CORAL GABLES, Fla. — University of Miami senior Cam Ward has been voted the 2024 Davey O’Brien National Quarterback Award winner, as announced on ESPN’s The Home Depot College Football Awards Thursday evening.

Ward is the third Hurricane to garner the country’s oldest and most prestigious quarterback trophy, joining Vinny Testaverde (1986) and Gino Torretta (1992).

The 6-foot-2, 223-pound signal caller leads the nation in passing touchdowns (36) and quarterback rating (88.0) while ranking second in passing yards (4,123), points responsible for (254), and total offense (359.9).

Ward set new single-season school records for both passing touchdowns and passing yards, becoming the first Miami player to tally seven straight 300-yard performances.

The Hurricanes’ first-ever ACC Player of the Year has thrown for at least 300 yards and totaled three touchdowns on ten occasions.

A fifth-year senior, Ward matched Houston’s Case Keenum for the most career passing touchdowns (155) at the NCAA Division I level.

Ward and the Hurricanes have mounted the top offense in the country, as Miami paces all FBS programs in scoring offense (44.2), total offense (538.3), yards per play (7.6), first downs (327) and third down conversion rate (56.5).

The West Columbia, Texas native has guided the Hurricanes to their first 10-win campaign in seven years.

During the regular season, Ward tied for the nation’s lead in Davey O’Brien Great 8 selections, racking up five weekly honors.

Ward bested Oregon’s Dillon Gabriel and Colorado’s Shedeur Sanders for the 48th Annual Davey O’Brien Award.

The committee’s members (media, college football experts, and former winners) ranked each player (1st, 2nd, 3rd) on their ballots. Additionally, bonus ballots from the Davey O’Brien Fan Vote were added based on social media fan votes recorded on Facebook, Instagram, and X.

Ward will be honored in person at the Davey O’Brien Awards Dinner at The Forth Worth Club in Fort Worth, Texas, on Feb. 17, 2025.

MIAMI – A 42-year-old man was arrested Wednesday, nearly a year after he defrauded a Miami homeowner out of $50,000 while posing as a licensed contractor, authorities said.

According to an arrest report from the Miami Police Department, the victim hired DBA Shalom Home Renovation Inc. on Jan. 15 to remodel his home in the 300 block of Northeast 48th Street.

Police said Jairo Rene Lopez Amador, of Miami, then showed up to his home for a survey and to give an estimate on the work that would be done.

According to the arrest report, Lopez Amador was initially supposed to install five impact windows, a door, plaster the front of the home and paint the exterior of the house.

Police said Lopez Amador later changed the contract to include an additional two bathrooms and the enlargement of the living room.

The total cost of the work was $50,000 and Lopez Amador assured the victim that his company would obtain all required permits from the city of Miami.

According to the report, the victim paid the total amount within a month of hiring the company.

Police said the victim eventually noticed that days and weeks would pass before he saw Lopez Amador doing any work on his property.

None of the work was completed and eventually Lopez Amador stopped going to the victim’s home and the victim was unable to get in contact with him, authorities said.

According to the report, the Department of Business & Professional Regulation opened an investigation into Lopez Amador and his company on May 30.

On Oct. 15, the victim met with a Miami police detective and completed a victim statement, claiming that Lopez Amador presented himself as a contactor and led the victim to believe that he was licensed.

Police said the victim’s wife also provided police with a photo of Lopez Amador and detectives discovered that he had previously been deported from the U.S. and had illegally reentered the country.

According to the arrest report, Lopez Amador, who is from Honduras, was arrested Wednesday at an apartment in Miami and admitted to something, although his statement was redacted from the publicly released report.

Lopez Amador was arrested on charges of organized fraud of $50,000 or more, grand theft and engaging in contracting without a license.

As of Thursday afternoon, he was being held at the Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center. He is not able to bond out at this time as he is being held on an immigration hold.