When Carson Beck arrived in pre-practice meetings or in offensive coordinator Shannon Dawson’s offense during camp, he would diagram a few choice plays.

“I’d go up on the board and I’d draw quarterback power or quarterback counter,” Beck said, “and everybody’d just laugh at me, because we’re literally never going to run that ever, even if I beg them to do it every single day.”

But Beck got a chance to show off his running ability on Saturday, rushing for 28 yards and scoring a touchdown in a blowout win over USF.

“It’s not something that I’m going to do every play or that we’re going to obviously depend on,” Beck said. “But it’s something that I’m willing to do and it’s something I always joke about.”

Beck’s primary means of powering the offense is his arm, not his legs. And through his first three games as a Hurricane, he has performed well. After three weeks, he leads the nation with a 79.3 completion percentage and has racked up 812 passing yards with seven touchdowns and two interceptions.

UM coach Mario Cristobal had select words to describe Beck on Monday: “Genuine, real, strong, alpha.”

In addition to leading the nation in completion percentage, Beck is ninth nationally (and first in the ACC) with 9.9 yards per attempt. His 185.74 passer rating is 11th nationally.

Beck threw for 340 yards and three touchdowns in the win over the Bulls, but he also threw his first two interceptions in a Miami uniform. The first, Dawson said, was a “really good play” by the USF defensive back. The second was a mistake where Malachi Toney leaped for a pass intended for Tony Johnson and tipped the ball to a Bulls defender.

What impressed Dawson and Cristobal was how Beck shook off the turnovers and moved on.

“Then if you remember the back-up throw he made to (Toney) in the seam, that was in a small window, and that was right after the two interceptions, backed up,” Dawson said. “So that play is one that sticks out in my head because if you have any you know gun-shyness about you from throwing a pick, you’re not going to attempt that throw.”

Beck has has four touchdowns on passes of 20 or more yards, which is tied for seventh in the nation, according to Pro Football Focus. He is 8 of 16 on those attempts, but his PFF grade of 75.6 is middle of the pack among the nation’s quarterbacks. On passes 10 to 19 yards downfield, Beck has done well. He is 11 of 16 on those, earning an 85.6 grade.

Beck attributes a lot of his early success to his teammates on offense. Miami’s skill-position players have done well, and the offensive line has given Beck all the time he needs to throw. Beck has only faced pressure on 11 of his 86 dropbacks so far this year.

“The O-line is doing a phenomenal job, and when I’m given time and I’m able to dissect defenses, I believe that I’m very efficient, and I rarely miss,” Beck said.

https://www.sun-sentinel.com/2025/09/16/um-beck-early-success/