Paul Finebaum approves of Cam Ward's commitment to Miami

Former Washington State quarterback Cam Ward was one of the most sought-after players in the country this offseason when he decided to enter the NCAA transfer portal.

Ward was on the fence between declaring for the 2024 NFL Draft and taking his talents to Coral Gables in a transfer to Miami, ultimately deciding to play for the Hurricanes ahead of the 2024 season to close out his collegiate career.

College football analyst Paul Finebaum joined ESPN’s ‘SportsCenter‘ on Monday and was asked by Shae Peppler Cornette if Ward would be fine or not fine moving forward at his new destination.

“He’ll be fine and they’ll be even finer Shae because they needed someone like Cam Ward, coming all the way across the country from Washington State,” Finebaum said.

Ward’s journey to South Beach was a long one that started at Columbia High School in West Columbia, Texas, where he was an unrated and unranked prospect according to the On3 Industry Rankings, a weighted average that utilizes all four major recruiting media companies.

He started off his college career at FCS Incarnate Word where he was dominant in his two seasons, making 19 starts and throwing for 6,908 yards and 71 touchdown passes. He took home the Jerry Rice Award in 2020, given to the most outstanding freshman player in FCS Football, and was named the Southland Conference Offensive Player of the Year in 2021.

The FCS All-American transferred to Washington State ahead of the 2023 season and yet again had another impressive two-year stretch. For the Cougars Ward threw for 6,966 yards and 48 touchdown passes in his 25 starts, also notching career highs in rushing in 2023 with 144 yards on the ground and eight rushing touchdowns.

Ward will now look to continue his superb play in South Beach, joining a program that could use an injection of energy and life under center.

“He thought about going to the NFL, I think he made the right decision, and I think suddenly Miami looks like a more serious contender than they’ve been under Mario Cristobal,” Finebaum said.

This year’s 2024 NFL quarterback class is a strong one, giving Ward the ability to boost his draft stock even more with one more college season under his belt and solidify himself as a top pick in 2025. But he also has the opportunity to help bring the Hurricanes back to prominence, with the potential to return Miami back to an ACC title game for the first time since 2017 and possibly land a spot in the new expanded 12-team College Football Playoff field.