AlligatorSports continues its 2014 Florida football position breakdown by turning its attention to the quarterback position.
Florida is just one of just five teams in the Southeastern Conference that has a veteran quarterback returning in redshirt junior Jeff Driskel.
Driskel is due for a true breakout season in offensive coordinator Kurt Roper’s spread scheme. Although this is the quarterback’s third offensive coordinator since he’s arrived in Gainesville, this is the one which suits him best.
For starters, he won’t play under center but instead from the shotgun, which is what he excelled in during high school — a career that featured more than 4,800 yards in the air and 1,567 on the ground.
Driskel will be, as Will Muschamp put it at SEC Media Days earlier this month, “what he was recruited to Florida to be.”
His biggest plays will be made with his feet. Throughout the spring, Driskel looked more confident and comfortable from the gun when he took off and ran. The system won’t have many designed quarterback runs per se, but when Driskel has to take off and run up field, he’ll be able to gain positive yardage more easily from the shotgun.
That’s not to say Driskel won’t be throwing the ball this season. Last season, Duke’s offense under Roper — with help from quarterbacks Brandon Cornette and Anthony Boone — averaged 248 yards in the air per game.
Florida’s offense averaged 171 yards per game, which ranked 107th in the country.
Driskel has the talent and arm strength to make difficult throws. And being in the shotgun will make it easier for Driskel to keep his eyes downfield when he’s flushed out of the pocket. The veteran quarterback also welcomes a new consistent playmaker in transfer tight end Jake McGee to an already loaded wide receiving corps — not to mention a veteran offensive line. Driskel has all the tools to flourish in 2014.
Driskel’s backup isn’t set in stone yet, but the two options include early enrollee Will Grier and incoming freshman Treon Harris. Both will battle it out in fall camp, but Harris might win the job because of his rushing ability. If Driskel suffers another injury like he did in 2013, Harris could be incorporated in quarterback run packages to avoid costly freshman mistakes passing the ball.
Skyler Mornhinweg didn’t perform well in his two starts last season when Tyler Murphy was hurt, but any starting experience is good experience. Grier would be wise to redshirt and gain some weight in 2014, but whoever performs best throughout fall camp will earn the backup role behind Driskel.
Follow Morgan Moriarty on Twitter @Morgan_Moriarty
Jeff Driskel runs the ball during Florida’s 21-16 loss to Miami on Sept. 7 in Sun Life Stadium. Driskel is the Gators’ starting quarterback heading into the season, but the backup remains unknown for now.
