Former Michigan quarterback Tate Forcier is leaving Ann Arbor for Coral Gables.
“Miami had the best opportunity,” Forcier told ESPN. “There is so much positive energy around this program and I really want to be apart of it. I love these coaches an feel like they are the right guys for me. I had a great visit and I really want to be a part of the rebirth at Miami.”
Forcier chose UM after considering Arizona, Kansas State, Washington and Montana. He will enroll at Miami in June for the summer semester and will redshirt the 2011 season, with two years of eligibility remaining.
Forcier was a 2009 graduate of Scripps Ranch in San Diego – a four-star recruit and ranked the fifteenth-best quarterback in the nation. Arm strength, accuracy / consistency and running ability / mobility were considered his strengths, with size being the only knock. At six foot and 183 pounds, Forcier doesn’t possess prototypical quarterback height.
Miami was in the running for Dwyer’s Jacoby Brissett until last Friday, when the local produt chose Florida over Miami, Washington and Wisconsin. Brissett wasn’t in ESPN’s Top 150, but was listed a four-star talent by Scout.
Hurricane Faithful were disappointed by the last minute change of heart by Brissett, but ESPN’s Heather Dinich summed up the situation perfectly:
While the Hurricanes likely will end this class without a quarterback, leaving one experienced signal-caller on the roster in 2012, it doesn’t mean they won’t sign one — a good one — in the next class.
Look at it this way: There is a wide-open spot for one of the best quarterbacks in the country in 2012, and Golden and his staff can recruit that player while honestly assuring him of immediate playing time. It also leaves open the possibility a top transfer like Michigan’s Tate Forcier or Rutgers’ Tom Savage can join the team and provide immediate help and depth.
Miami will sign a quarterback in 2012, and there’s a good possibility he’ll be even better than Brissett.
To Dinich’s point, Miami landed a ‘top transfer’ like Forcier and the door is open for Al Golden and staff to spend the next year scouring the nation for the best quarterbacks in the class of 2012.
Until then, it’s all about Stephen Morris and Jacory Harris – who is said to be experiencing a “sense of renewal” due to the new coaching staff.
Don't want this kid. Couldn't clear academics at Michigan, how is he gonna play here? Also he has a bad attitude and is a prototypical spread quarterback. Not suited at all for the system Fisch wants. If he can be a man and take his backup role, he'll be a serviceable number 2.
Miami has no wow factor!!!!!!!!!!!!!! We will be lucky to win 5 games. I hope Morris makes the grades and stay healthy. #12 is interception machine and as well Tate. Tate 5-7 10 inreceptions in slow big ten.
Now I hear we are looking at a baseball player? Who that?
Michigan's a pretty good school, so i'm not very concerned with academics. It's the football and teammate aspects that worry me. Forcier better not feel entitled to anything.
Look I live about an hour from Ann Arbor so all I hear is Wolverine Crap. I liked watching this kid play for Michigan. He is a gunslinger with no problem throwing terrible passes into triple coverage. When the team is Michigan I could care less, it is fun to watch him run around like crazy and chuck it everywhere. That said I hope he never takes the field for Miami, we already have a interception machine.
I'm a graduate of the U, I now go to grad school at Michigan. I watched Tate play at the Big House. We'll see if he has what it takes to play at the U. I'm not convinced he's on the U level. I hope I'm wrong.
Go Canes.
One more thing; What's the deal with the recruiting class? Zach Witchett and Aubrey Coleman are both still undeclared, in the top 150, athletes, and considering Western Kentucky and Washington…Is Golden "satisfied" when we can do better?
Mark my words as a true Canes fan, Miami will again rise as a national power. Might take 2 years at the latest, but you can bet miami will be a household name in the top ten, year in and out after 2012. The fencing in of South Florida is key, MIAMI IS SOUTH FLORIDA!!! Golden will tell the tale, recruits better hop aboard now…we're close to grabbing a 6th title…
My 4 year old son wants to be a hurricane, he wants to play safety, so miami's got a verbal commitment from way up in Syracuse, New York in 2025…lol. Guess who his 2 favorite players are? Reed and Buchannon…Go fiqure right. I told him he should aim for Tremain Mack first…
He may be not who everyone wanted but he put up decent #'s as a Freshman. He will have a year to change his attitude toward school and work on the field. If not from what I have seen from the new Staff he will be gone! If he improves in those's area's he will provide much needed competition for Morris and who ever the Freshman QB is an opportunity to learn and possibly redshirt the year. Maybe he is not the the next award winning QB for the U but I believe in the new staff direction .
He's here now, so there's not much to say. I'm in Columbus and have seen him play many times. He's got moxy, but again, he's turnover prone. I will support him and hope he contributes to the program. This transfer does not help the depth for next year however. I would prefer getting a Freshman in the 2012 class over a transfer, but it is what it is.
Columbus Cane
Dan Marino threw 50 picks at U Pitt while he was there…you know the rest of the story….its all about coaching these kids and we have the right coaches Tate is a very good player playing for Rich Rod who was sacked cause he can't coach. The U is back…Go Canes and look out for j12…prediction all ACC next year.
… word is that the academic issues came after Forcier was at odds with coaches / administrators and was already planning to transfer.
Based on what we've seen out of Al Golden, a safe bet that he wouldn't recruit a quarterback – the most important position on the field – with a "bad attitude".
Tom Lemming believes that Forcier can learn Miami's system and he'll spend 2011 redshirting to do so.
Kids can mature tremendously from their freshman year to their junior year and if Forcier puts in the work — and learns from past mistakes — he can be an asset to the team.
Maybe he winds up a serviceable back up or maybe he starts someday. Either case, he'll come to Miami seeking a second chance and you have to believe he'll work hard or Golden wouldn't bring him on.
This staff will hold players accountable in a way the past staff never could. Give everyone the benefit of the doubt for now. Forcier doesn't gave to be game-ready until September 2012 and by then Miami will have other quarterbacks on the roster after Signing Day '12.
Miami has no WOW factor. Too funny.
UM just hired a promising up and comer coach who is regarded as one of the best recruiters in the business and he's assembled a staff of hungry up and comers, but you say there's no WOW. Typical head in the sand fan.
Underachieving its way to a 7-6 season is where Miami took a step back, but that cancer has been cut out and the Canes now have a coach who will get the most out his players, not the least.
Daniel, it likely has to do with scholarship availability. Miami returned a higher than average number of players and had limited scholarships as a result.
SAID IT BEFORE LET HE WITHOUT SIN CAST THE FIRST STONE…. I THINK TATE IS THE BEST MOVE OUR NEW COACH AL GOLDEN HAS MADE YET…AND ONLY TIME WILL TELL THE REST…CANES FOREVER!!!
I hope #12 and Tate figure out there team colors. Who's the baseball player that is thinking of playing baseball and Football for the U
YO BEAST!
I love the website and your write-ups, but it kills me you go 5-8 days between posting stuff up. That's an eternity on the internet for a die-hard fan dude!!
You've got to keep the 411 flowing man.
Now that Coach Golden has "opened the doors" to the program, can you try to get regular commentary from the players and coaches on at least a bi-weekly basis? I suggested this to the blogs on the Herald and Sun-Sentinel and got no responses from those guys.
I would just be nice during this "slow season" to get a nice constant flow of thoughts, opinions, and gossip from the program.
Heck, put up some :"unconfirmed gossip" that you know about, and we know you know stuff…
GO CANES or go the heck home…