Jacoby Brissett has come a long way in a short time.
After the freshman entered training camp buried on Florida’s depth chart at quarterback, coach Will Muschamp said Wednesday that Brissett would be the backup Saturday against No. 1 LSU if fellow freshman Jeff Driskel were to start.
It’s quite a jump for Brissett, who was behind Driskel and redshirt freshman Tyler Murphy after the two competed in spring practice as well as the spring game in April.
While Driskel, the nation’s top-rated passer coming out of high school last year, enrolled early at Florida in January to get a head start on learning offensive coordinator Charlie Weis’ offense, Brissett was still weighing his college options.
Weis personally recruited Brissett, who was also considering offers from Miami, Washington and Wisconsin. It wasn’t until two days after National Signing Day that Brissett committed to Florida, against his mother’s wishes.
Brissett, the nation’s No. 3 dual-threat quarterback according to Rivals.com, completed his senior year of high school at Palm Beach Gardens Dwyer High before coming to Gainesville in the summer.
That put him at a disadvantage against the other two quarterbacks vying for time behind incumbent starter John Brantley.
“The only reason why Jacoby hasn’t been a factor at this point is only because he came here in the summer time,” Weis said Tuesday. “He had to play catch-up over the other guys. The other guys were here in the spring when we put everything in; that’s the only thing that’s kept Jacoby from being possibly the second guy in.”
But in his short time with the Gators, Brissett has made strides in practice.
Wide receiver Frankie Hammond believes the freshman has caught up to Driskel and Murphy in terms of comfort with the offense, and Hammond said Brissett actually has the advantage when it comes to arm strength.
“(He is) just being more comfortable and being more sure of himself and learning the plays and getting in a rhythm and setting his feet, making progressions, making throws and just being out there practicing,” Hammond said of Brissett.
“(He is) just a poised quarterback.”
While Brissett has shown improvements, all three quarterbacks have split repetitions in practice this week.
Weis and Muschamp won’t decide on a starter until today or Friday, though it appears Driskel and Brissett are the favorites to see the field in Baton Rouge, La., this weekend.
Still, Brissett isn’t likely to let Driskel earn the start easily.
“[Driskel] will have to prove to me every day, every year that he’s going to be better than me for him to win that starting spot,” Brissett said when he committed to Florida in February.
Regardless of which one plays, Florida’s players and coaches seem comfortable with any of the team’s three options executing the game plan in Death Valley.
“I feel a lot better now than I would have going in last week in the game,” Weis said. “When John goes down you have to cut back with what you’re doing. At least now ... you can devise a game plan around less-experienced guys rather than more-experienced guys.”
Contact Tom Green at tgreen@alligator.org.
Coach Will Muschamp said Wednesday that freshman quarterback Jacoby Brissett would be the backup if Jeff Driskel starts.
