<body><div><figure><img src="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?type=thumbnail_580x000&amp;url=3My7pV_0v0f4Tdo00" alt="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?url=3My7pV_0v0f4Tdo00" width="1080" height="608" ><figcaption>Jul 24, 2024; Charlotte, NC, USA; Miami Hurricanes quarterback Cam Ward speaks to the media during the ACC Kickoff at Hilton Charlotte Uptown. Mandatory Credit: Jim Dedmon-USA TODAY Sports / Jim Dedmon-USA TODAY Sports</figcaption></figure>The opener for Florida Football is just two weeks away when Miami comes to town. Even though the Hurricanes are 12-13 under head coach Mario Cristobal, there has been plenty of national buzz surrounding the squad in part because of QB Cam Ward, who transferred in from Washington State.But while numerous national pundits are riding the Ward train, there are some notable flaws in his game the Gators will try and take advantage of on August 31.<h2>Put Ward Under Pressure</h2><a href="https://premium.pff.com/ncaa/players/2023/REGPO/cam-ward/133244/passing">An initial look at Ward's stat line</a> from Washington State reveals a solid QB who threw for over 3,700 yards and 25 touchdowns against just seven interceptions.Now, it isn't groundbreaking to state that Ward did better in 2023 with a clean pocket than he did under pressure. But a deeper look reveals a QB who is reliant on a clean pocket in order to succeed.Graham Mertz had a completion percentage of 75.2% when his pocket was clean and a rate of 61.9% when he was under pressure in 2023. His splits were similar when he wasn't blitzed and when he was.Ward, meanwhile, also had a great completion percentage when his pocket was clean at a rate of 73.4%. But when put under pressure, his completion percentage plummeted to 44.7%.<h2>Sack Party</h2>Part of the juxtaposition with Ward is his time to throw when given a clean pocket vs. when under duress. Ward had the 2nd quickest time to throw in the country when given a clean pocket. When under pressure, he had the 6th slowest time to throw. The end result is Ward ate 43 sacks in 2023, the 6th most in the country. Now, one might say that is an offensive line problem more than a Cam Ward problem, but the metrics would tell you that Ward tends to hold onto the ball too long if he doesn't like his first read and has a role in his sack total being so high.24.2% of the time, when Ward was put under pressure, he wound up taking a sack. That was 11th worst rate in the country among the 85 QBs who were put under pressure at least 100 times last season.Road TripAs <a href="https://www.gatorcountry.com/swampgas/threads/miami-qb-cam-ward-home-vs-road-splits.612903/#post-16716923">Nick Marcinko of Gator Country</a> points out, Ward hasn't been great on the road, with a 4-8 career record. Last year, he took the bulk of the sacks on the road, and he threw nine interceptions in the 12 road games he played at Washington State.Ward did throw for over 300 yards at Oregon and at Washington last season, but we are going to take a guess that he has yet to expirence anything like The Swamp while playing in the Pac-12.</div></body>

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Three flaws Cam Ward has Florida Football can take advantage in the opener

The opener for Florida Football is just two weeks away when Miami comes to town. Even though the Hurricanes are 12-13 under head coach Mario Cristobal, there has been plenty of national buzz surrounding the squad in part because of QB Cam Ward, who transferred in from Washington State. But...