SAN FRANCISCO — After all the debate, all the complaints, all the commotion about a two-quarterback system at the University of Miami, in the end there is only one standing.

When the Hurricanes meet the California Golden Bears at 8 p.m. Saturday in the Emerald Bowl, it will be usual backup Jacory Harris who takes the helm as Miami's lone quarterback.

"It is kind of weird to start the first game and then start the last game," said Harris, 18, who won the season opener against Charleston Southern and will start again Saturday because Robert Marve has been suspended each time. "I think it's easier to start a game, because coming off the bench you've got to keep the momentum. You've got to make sure if you're down you come back and if you're up you stay up and keep everyone going."

"And if you don't do those things, then everything basically falls back on you and everybody looks at you like, 'Why didn't you bring us back?' "

With a strong performance against Cal (8-4), Harris, who never lost a game in two years as a starter at Miami Northwestern High and last year led the Bulls to a national championship, can likely lock up a place as the projected starter going into spring practice.

"I just see this as a game where I've got to perform well in order to set myself up for the spring," Harris said. "If I go out there and perform well I believe I will have the upside coming into the spring, but at the same time, Robert Marve is a good player and we're going to compete no matter what. That's what I want. I don't want anything less. I just want to compete for the position and get the chance to actually start."

The question remains, however, whether Marve will still be a Hurricane next semester.

It has been highly publicized, and even his high school coach has confirmed, that Marve is going through a soul-searching process of evaluating his place at Miami and his relationship with coach Randy Shannon. Insiders and Internet speculation have Marve pondering a transfer to schools such as Florida and LSU.

QB CONTROVERSY

Shannon has bypassed the controversy by saying he expects Marve back for next season and there shouldn't be much of a difference for the bowl game.

The two are basically interchangeable, Shannon has said, and the two-quarterback system has given both a chance to get plenty of experience. Harris, stronger but still visibly thin at 6-4 and 185 pounds, usually enters the game for the fourth offensive series, then stays in for varying amounts of time.

He was Atlantic Coast Conference Rookie of the Week three times, after wins against Charleston Southern, Duke and at Virginia. He played in all 12 games for UM (7-5), completing 93 of 156 passes for 10 touchdowns, with six interceptions.

Marve, a 6-1, 210-pound redshirt freshman out of Tampa Plant High, started 11 of 12 games and earned ACC Rookie of the Week honors after wins against Texas A&M and Wake Forest. He has impressive feet and a knack for avoiding sacks, but his big knock was throwing too many interceptions. Marve completed 116 of 213 passes for 1,293 yards and nine touchdowns, with 13 picks.

Cal coach Jeff Tedford described Harris as "athletic" and said Marve's absence "doesn't really change things because you have to prepare for them as a team. You don't just prepare for one person. You prepare for their receivers, for their run game and their general philosophy of how they attack us on offense.

"Harris can do a lot of things. You have to make sure you're disciplined because he can pull it down and beat you. They really rely on their run game and those big-play receivers and if he gets them the ball they can go up and make plays over the tops of DBs."

Cal linebacker Worrell Williams, younger brother of former Cane and current Denver Broncos linebacker D.J. Williams, said he has nothing but respect for Harris — though the thought of the wiry quarterback no doubt conjures visions of sacks . The Bears, who play in the Pac-10, are 24th nationally in total defense and are third with 23 sacks.

"Anytime you're a true freshman and you're playing on the field for the University of Miami," Worrell Williams said, "you've got to be good. You've got to be more than good. You've got to be great."

Harris was asked how his game has changed from when he led UM to a 52-7 victory Aug. 28 against Charleston Southern.

"I've gotten smarter, faster on my reads, more of a team player," he said. "I've learned how to love my teammates and they love me back. So it's a mutual bond between us."

Harris said starting practice in the spring (January 2008) rather than waiting until the fall semester paid dividends.

SHOWING MATURITY

"I'm past the freshman stage. The ones who came to UM early, we consider ourselves sophomores now because starting in January we'll be officially sophomores anyway. The freshman phase, I think that passed me after the Duke game."

Against Duke on Oct. 18, Harris threw four touchdown passes and ran for another to lead Miami to a 49-31 comeback victory.

"Jacory, that's a guy who loves getting his name called," said defensive tackle Marcus Forston, who played with Harris at Northwestern.

Said right tackle Chris Rutledge: "Jacory is going to be fine. This game is no different from any other game. He's a poised quarterback, so he won't struggle. Somehow, he manages to stay calm at such a young age."