Danny Wuerffel Weighs in on Gators QB Battle

The battle for the starting quarterback job is underway, Florida Gators head coach Jon Sumrall has already made it clear that the decision is a ways away. However, it’s clear that for now, it’s a battle between two options: Aaon Philo and Tramell Jones Jr.

Lurking in the background is incoming four-star freshman Will Griffin. However, he’s not considered a serious candidate at this time compared to his slightly more experienced peers.

Philo followed over Buster Faulkner from Georgia Tech, while Jones, a Billy Napier recruit, stuck around during the regime chance at Florida.

Certainty would be preferred. Last year, it was all DJ Lagway. There was no debate. Sumrall doesn’t have that luxury, nor did he seem to keen to keep that certainty around.

While the certainty would be nice, there can be some benefit to there being a quarterback battle.

“Well, one, you want to have depth,” because of the chances of one person at any position making it the whole,“ former Florida Gators national championship-winning quarterback and Heisman Trophy winner, Danny Wuerffel said. “So when you have two people who seem to be neck and neck, or if there’s a third that’s kind of in the mix, you’ve got some hope and options that, despite injuries, you can continue to be productive.”

It wasn’t that long ago that the Gators had an example of what happens when the depth isn’t there. Back in 2024, Graham Mertz went down, and Napier was able to turn to DJ Lagway.

Once Lagway, once he left a game early and needed an extra Saturday to recover, the next option was Aidan Warner. While he was able to game-manage his way through the Georgia game, it was a nightmare over in Austin against Texas.

Unlike then, that’s when an option like Griffin comes into play. He’s fresh to college scene, but can be an extra vote of confidence when the option is a blue-chip recruit instead of a walk-on.

Normally, the old saying is that if you have two quarterbacks, you have none. The mindset here instead is the more options the better.

Each option, Philo and Jones specifically, have different traits that help themselves standout individually as they duke it out.

“Aaron brings the experience of this offense and just sort of that comfortability with it - just kind of has the advantage on that front,” Wuerffel said. “But, you know, Tramell has such a gifted arm talent - displayed in the spring game - and almost every day at practice and commits tremendous throws.”

Wuerffel felt because of the experience with Faulkner’s offense has an advantage. However, he by no means could count Jones out.

“If Tramell can beat him out, then even better,” he said. “Like, it’s a really good position.”

It’s a battle of relative raw talent and relative experience.

One was a three-star coming out of high school, Philo, and the other was a four-star, Jones.

Philo saw action in eight games while backing up Haynes King in Atlanta. He completed 57.8% of his passes for 938 yards and two touchdowns to three interceptions.

Most of his snaps came back in 2024. He only threw a pass in one game during the 2025 season. He completed 21 of 28 and threw for 378 yards and one touchdown to one interception against Gardner-Webb.

Jones, on the other hand, has seen action in two halves of a football game. One of those halves came in a week one tune-up game against Long Island University. The other came in the second half against Kentucky in a mop-up role.

In those two games, he completed 60% of his passes for 192 yards and two touchdowns to no interceptions. Both scores were against Long Island.

To throw Griffin a bone in this conversation, he’s brand new. Question marks are everywhere.

The aforementioned spring game didn’t do much to break the tie. Both put on strong performances. Both have a track record of poise when lining up under center.

When Sumrall said he may know five minutes before anybody else who the winner is, believe him when he says it.

It’s logical to predict that Philo gets the nod first, but Sumrall is wise to retain the mindset that even after a decision is made, no job is safe. When it’s this close, it means the confidence is similar. It can also mean the leash is shorter.

Who the quarterback could be has proven to be a top storyline of the offseason, and don’t be surprised if it pushes well into the actual season.

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