Haters said it was no big deal; others were impressed and couldn’t help but chuckle.
Anthony Richardson dropped back into the imaginary pocket after just more than 20 minutes showcasing his throwing abilities. The likely top draft pick fired the ball into the ceiling of the Gary Condron Family Indoor Practice Facility.
Will Levis, Richardson’s competition in college and in the draft process, hit the ceiling of Kentucky’s practice facility only six days prior. Richardson’s response: the hiccup might have been a ploy.
“I’ve seen Will Levis do it, so I decided to one-up him — put a hole through the thing,” Richardson said.
Outside of trying to throw the ball through the roof, Richardson worked to showcase his arm at the Gators’ Pro Day Thursday. He decided to only throw less than a month removed from his show-stopping performance at the 2023 National Football League Combine.
Richardson participated in the weeklong combine but had his chance to shine March 4 when he took part in the 40-yard dash, 10-yard split and vertical and broad jumps. The college highlight reel already had first round buzz, but his showing at the yearly showcase skyrocketed him to potential first overall pick value.
He earned quarterback-best figures on three of the four events with a 4.43-second 40-yard dash, a 40.5-inch vertical jump and a 129-inch broad jump.
Richardson decided to only throw at the Gators’ Pro Day following his impressive display of athleticism at the combine. He didn’t improve any athletic measurements, but his showing of arm strength likely solidified himself as a top pick.
“I feel like I delivered the ball pretty well today,” Richardson said. “Some of [the throws] weren’t as great as I wanted to be, but I feel like I threw the ball pretty well.”
The Gainesville native would beeline the ball to a slant on one play then fire it into the ceiling on the next. He looked as mobile in the pocket as advertised and ended his throwing session in dramatic fashion. Richardson bombed the ball more than 70 yards to fellow draft prospect Justin Shorter before he ran to the end zone and did a cartwheel into a backflip.
Richardson performed his last backflip Thursday, he said. He just needed to stick one after he failed to land his most recent flip at the combine.
“I feel like I’m getting older,” Richardson said. “My body won’t be able to hold up backflipping.”
While his backflipping career might be over, he hopes to showcase even more arm strength in the future. He told a team during the pre-draft process he thought he could throw for 80 yards, but the ceiling got in the way of his goal.
The 6-foot-4-inch, 244-pound quarterback confirmed he talked to at least the Carolina Panthers, Indianapolis Colts and Seattle Seahawks. Their message to him: “just be himself.”
“Just being the best version of myself,” Richardson said. “That's all they want."
The Panthers are a highly speculated draft spot for him, especially after his recent surge up draft boards.
Richardson draws easy comparisons to former Panther Cam Newton because of their similarities in size and skillset, but he doesn’t want to be the next Newton. He wants to be true to himself.
“I wore No. 15 here at the University of Florida, so a lot of people thought it was going to be hard for me to try to mimic Tebow,” Richardson said. “I didn't want to mimic Tim Tebow, I just wanted to be the best version of myself.”
With his national spotlight still growing, he doesn’t feel uncomfortable with new eyes watching him, he said. He loves the presence of new spectators because it forces him to improve his game.
He doesn’t think he’ll ever be perfect, but the attention will force him to work as hard as he can, he said.
“No butterflies for me,” Richardson said. “People been watching me my whole life, so just another day in the office.”
Richardson and his teammates felt he had three main strengths: athleticism, work ethic and leadership.
Former Florida defensive lineman Gervon Dexter Sr. wasn’t surprised by Richardson’s explosive combine performance. The two players met when Dexter was in sixth or seventh grade, and he said Richardson always had jaw-dropping athleticism.
Richardson is a natural athlete but has grown the most as a vocal leader, Dexter said.
“He’s always had that natural leadership, but he's learned to speak it,” Dexter said.
Former Gators offensive lineman O’Cyrus Torrence said Richardson is calm but assertive in huddles and boosts morale in the locker room. Richardson is also hyper-focused during difficult times, Torrence said.
He specifically thought Richardson stepped up after the Gators’ loss to the Georgia Bulldogs Oct. 29.
“The way he stepped up and took more of a leadership role than what he already had just showed he’s serious,” Torrence said. “It’s important to him and for us to really rally around him.”
Florida head coach Billy Napier recognized Richardson bet on himself when he decided to declare for the 2023 NFL Draft — a move that’ll prove to be a smart decision, he said.
Richardson was a first-year starter, and Napier said he’s inexperienced. However, Richardson’s generational physical traits, work ethic and attitude will lead to a successful NFL career, UFs head coach said.
“Somebody's gonna get a guy that's gonna be a lot of fun to coach,” Napier said.
Contact Kyle Bumpers at kbumpers@alligator.org. Follow him on Twitter @BumpersKyle.
Kyle Bumpers is a fourth-year journalism major and the sports editor of The Alligator. In his free time, he cries about Russell Wilson and writes an outrageous amount of movie reviews on Letterboxd.
