The quarterback is unquestionably the most important position in football. As such, it should come as no surprise that a team’s success hinges on the talents of their primary passer. For Florida, the position has been less-than-steady the past couple of seasons but the staff have worked hard to bolster a once-weak corps.
As of now, the Gators’ quarterback room is headlined by incumbent starter [autotag]Graham Mertz[/autotag] followed by former five-star recruit [autotag]DJ Lagway[/autotag] — the latter representing the future face of Florida. [autotag]Max Brown[/autotag] and [autotag]Jack Miller[/autotag] have departed but the Orange and Blue also added [autotag]Clay Millen[/autotag] through the transfer portal to bolster the bunch.
The Athletic’s Manny Navarro recently broke down where all 16 Southeastern Conference QB rooms stand at the sport’s most important position. Basically, there is plenty of headroom for improvement but expectations will nonetheless be high in 2024.
“[autotag]Billy Napier[/autotag]’s first two seasons in Gainesville have produced an 11-14 record, but don’t blame quarterback play for the Gators’ struggles” Navarro begins.
“[autotag]Anthony Richardson[/autotag] was the fourth overall pick in the 2023 NFL draft, and Mertz, the 2023 Wisconsin transfer who replaced him, completed a league-best 72.9% of his passes and threw for 2,903 yards, 20 touchdowns and only three interceptions. Mertz will begin the 2024 season as the most experienced starting quarterback in the SEC and will have the highest-ranked freshman quarterback in the league backing him up in Lagway.
As for the transfer portal addition, Navarro sees where he fits into the equation as well.
“Millen redshirted at Nevada in 2021 and then spent two seasons (with 11 starts) at Colorado State. He completed 72.2 percent of his attempts in 2022, which set a record for a freshman in the FBS. He makes up for the loss of Brown, who started the 2023 season finale against rival Florida State and transferred to Charlotte, as well as Miller, a 2020 four-star recruit who retired from football in January.”
Florida opens up its 2024 regular-season schedule in the Swamp against the Miami Hurricanes on Aug. 31. Kickoff time is slated for 3:30 p.m. ET and the game will be broadcast on ABC Sports.
Follow us @GatorsWire on Twitter and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Florida Gators news, notes and opinions.
