July Miami Hurricanes Player Performance Index top 30 deep dive: No. 1 QB Cam Ward

CaneSport is breaking down the top 30 Miami players on the roster based on projected production, and today we’re finally at No. 1, Cam Ward .

THE BIG PICTURE

Were you expecting anyone else to top this list? Expectations are ratcheted sky-high for this Miami offense in 2024, with many thinking it can be the first in 22 years to average 35 or more points. A big reason for that is Ward, who led Washington State to the nation’s No. 4 passing offense in 2023. You want NFL arm talent? He checks that box. The ability to create with his feet and run for yards? Check. Patrick Mahomes-like arm angles and escapability? Check. Precision passing? Check, check, check. It’s why he’s in the top 10 for oddsmakers in the preseason Heisman race. He’s a bigtime playmaker with the pieces on Miami’s offense to excel (WRs Xavier Restrepo, Jacolby George, Sam Brown, TEs Elijah Arroyo and Elija Lofton, star RB Damien Martinez and 4 experienced OL starters). So good luck trying to slow down this Canes attack.

JULY PLAYER PERFORMANCE INDEX: No. 30 Elijah Alston , No. 29 Josh Horton , No. 28 Raul Aguirre … No. 27 D’yoni Hill … No. 26 Samson Okunlola … No. 25 Jaden Harris … No. 24 Markeith Williams … No. 23 Akheem Mesidor … No. 22 Jaylin Alderman … No. 21 Damari Brown … No. 20 Wesley Bissainthe … No. 19 Simeon Barrow/CJ Clark … No. 18. Elijah Arroyo … No. 17. Sam Brown … No. 16 Elija Lofton … No. 15 Zach Carpenter … No. 14 Tyler Baron … No. 13 Mishael Powell … No. 12 Dylan Joyce … No. 11 Francis Mauigoa … No. 10 Daryl Porter, Jr. … No. 9 Anez Cooper … No. 8 Jacolby George … No. 7 Andy Borregales … No. 6 Jalen Rivers … No. 5 Francisco Mauigoa … No. 4 Damien Martinez … No. 3 Rueben Bain … No. 2 Xavier Restrepo

THE ANALYSIS

Ward has pretty much all the potential you want from a top QB transfer, including consistent past production and the fact that he would have been a mid-round NFL Draft pick and is returning to up his stock. Last year Ward finished hitting on 66.7 percent of his throws for 3,732 yards (311.0 yards per game) with 25 TDs and seven INTs (adding eight rushing scores). Prior to that? In 2022 Ward started every game for Washington State and hit on 64.4 percent of his passes for 3,231 yards with 23 TDs and nine interceptions (he added five rushing scores). In 2021 at Incarnate Word he was an FCS Second Team All-American and Southland Conference Offensive Player of the Year after completing 65.1 percent of his passes for 4,648 yards with 47 TD passes and 10 INTs (1 rushing score). As a freshman there in 2020 he won the Jerry Rice Award as the top freshman player in FCS – in six games he threw for 2,260 yards (60.4 percent completion rate) with 24 TDs and four INTs, adding two rushing scores. Per Pro Fooball Focus Ward graded out at a stellar 80.7 percent this past season (59.9 percent in 2022 and then 66.9 percent and 67.0 percent his prior two years at Incarnate Word). He was particularly deadly on deep throws last season with an elite 92.7 grade on throws of 20+ yards (he was 23-57 for 725 yards with 10 TDs and two INTs on those passes). Again, there’s just no red flags here, simply a hard-working, highly productive QB who is now a Miami Hurricane.

THE PROJECTION

We think it’s realistic that Ward can become the first-ever Hurricane to throw for 30 or more touchdown passes, although how balanced the offense is in games could dictate some of that. We are extremely optimistic based not just on Ward’s talent, but the aforementioned guys around him from WR to TE to RB and the O line. There really are no weak areas on this offense. He could even threaten the Miami passing yards record for a single season at Miami, set by Bernie Kosar with 3,642 yards in 1984 (with 25 TDs). That’s followed by Brad Kaaya’s 3,532 yards (and 27 TDs) in 2016. Yes, the bar is set really high, but realistically so. The sky is the limit for Ward in this offense.

THE JUMP HE NEEDS FROM SPRING TO FALL CAMP

No jump needed, just keep doing what he showed this spring – play the QB position with poise, exhibit the same leadership in bringing guys along with him and be that precision downfield passer we saw. If there is a “jump” needed, it’s just going to be getting on the same page with Houston WR arrival Sam Brown and meshing well with incoming star RB Damien Martinez. This is going to be a very exciting offense to watch, a welcome sight for Miami fans that haven’t seen a top 20 ranked scoring offense in Coral Gables for 22 years.

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