Why so much hate for Tate Martell?

A couple of days have passed since Miami’s opening 24-20 loss to the Florida Gators and a lot has been said dissecting every angle of the game. The offensive line has been criticized for giving up 10 sacks. Jarren Williams has been praised by some, but chastised by his own Offensive Coordinator Dan Enos saying half of the sacks were on Jarren himself. Manny Diaz’s “game management” has been questioned by some, and Jeff Thomas’ performance has not been given glowing remarks. One player in particular has come under a ton of scrutiny and I’m trying to understand why. His name is Tate Martell.

Tate Martell was the crown jewel of the Transfer Portal for The New Miami. He was the QB who was supposed to come in and save the position. He lost the job to Jarren Williams. He moved to WR to help the team. He hasn’t transferred and he seems to be a good teammate.

Why are fans hating this kid so much?

In the days following the Florida game one of the biggest criticisms of the coaching staff was giving Tate Martell too many snaps instead of other talented receivers. Those are valid questions that should be directed at Manny Diaz. Why though is the vitriol directed at Tate? He didn’t sub himself in the game. He didn’t force himself in at QB for 2 snaps. He only did what he was directed to do by the coaching staff, that all of us trust.

Questions for the coaching staff.

I was not a fan of the 2^nd down QB run when Miami was at the 11 yard line with a chance to win the game, but my anger for that play call is directed at Dan Enos, and not Tate Martell. The flip side for that particular play call is the fact the Miami’s two longest runs of the day occurred when Tate came in motion on fly sweep action and DeeJay Dallas was able to gash Florida for big gains. Florida was clearly paying attention to him when he was on the field, and watching him run routes from the stands he seemed to be getting open. How has he passed other WRs so quickly? Is that an indictment on the kids in front of him, or a testament to the work that Tate Martell is putting in? Again, these are questions that need to be answered by the coaching staff.

Fans have bashed Tate Martell on social media consistently since he lost the QB race. There seems to be a huge divide with our fan base with thoughts about Tate Martell. Is he a kid who is divisive and may eventually cause a rift on the team? I’m just trying to wrap my head around the misplaced hate.

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Tate is reminiscent of Old School Canes

I get it, Martell is dating a beautiful woman named Kiki Passo, and his sister is all over Instagram flaunting her talents. He also was anointed a star with a reality TV show before he got to college. Tate also seems to be a kid who is a bit brash, a bit cocky, and a bit entitled if you believe everything that has been said about him, but isn’t that what the Miami program has been about for 40 years? Swagger, cocky, in your face, arrogant, flashy are all adjectives used to describe “The U”, so why is he held to a different standard?

We love our Turnover Chains!

We love our Touchdown Rings!

We love being called the bad boys of college football!

We love being hated by every fan base, and most analysts around the country!

It’s about time we love the kids on our squad, and stop bashing them every chance we get on social media because they’re not exactly like us. Miami was built being a great melting pot of race and culture. It’s part of what makes the city and the program so unique. Tate Martell is now part of that melting pot, and should be accepted and loved because he wears that Orange and that Green on game day.