After two weeks of sloppy play, it’s a bit surprising to see Florida quarterback [autotag]Anthony Richardson[/autotag] on CBS Sports’ post-Week 3 college football Star Power Index, but it’s hard to argue that there’s a player on UF’s roster with more eyes on them than No. 15.
Florida’s Week 1 upset over the Utah Utes was in large part due to Richardson’s heroics. He scored three touchdowns on the ground that night, and who could forget the pump-fake two-point conversion that dominated social media for the following 24 hours? But things haven’t been great since then. Richardson looked far from a first-round talent against Kentucky and even worse against USF.
The numbers aren’t great either. Richardson hasn’t run the ball like he’s accustomed to over the last two weeks and that’s hurt his passing game too. If he can get things going against a good Tennessee team this week, there’s a good chance he remains one of the most talked about players in college football. If not, then Richardson might not be on next week’s SPI update.
The redshirt sophomore is 24 of 53 for 255 yards with four interceptions and no touchdown passes in the last two games, and the spotlight is about to get bright again. The No. 20 Gators play at No. 11 Tennessee in the SEC on CBS Game of the Week on Saturday, and Richardson will be huge part of the game’s narrative, for better or worse. His talent is obvious, and few players are more important to the success of a nationally relevant team than Richardson. Which direction it goes from here will be among the SEC’s top storylines in the weeks to come.
CBS Sports isn’t looking to highlight Heisman hopefuls or provide an NFL mock draft with this index. Instead, the goal is to bring attention to players who are standing out in the sport, “be it for quality or other reasons.” Richardson’s reasons for standing out aren’t great this week, but his great potential as everyone in the sports keeping close tabs.
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