Last year, Clemson’s Kelly Bryant and Miami’s Malik Rosier faced off at quarterback in the 2017 ACC Championship Game. The two entered Week 5 of the 2018 season sporting a ridiculous 30-6 combined record... and yet both players are no longer the starter under center at their respective schools.
Not long after Bryant left the Tigers earlier this week as a transfer following a demotion to the No. 2 spot, it was Rosier’s turn to be bumped out of the starting lineup as the Hurricanes went with redshirt freshman N’Kosi Perry for their game against North Carolina on Thursday night at home.
Perry wound up completing 7-of-10 passes for 121 yards and a touchdown in his first half of action against the Tar Heels as he was helped out by his defense quite a bit in building up a 33-10 halftime lead. The youngster, who took over for Rosier at QB in the first half of the team’s game against Florida International last week, has a much more lively arm and it seemed as though the offensive playmakers around him responded well to their new field general. The Canes managed 271 yards in the first half despite limited opportunities to even see the field after their defense recorded two touchdowns of their own against UNC.
Now it will be interesting to see what Mark Richt does with Rosier, who was 14-4 with the team as the starter. He was not effective in the loss to LSU in the opener and the redshirt senior has completed just 52 percent of his passes this year for 611 yards, five touchdowns and two interceptions.
