A Tale of Two Quarterbacks

            It feels like almost yesterday that the University of Florida Gators ended one of the worst football seasons in school history with a 37-7 loss to rival Florida State.  Now, four months later, spring football is upon the Gators once again.  Gator fans have much to be excited about this spring as new offensive coordinator Kurt Roper gets to implement an offense that should be more exciting than that of the Brent Pease era.  But even with a new offensive style, some questions still linger about Gator football.  Will Coach Muschamp be out of a job if this season takes another bad turn?  Can the Gator football team stay healthy?  Does Jeff Driskel have what it takes to etch his name in Gator QB lore like the greats of Steve Spurrier, Danny Wuerffel, and Tim Tebow?  Can the Gators regain the dominance of the SEC that they once had in the mid-2000’s?  To answer these questions, let’s dive on into Gator spring practice

            A big question coming into spring is whether or not Jeff Driskel will be able to hold down his starting QB job.  As bad as last season was, it showed just how much the Gator offense lacked without Driskel.  The redshirt junior is adjusting nicely to Roper’s offensive scheme and is looking to make a personal statement following a season in which he only played three games.  But with an open QB competition, Driskel will be competing for his spot this spring.  Enter Will Grier, the most touted recruit in Florida’s 2014 recruiting class.  Many believe that Grier has a legitimate chance to overtake Driskel and it is safe to assume Grier’s name will be chanted if Driskel begins to underperform.

Gator fans were rather spoiled by the Tebow years, which have given them unrealistic expectations for succeeding QB’s.  Ever since Tim Tebow’s departure, Florida has not had a polarizing figure at QB.  The proof is in the stats.  The Gators have lost 21 games between four different quarterbacks in the last four years.  Tebow only lost six games his entire collegiate career as a starter!  Looking ahead to the 2014 squad, there should be much optimism about the QB position going forward.  The presence of Will Grier should motivate Jeff Driskel to take his game to the next level and become the QB and leader that he is capable of.