then that we knew D’Eriq wouldn’t be denied.

On the next possession, with the lead sliced to 4, and the Canes on a make or break drive, the Mighty King was sacked. 2nd and 18…no problem as he completed a 35-yard pass. A few plays later, on 3rd and 7, he completed the winning TD, a 54-yard strike. And that’s the thing, whether on the ground or through the air, D’Eriq was there. In an iconic performance, he was transcended football, etching his place in the program’s history.

He was not merely a quarterback or a football player or a student athlete…he was a force of nature, a superhero….OUR superhero.

The Search for the Quarterback

We always hear about Miami searching for the successor to Ken Dorsey, a 20 year hunt for the next great Canes QB. The problem with that is that many really good QBs have come through here since Dorsey graduated. I believe that now as much as I dreamed of them elevating this program when they were here.

So why is D’Eriq King different?

At a glance, he’s not. But then you see him play. He has that divine spark.

I admittedly took a while to realize what we had here, precisely because we’ve overall had fairly solid QB play even has the program has waned. But that NC State game was an awakening. It’s like listening to all the talent coming out of Motown and realizing they are really special, and then hearing Diana Ross and realizing you’re listening to a completely different entity. This is someone that sits among the most talented, and elevates above that.

D’Eriq plays QB like Picasso paints, starting with a blank canvas, and ending with a masterpiece, while onlookers are forced to wonder what they just witnessed, struggling to explain it, awed by its presence. So perfectly different.

But here’s the other thing….he’s more impressive off the field.

When D’Eriq King transferred to Miami, we knew we were getting at the very least a solid college QB with success in an up-tempo offense that new Offensive Coordinator Rhett Lashlee promised to bring. What we didn’t know we were getting was an elite-level human being. Since setting foot on campus, D’Eriq King has elevated the standards of the program not just on the field, but off it. He conducts himself in a manner fitting a person many years his senior, becoming the positive face of this program.

In one short year, he has forever put his stamp on this program, setting the standard by which we expect our leaders to conduct themselves. Something has been off about this program for quite a while, and King’s presence goes a long way towards righting this ship.

The Last Full Measure

On Saturday, Miami will head into a seemingly unwinnable game. Alabama is unparalleled in college football. They just cycle through NFL talent, repeatedly winning conference and national championships. No one gives Miami much of a chance.

And on paper, they shouldn’t. Much like the Chris Dunn, they should assume it’s over. Why even play the game?

But they forgot…we have D’Eriq.

The Miami football program was built on improbabilities. So what’s one more improbable outcome? What’s to stop them from them mustering one more miracle for a miracle program…magic from the Magic City?

That’s what King has restored to the 305. Hope. Hope is a good thing, maybe the best of things. We’ve seen this program do extraordinary things, against long odds. And we’ve seen D’Eriq do so as well.

The meandering road travelled by D’Eriq King, where COVID granted him an extra year of eligibility, where a knee injury threatened everything, by to end up leading this program at this moment is the stuff of fairy tales. Improbable in its own right. He shouldn’t be here to lead Miami, but he is.

Everyone expects Miami to get killed. D’Eriq is there to win.

And when he takes that field, leading his team out through the hallowed smoke, that simple U which elicits so much emotional pride in all of us adorned on his helmet, he represents all of Miami. He takes our hopes and dreams with him, our program, on his diminutive frame. He’s up to the challenge, and we’re privileged to have him in our corner.

Miami’s King.

Vishnu Parasuraman is a contributor for @FiveReasonsSports and generally covers the Miami Hurricanes. You can follow him on twitter @vrp2003