Who is Miami QB? Carson Beck leads Hurricanes to national championship

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Carson Beck finds himself in yet another full-circle moment in the College Football Playoff.

After standing on the sidelines in the shadow of Stetson Bennett during Georgia‘s back-to-back national championship run, the sixth-year quarterback finally will play in the CFP national championship game on Monday, Jan. 19 inside Hard Rock Stadium when No. 10 Miami takes on No. 1 Indiana.

NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP PREDICTIONS: Will Indiana or Miami win CFP title game?

“It feels awesome. To finally be the guy and the quarterback, a part of a team that has done this and gone through a season and eventually earned the opportunity to play in a national championship, obviously, it’s a dream of mine,” Beck said of playing in the national championship on Saturday, Jan. 17 during CFP media day.

To make the CFP title game, Beck has led Miami on an impressive run, with three consecutive upset victories: vs. No. 7 Texas A&M, vs. No. 2 Ohio State and vs. No. 6 Ole Miss. He has thrown for 509 yards and four touchdown passes with just one interception in Miami’s run through the CFP.

The next task for Beck will be to lead the Hurricanes to one final win vs. No. 1 Indiana for the Hurricanes’ sixth championship in program history.

Here’s what to know about Beck ahead of the 2026 CFP national championship game:

Who is Miami football quarterback?

Beck is in his first season serving as Miami’s starting quarterback. He joined the Hurricanes last offseason through the transfer portal to be the successor to Cam Ward in Coral Cables, Florida.

The 6-foot-4 quarterback hails from Jacksonville, Florida. He’s a former four-star recruit out of high school, according to 247Sports’ Composite rankings.

Where did Carson Beck transfer to Miami from?

Beck transferred to Miami from Georgia before the 2025 season.

It was a decision that raised some eyebrows since he originally declared for the NFL draft on Dec. 28, 2024. It was also one that was likely influenced by the need to have surgery for his season-ending elbow injury, which he suffered in the SEC Championship game vs. Texas.

He announced his transfer to Miami on Jan. 9, 2025 as the No. 2 quarterback and No. 4 player in the transfer portal, according to 247Sports Composite rankings.

How many years has Carson Beck been in college?

Beck is currently in his sixth season of college football.

He redshirted his true freshman season at Georgia in 2020, and then spent the next two seasons as the Bulldogs’ backup to Stetson Bennett before finally taking on the starting role in Kirby Smart’s program in 2023. Beck led the Bulldogs to a 13-1 record in his first season starting, throwing for nearly 4,000 yards and 24 touchdowns.

Beck had a disappointing season with the Bulldogs in 2024, throwing a career-high 12 interceptions and watching his completion percentage drop from 72.4% in 2023 to 64.7% in 2024. He finished with 456 fewer passing yards than the year prior.

Has Carson Beck won a national championship?

Beck was a part of two national championship-winning teams at Georgia in 2021 and 2022, though he didn’t start either season. A win on Monday against Indiana would give him his third title, and first as a starter.

“It’s the best feeling I’ve ever had in my life,” Beck said postgame on ESPN after winning the CFP Fiesta Bowl vs. Ole Miss. “I’m so proud of this team. We never flinched. I mean, in the face of adversity when we had to respond, we responded. We never gave up. I looked to the guys on the sideline, and you could just see it in their eyes.

“We all had a good feeling that what happened was about to happen.”

Carson Beck age

Beck turned 24 years old in November.

Carson Beck NIL

As noted by the Palm Beach Post — part of the USA TODAY Network — Beck agreed to an NIL deal worth between $3 million and $3.2 million when he transferred to Miami.

Carson Beck NFL draft projection, mocks

Beck is currently not projected to go in the first round of USA TODAY’s latest NFL mock draft. He holds a third-round projection from NFL Mock Draft Database, and is ranked by ESPN’s Mel Kiper Jr. as the sixth-best quarterback in this year’s NFL draft class.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Who is Miami football QB? What to know of Carson Beck amid CFP run

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