Advertisement

Miami names true freshman QB Brad Kaaya (whose mom was Felicia in the movie Friday) starter

Miami names true freshman QB Brad Kaaya (whose mom was Felicia in the movie Friday) starter

The quarterback competition in Miami is over and the Brad Kaaya Era is officially here.

Coach Al Golden announced Kaaya would be Miami’s starting quarterback when the Canes’ opened the season against Louisville on Sept. 1.

The decision ends a camp-long battle between transfer Jake Heaps and Kaaya.

"It was a tight battle. It was a battle that none of us, including you guys, could have foresaw at the end of June or beginning of July or maybe even at the beginning of camp," Golden told the media. "I'm excited about that position.

"In Ryan (Williams') absence, those two had a great battle. Kevin Olsen really improved, so I'm excited about him. But right now, Brad nudged out Jake and he's our quarterback."

This isn’t exactly the way Miami hoped the quarterbacking position would turn out. The original plan was to start Ryan Williams, but Williams tore his ACL in the spring. That injury turned the attention to Kevin Olsen as the starter. However, Olsen was suspended for the season opener for a failed drug test and the competition was left to Heaps and Kaaya.

Heaps, a transfer from Kansas, appeared to have the edge because of his experience — he also started at BYU before transferring to the Jayhawks — but had an injury setback during camp and was ultimately outplayed.

Even though Golden only said Kaaya would be the starter for the season opener and that the competition would still continue, let's hope Golden doesn't burn Kaaya's redshirt for a handful of games (remember Stephen Morris' freshman year?). That means, Miami’s quarterbacking play is going to have some ups and downs, but the Hurricanes do have a lot of talent around Kaaya to help alleviate some of the pressure.

The best thing about Kaaya being named the starter? More appearances by his mom, Angela Means-Kaaya, who played Felicia in the 1995 comedy Friday.

(WARNING: NSFW)

For more Miami news, visit CaneSport.com.

- - - - - - -

Graham Watson is the editor of Dr. Saturday on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email her at dr.saturday@ymail.com or follow her on Twitter!

And don’t forget to keep up with all of Graham’s thoughts, witty comments and college football discussions on Facebook