Miami's D'Eriq King Knee Injury Diagnosed as Torn ACL; Expected Back Next Season

The knee injury suffered by Miami quarterback D'Eriq King in a 37-34 Cheez-It Bowl loss to Oklahoma State on Tuesday has been diagnosed as a torn ACL, according to Nicole Auerbach of The Athletic.

Miami head football coach Manny Diaz released the following statement regarding the injury:

Per Auerbach, the expectation is that King will be back in time for the start of fall camp ahead of the 2021 college football season.

King announced last week that he would return to Miami next season rather than entering the 2021 NFL draft:

The Manvel, Texas, native performed well in his first season as the Hurricanes' starting quarterback in 2020, completing 64.0 percent of his passes for 2,683 yards, 23 touchdowns and five interceptions. He also rushed for 538 yards and four scores.

Prior to transferring to Miami, King spent parts of four seasons at Houston. His best collegiate season to date came in 2018 when he threw for 2,982 yards, 36 touchdowns and six interceptions, while rushing for 674 yards and 14 touchdowns for the Cougars.

King started all 11 games this season for a Hurricanes team that went 8-3, marking their first season with eight or more wins since going 10-3 in 2017.

After King exited the Cheez-It Bowl, he was replaced by N'Kosi Perry, who performed well with 228 yards and two touchdowns, nearly leading Miami to a come-from-behind victory over the Cowboys.

If King is not ready for the start of the 2021 season, Perry could begin the campaign as Miami's starting quarterback.