It was all sweet in South Beach—until it wasn’t. Carson Beck had touched down, $4 million NIL bag secured, elbow low-key cleaned up, and vibes high. He was Miami’s new poster boy, ready to turn The U into a real problem in the ACC. Then the whispers and comparisons started. About Cam Ward. About Mobility. And about Carson Beck’s elbow still acting funny. The same fans who were ready to print Carson Beck jerseys started looking around like, “Hold up, are we sure?” And just like that, it got real cloudy in Coral Gables. Pressure’s on. Heavy.

Cristobal didn’t drop four M’s on some project quarterback. He saw Cam Ward light it up last season and said, ‘Run it back.’ Carson Beck isn’t a throwaway project. He’s Mario Cristobal’s new science experiment—hoping to recreate the Cam Ward magic with a quarterback who’s more pocket sitter than pocket Houdini. And that’s where the red flags pop up like potholes on I-95. Because while Ward danced through chaos like he was playing backyard ball with a cheat code, Beck’s tape shows a QB who will chill in the pocket like it’s a beach chair—and not in a good way.

On May 4th, Joe DeLeone and Blake Ruffino lit up the mic, breaking this all down. “Do you know that they were 55th last year in the country at allowing sacks? Doesn’t sound bad, right? But if you dig a little bit deeper into the Miami thing…Do you know how much Cam Ward got out of—like, out of pressure? And the outright wizardry that he had to pull off? I understand what you’re saying of getting downhill. What I’m saying is—I don’t know, right? Like, I don’t know if they’re going to be good or bad there. But I do think they gave up a lot of sacks for a guy that had pulled off some massive wizardry in the pocket in Cam Ward.”

Joe added the obvious: “Carson Beck’s not as mobile, obviously, as Cam Ward.” Then Blake doubles down: “And he will sit there. That worries me. He will sit in that pocket a little too long. So my point would be, just to add on quickly to what you’re about to say here, you have a guy whose biggest problem was that he would sit in that pocket way too long at Georgia, for crying out loud, versus a guy who was so just amazing at making things happen in the pocket.”

That’s the elephant in the locker room. Cam Ward was out there improvising like he was on stage at Def Comedy Jam. Beck? He’s going to sit. Chill. Wait. And sometimes that waiting turns into “sack city.” Look, the sack stats aren’t too far apart—Miami gave up 23 in 2024, and Georgia gave up 25. But the difference? Ward was juking defenders out of their cleats. Cam Ward had diabolical pocket awareness. Meanwhile, Beck was letting them collect frequent-flyer miles in the backfield. That’s why folks are side-eying this move. Almost the same sack numbers, but two wildly different quarterback styles. Beck’s got to learn to move, or at least feel pressure like it owes him money.

The thing is, the Miami O-line? It’s no joke. They paved the way for the nation’s top offense last year—537.2 yards a game, nearly 44 points. The ground game was ridiculous: led the ACC in rush yards per carry and posted top-six numbers nationally. Right tackle Francis Mauigoa? A straight-up bulldozer with five-star feet. And don’t sleep on the transfer boys—James Brockermeyer from TCU is a field general at center, and JUCO beast Markel Bell is guarding the blind side like it’s Fort Knox.

Carson Beck’s injury concern: Would Miami pivot back to running the ball?

Let’s not sugarcoat it. Beck’s shoulder? Still a question mark. The injury happened in the SEC Championship game when Texas lit him up and his elbow popped like a firecracker. Since then, he’s been low-key—rehabbing, resting, not taking many reps in spring ball. And when your whole 2024 offense was built around airing it out 40+ times per game? Yeah, that’s a problem.

Cam Ward was throwing that thing like he was auditioning for the NFL Combine every Saturday—4,313 yards, 39 touchdowns, and some of the nastiest throws you’ve ever seen on an ACC field. But now? You might have to cool the jets. “Carson Beck is a great field general, leader for this offense,” said Joe DeLeone. “But there should be—and I hope they realize—we’ve got a little bit of a fear of what happens with his elbow. How ready to go is he? How many weeks does it take for him to have zip?”

DeLeone laid it out flat about Miami’s Hurricanes offense play style for the 2025 season: “But it feels like, by going and getting ChaMar Brown—as we talked about—and having Jordan Lyle and having Mark Fletcher, having all three of those big bodies, that they can just run the ball downhill. And that is what they’re going to try and do.”

Translation? Even if Beck’s good to go, he might not be that guy right away. And that’s why Cristobal and Co. pivoted—snagging ChaMar Brown out of North Dakota. Man rushed for 1,181 yards, averaged 5 per tote, and scored 15 touchdowns while bringing an FCS natty back to Fargo.

You line him up with Mark Fletcher and Jordan Lyle? That’s a three-headed monster. All gas, no brakes. And now you’re looking at a Miami offense that might just say, “You know what? Forget the air raid—let’s run this thing down folks’ throats.” Mario Cristobal isn’t dumb. He knows he has one of the nastiest O-lines in the game. He knows Beck’s healing and might need a lil cushion. And he definitely knows his best shot at keeping this offense humming is to mix that run back in like it’s 1990s Big East football.

End of the day, Carson Beck’s still got a pretty good NFL arm, mild accuracy, and he checks boxes. But if that elbow doesn’t come correct by Week 1? Mario Cristobal hits the switch and leans on that ground game until Beck gets right. Mario Cristobal isn’t waiting for anybody. And with Cam Ward’s ghost still floating around Coral Gables like a legend in the locker room? Beck better prove quick he isn’t just the next “big name” to fumble the bag in Miami. Because the Hurricanes are hungry, and Cristobal has no time for slow cooking. Either Beck eats or somebody else will.