Miami Hurricanes Suspend Kevin Olsen at Least for Season Opener, Must Shuffle QB Depth Once Again
ByThe University of Miami (UM) Hurricanes football team is going to have to shuffle its quarterback depth once again after Kevin Olsen's suspension for a failed drug test.
560WQAM Radio first reported Olsen's suspension, which will be at least one game, but UM has not confirmed as of yet. A member of the 2012 recruiting class, Olsen was the Hurricanes' second option at quarterback this season.
According to ESPN, Ryan Williams, the team's projected starter, is rehabbing a torn ACL and will likely miss significant time. Without Olsen, Miami is down to three potential starters for the week one game against ACC rival Louisville Mon., Sept. 1.
UM head football coach Al Golden said previously said Olsen would be competing with Jake Heaps, a fifth-year senior who has spend a couple weeks on campus after transferring to UM, and freshmen Brad Kaaya and Malik Rosier. Golden was planning on narrowing his choice to two, but Olsen's suspension complicates the decision.
"It's going to be an interesting battle here as we kick off tomorrow," Golden told the radio station before it learned of Olsen's suspension.
The younger brother of Carolina Panthers' tight end Greg Olsen (also a former UM football player), Kevin Olsen was ESPN's fifth-ranked QB in the high school recruiting class of 2012. He redshirted last year to put off his eligibility by a season.
Olsen violated the team's policy in Dec., resulting in a suspension from the Russell Athletic Bowl, and was charged with leaving the scene of an accident in his hometown of Wayne, N.J. in May 2013, the Miami Herald reported.
An unnamed source told the newspaper UM "thankfully" recruited Heaps to transfer in order to compete for the starting job this year. If the Hurricanes did not, "there would be two true freshmen competing for the starting job," the source said.
Golden told 560WQAM Williams is being reevaluated Tuesday, the day the team breaks for football camp, and has not experienced a setback yet, meaning he could play sometime mid-season. Though he is not holding his breath.
"Is he going to be a factor in this race in the next five weeks? I don't know," Golden said. "It's not worth speculating on."