The 2025 NFL draft is still far away with an entire college football season to be played before the annual event. However, plenty of players are already eyeing next April as they look to close out their collegiate careers on the highest note possible.
The Athletic senior writer Larry Holder spoke with a handful of quarterbacks at the Manning Passing Academy about their respective outlooks for the amateur draft next spring. Among those who offered their self-evaluation was Florida’s [autotag]Graham Mertz[/autotag], a redshirt senior whose eligibility expires this fall after two years in Gainesville.
Mertz offered some insight into what he has been working on this offseason as well as his progress from a physical standpoint.
What Mertz is working on this offseason
“I was there (at Florida) last year, so I got a year in my belt,” Mertz begins.
“I think one thing that we are blessed with is the system we have in Florida. I think as a new player, it forced you to really catch on quickly. And that was one thing that I really benefited from, just the structure of it.
“So for me right now, we’ve got a lot of new guys. We got guys coming back that were young last year. So how do we maximize our time? How do we get a little bit better every day? And how do we keep that focus and that urgency in what we do?
“For me, you know what you’re going to do, you know how to do it. How do you get everybody to buy into that? You truly move as one.
“So for me, it’s waking up every day — how do we truly move as one towards that goal, because obviously we weren’t satisfied with last year.”
What Mertz is working on physically
“I think a big thing for me, I’ve been in college for six years — you always bench, you squat, you clean, you try to get fast, you try to get a little bit faster, you work on mobility — but for me, it’s finding new ways to attack it and embracing new things and trying to open my mind to change in some areas,” Mertz notes.
“Trying to just get, like I said to the other guys, just get a little bit better every day. It’s trying new things to either add to my routine or subtract another thing from my routine.”
Florida’s 2024 season opener
The Florida and the Miami Hurricanes open their schedule on Aug. 31 in Gainesville, Florida. Kickoff time is slated for 3:30 p.m. ET and the game will be broadcast on ABC Sports.
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