Tyler Van Dyke stood at the podium in the media room at Hard Rock Stadium following Miami’s 29-26 escape against Virginia last week. He laid out what everyone knew.
“Just got to be better,” Van Dyke said.
The Hurricanes’ veteran quarterback, coping with a leg injury he sustained against North Carolina that kept him out for a game, had arguably his worst game of the season. But Miami won despite his struggles. The Hurricanes are confident the fourth-year junior will return to form in time for UM’s (6-2, 2-2 ACC) road trip against N.C. State (5-3, 2-2 ACC) at Carter-Finley Stadium in Raleigh, North Carolina at 8 p.m. Saturday.
“One game doesn’t define you,” wide receiver Xavier Restrepo said. “He’s still the same guy that can throw for 300 yards and three touchdowns. He’s still the same guy. We have full confidence in (No.) 9 and he has full confidence in us.”
Van Dyke finished the game with 20 completions on 30 attempts; the 67 percent completion percentage is tied for his second-lowest mark of the year. His 163 passing yards were his fewest this season. He threw two interceptions in the win, and he has thrown seven in his last three games after throwing only one in his first four games.
Miami coach Mario Cristobal said it is “hard to say” whether Van Dyke’s nagging injury could be holding the veteran back or if Van Dyke was out of rhythm after missing a game, but the second-year UM coach said Van Dyke has responded well to his most recent performance.
“Tyler’s a resilient, tough guy,” Cristobal said. “He went through a lot last year. It wasn’t his best game, but like I tell him — like I tell all our players — it’s never on one guy. We all have to do a better job by you and for you. Your supporting cast and your coaching staff always has to do better so you can do better as well. There’s no flinch in him at all. He’s a really good football player, and he’s going to play well.”
Van Dyke has said he needs to make better decisions on passes and make sure he checks down to receivers closer to the line of scrimmage more often. Offensive coordinator Shannon Dawson agrees though he believes that is something all quarterbacks can work on.
“I agree that every quarterback needs to check it down more, not just Tyler,” Dawson said. “I think it’s a process of learning, and the times he did check it down, when Ajay (Allen) scored on that beautiful run, a couple plays before that, we threw to Cam (McCormick) in the flats, and he got 15 yards. That play wasn’t designed to specifically go there. We had levels, and they just dropped, and he just dumped it down there. We have to do a better job of taking what the defense gives. You get greedy and bad things happen.”
Van Dyke’s first interception was not a matter of being greedy, Dawson said, but instead was just an underthrown pass.
“I don’t necessarily think that was like a bad read,” Dawson said. “I just think that it just ended up bad because the throw wasn’t very good. But he can make that throw all day. But there are times where we get in trouble with not checking down.”
Although Dawson would like to see Van Dyke complete shorter, more efficient passes more frequently, he said it is a “fine line” to walk between taking what the defense gives while remaining aggressive.
“It’s hard to take aggressiveness away from a quarterback, too, because when you’ve got the shot, you want it,” Dawson said. “So it’s a very fine line. And ultimately, we both live on that line. Tyler’s not on an island in this deal. It’s me and him. So he knows that. I take as much blame as anybody when bad things happen. So I have to put him in a better situation, and I have to program to where it’s clear to him.”
The Wolfpack defense may only give Miami so many shots on Saturday. N.C. State is ninth in the conference in passing yards allowed per game, but it is second in the ACC (and tied for No. 16 nationally) with 10 interceptions. They are also tied for 20th nationally with 24 sacks.
“They are physical, they are violent when they tackle,” Cristobal said. “Their defense is extremely stout, fast, plays with a great pad level, great technique, great fundamentals, great hands. They all get to the football. It’s evident. You see them re-tracing on screens. You see them chase down plays that somehow broke and got behind them, and not many do. You see when they get to the quarterback, they get there with intentions to let him know they got there.”
