Florida Gators 2022 Positional Outlook: Quarterback
Billy Napier's first offseason in charge of Florida Gators football is sure to be a busy and exciting one.
With roster reconstruction already underway via recruiting and the transfer portal, the next step in preparing for his first season as Florida's head coach will focus on identifying and developing talent already on the roster, and determining how to use it best in 2022.
In order to best preview the Gators' upcoming spring camp and the season to come, AllGators is taking a look at each position on the roster to recognize the strengths and weaknesses at each spot, as well as put together early projections of individual depth charts.
Naturally, we'll start with the most important position in football: Quarterback.
Gators 2022 quarterback outlook
The Gators' quarterback room was expected to undergo significant change this offseason, pairing additions and departures to result in a full-blown makeover at the position.
One aspect of the expectation came to fruition, while the other did not, at least yet.
Florida has added passers to the room in Ohio State transfer Jack Miller III and Lincoln Christian (Okla.) 2022 recruit Max Brown. Part of Napier's initial plan to rebuild the Gators roster was to immediately bring in two new quarterbacks, and he managed to pull the task off within two roughly months on the job.
What did not happen, however, were any departures. ESPN's Pete Thamel reported in December that 2021 starter Emory Jones planned to enter the transfer portal following the conclusion of the season, but Jones seems to have had a change of heart, and he remains with the program to this day and is a part of the team's plans moving forward, according to Napier.
"Emory’s here, in class, he’s participating. He’s done a fantastic job with all the things we’ve asked him to do," Napier said of Jones in January. "I would hope our fans and all the people out there would understand what a big deal that is. This is a guy who is a class act. It’s been very impressive to me the caliber of person that he is. He’s managed a very difficult situation well.
"And anything that happened in the past, it’s important for not only the players, but all the people that care about the University of Florida, that care about our football program, to kind of separate those things. This staff has given each one of these players a new beginning, kind of a fresh start. I think it’s important our fans do that."
Jones had a disappointing first season as Florida's starting quarterback in 2021, tossing 13 interceptions to go with his 2,734 yards and 19 touchdowns through the air. To give Jones some credit, he added 759 yards and four touchdowns on the ground, serving as a pivotal member of UF's rushing attack.
All the while, his backup, Anthony Richardson, was awarded playing time on occasion and even a start against Georgia in Jones' place amid the veteran's struggles.
While Richardson never looked like a finished product, his ability to make huge plays through the air and on the ground was shown, especially in the comeback attempt at LSU where he scored four total second-half touchdowns. This gave Florida fans plenty of hope for the future so long as that future included Richardson taking over as the starter in 2022.
Richardson finished the campaign averaging an impressive 8.4 yards per throw and 7.9 yards per rush, passing for 529 yards, six touchdowns and five interceptions and rushing for 401 yards and three scores. His arm power and speed for a 6-foot-4, 236-pound passer, having reached 21 miles per hour on a rushing touchdown against USF, are intriguing as it gets for a player at his position.
His season was cut slightly short, however, as a lingering, minor meniscus injury turned serious in the regular-season finale vs. FSU, leading to surgery before the Gasparilla Bowl in December.
Due to the procedure and his recovery timeline, Richardson is not expected to practice much, if at all, come spring camp. The thought is that Richardson will be able to ramp up his work and participate when fall camp rolls around.
Miller, meanwhile, was a consensus four-star recruit coming out of high school and plays with both poise and decisiveness in the pocket. He may not offer the athletic traits that Jones and Richardson do, but he has the arm talent and seemingly the football IQ to make a push to start at Florida following two years of development at Ohio State.
As things stand, Richardson, Jones and Miller are the candidates to compete for Florida's starting quarterback role in 2022. Jones and Miller could have a leg up on Richardson as they will practice this spring and will be able to learn Napier's offensive system through camp with actual reps.
But, will talent — which Richardson possesses the most of — prevail when it comes time for Napier to create his 2022 depth chart at the position?
Early 2022 depth chart projection
Starter: Anthony Richardson (rising redshirt sophomore)
Key backup: Jack Miller III (rising redshirt sophomore) and/or Emory Jones (rising redshirt senior)
Reserves: Jalen Kitna (rising redshirt freshman), Carlos Del-Rio (rising redshirt freshman) and Max Brown (rising freshman)
Even though the depth chart isn't likely to look like this in spring, Richardson is widely expected to take the reins for the Gators' offense once he has fully recovered from his knee procedure.
Now, this could certainly change if Jones and/or Miller shine in spring camp, and it's worth noting that Napier has offered every player on the roster a clean slate to prove their worth moving forward instead of depending on film from 2021 or narratives that have been crafted previously regarding specific players.
Napier does not owe Richardson the starting role, even though he exited the 2021 season as a clear favorite to take over thanks to his flashes of excellence paired with Jones' inconsistencies.
But from a pure talent perspective, it's hard to look at UF's quarterback room as it stands and not believe that Richardson is the favorite to start in Week 1.
AllGators would expect at least one quarterback to leave the program via transfer once spring camp is complete. It is far from likely that the Gators will carry six signal-callers into the 2022 season.
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