Rece Davis evaluates if Carson Beck can lead Miami back to glory

After spending four years at Georgia, including two as the Bulldogs’ starting quarterback, Carson Beck transferred to Miami this offseason. On the College GameDay Podcast, ESPN’s Rece Davis weighed in on Beck’s move.

“I’m not trying to get on Carson Beck. He’s a really talented guy,” Davis said. “He’s coming off an injury, and maybe it’s just as simple as they had to rally around the guy, but the way the Georgia bench reacted when Gunner Stockton went into the Texas game — certainly not that they were happy to see their quarterback hurt. I’m not suggesting that… But, you can tell when they’re pulling for a guy.”

Davis is referring to Georgia’s win over Texas in the SEC Championship last season. In the triumph, Beck suffered a UCL injury on the final play of the first half. The injury ultimately proved to be season-ending and backup QB Gunner Stockton replaced Beck in the second half, leading UGA to victory.

Davis believes Georgia’s energy shifted with Stockton behind center, and that it was likely a sign the team wasn’t happy with Beck. Whether or not it was a leadership issue, there was undeniably something off with Beck last season.

The former All-SEC quarterback’s completion percentage and passing yards were down compared to the 2023 campaign, while his interceptions had doubled. While it wasn’t a promising sign for Beck, Davis has faith the standout QB could find his footing at Miami.

“They had a lot of drops last year, which certainly can lead to frustration for the quarterback, and it’s not Carson’s fault,” Davis said. “He hits a guy between the numbers and he can’t hold the ball. Something seemed off last year, but you have seen some video from the offseason workouts. You’ve seen Carson, even before he was fully cleared to let it rip and spin and everything, everything seemed great.

“Now, I will say the video can fool you… You can certainly get fooled by practice, a single practice, you can certainly get fooled by little pieces of video. But, it seemed as if Carson had assimilated himself, and if he does, and if he has, then Miami’s dangerous.”

It won’t be long before Carson Beck can show off his improved play in front of a nationwide audience. On Aug. 31, Miami will kick off its 2025 campaign with a showdown against No. 6 Notre Dame at 7:30 p.m. ET. The game will air live on ABC.