Florida football is currently dealing with significant depth issues at the quarterback position after starter [autotag]Anthony Richardson[/autotag] declared for the 2023 NFL draft while his backup [autotag]Jalen Kitna[/autotag] was dismissed from the team following child pornography charges. To make matters worse, four-star 2023 commit [autotag]Marcus Stokes[/autotag] had his scholarship offer rescinded after a video of him using racist slurs surfaced in the media.
It has not been a great time to be a Gators signal caller of late. But at the same time, a tremendous opportunity has opened up in Gainesville for the right quarterback to fit into [autotag]Billy Napier[/autotag]’s system.
According to USA TODAY Sports’ Paul Myerberg, who published his 10 Power Five teams looking for gunslingers in the transfer portal, Florida is among those in most need of some help via college football’s de facto free agency system, landing at No. 10 on the list. Here is what he has to offer on the Gators’ situation.
The Gators recently hosted Wisconsin transfer Graham Mertz, indicating coach Billy Napier’s need for a plug-and-play starter after Anthony Richardson opted into the NFL draft. Mertz is an interesting recruit not just for his experience – he battled through extended runs of inconsistent play as a multiple-year starter for the Badgers – but for being more of a traditional pocket passer. If the Gators sign Mertz or someone with a similar skill set, what would that indicate about how the offense will look in 2023?
The Badgers transfer certainly appears to be one of the best bets for the program at this point but there are still a lot of moving parts to address. However, the long story short is that the Gators will need to seek help from somewhere because 2023 commit [autotag]Jaden Rashada[/autotag] will unlikely be ready for the SEC grind while [autotag]Jack Miller III[/autotag] is still a wildcard.
Eventually, someone will have to step up, and it is very unlikely that person is currently on the roster.
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