As the 2025 NFL Draft quickly approaches, more and more college prospects are going to be talking to the media. With that will come inevitable questions about the next generation at their alma maters.
Miami quarterback Cam Ward spoke with reporters at his pro day in Coral Gables on Monday, naturally receiving an inquiry about his successor in 2025 - former Georgia QB Carson Beck. Ward's answer wasn't just an encouragement but it seemingly set some lofty expectations for the former SEC signal caller.
"Just be yourself," he said, starting off with typical player-speak. "Don't really look at the stat sheets and what I did this year because at the end of the day it wasn't hard."
Cam Ward's advice for Carson Beck sets high bar for Miami's 2025 season
The rest of Ward's answer seemed to ignore his own advice of not focusing on stats, because he literally threw out several numbers Beck should be hitting next season.
"You should at least throw 30 touchdowns in a year," he continued. "I think the previous marker was twenty something, I did that in four games at UIW (Incarnate Heart), so it's not hard to break records here but I think the biggest thing I would tell Carson [Beck] is to be himself and try to win games and at the end of the day they can talk how bad they want about you but if you win games you've got the one up on them."
Ward threw for 4,313 yards and 39 touchdowns in 2024 and his career 178 scores through the air were an NCAA record. Those are some big shoes to fill.
But Beck is no stranger to those kinds of expectations however. He played four years in the SEC during the height of Georgia's reign under head coach Kirby Smart and its rivalry with Alabama.
The 2024 season wasn't his best, however, throwing for 28 touchdowns and 12 picks. The former was a career high and that was with an SEC-caliber wide receiver room. It may be tough to replicate that with an ACC team even if the quality of defenses goes down slightly.
But his career 24-3 record suggests he knows how to lead a winning team. Miami came up just short of the College Football Playoff in 2024 with Ward under center and Head coach Mario Cristobal will be hoping Beck's presence and experience winning in one of the toughest conferences in the sport will translate to his team getting over the hump in 2025.