What Would Landing QB Jaden Rashada Mean for the Gators?

If the Florida Gators are able to land quarterback Jaden Rashada, what would that mean for the future of football, recruiting and the program as a whole?

By any means necessary.

The Florida Gators' race for top-tier signal-caller Jaden Rashada has heated up exponentially in the past seven days as we’ve entered his commitment month.

Serving as a transcendent talent at the most crucial position in football, Rashada gives Billy Napier and the new Gators staff their first opportunity to expedite the full program reconstruction needed to escape the constant cycle of mediocrity over the last decade.

Landing the big-armed passer would mean more than just a massive addition to the on-field personnel, but it would give Florida a significant boost in the talent acquisition department as well.

Not to overstate it, but a pledge from Rashada could serve as a crucial turning point.

The highly sought-after Pittsburg (Calif.) quarterback will begin an official visit to the University of Florida on Tuesday. It stands as the Gators' last attempt to lure in a program-altering piece to the puzzle and the last visit he will take before a commitment decision is made on June 18.

Battling against the likes of Texas A&M, LSU, Ole Miss, Miami and Cal for his services, Florida has positioned itself in a favorable spot. Being given the last face-to-face encounter with him and his family before he announces is a huge opportunity that they cannot squander.

With the process winding down for the recruit of utmost importance in 2023, AllGators examines what the monumental acquisition of Rashada would mean for the Gators program from the football and recruiting perspectives.

Football

The talents Rashada brings to the gridiron are undeniable.

Standing at 6-foot-4, 185 pounds, the California native is equipped with a towering frame prototypical for a quarterback in the modern game.

Displaying an abundance of arm talent and poise in the pocket, Rashada is able to consistently deliver accurate throws to his wideouts. He understands when to put extra zip on the ball to squeeze through tight windows and when to finesse throws through the defense.

Rashada complements his talents as a passer with the mobility to escape pressure, make off-platform throws downfield and scamper downfield for positive gains when needed. Footwork to maneuver the pocket will be an area he needs to refine when he arrives at his new home.

However, he perfectly fits the mold of quarterback prospects Napier will target at Florida this year and beyond.

That alone makes him a high-priority target for the Gators this cycle.

When factoring in what the quarterback room looks like when he would step into the mix, high-priority turns into an essential requirement.

Currently, the Gators enter the first season with potential star Anthony Richardson unrivaled at the helm. Producing at a high level in the sparing time he saw the field last season — due to a mixture of injuries and the evident desire to reward Emory Jones for a prolonged grooming period — Richardson enters the 2022 season with high expectations.

The weight of elevating Florida back to a respectable record largely rests on his shoulders as a playmaker on the ground and through the air.

However, if he has the breakout year many expect him to in year one under Napier, Richardson could find himself in the mix of quarterbacks with a first-round draft grade following the season.

The lack of quarterback talent in the 2022 NFL Draft projects to issue in a run on quarterbacks early on in the 2023 class.

Pairing freakish athleticism with evident refinements to his toolkit as a passer in 2022, Richardson could find himself out of the door after just one year as a full-time starter in the Gators system.

He’d reap the rewards from that run on quarterbacks.

While the quarterback situation may be taken care of for UF right now, the future of the most integral part of a team's success is uncertain going into the future.

Behind Richardson is Ohio State transfer Jack Miller III, redshirt freshman Jalen Kitna and true freshman Max Brown.

Although there is some room for growth from all three, the overwhelming opinion is that none of the three are equipped at the moment to assume a starting role anytime soon.

The case was backed up by underwhelming performances from Miller and Kitna in the spring game.

Brown arrived following the spring, but was taken as a project piece at the end of the 2022 cycle to fill the need at QB in the class. It will be a while before he reaches game-ready status as a result.

That makes the already polished Rashada the heir to Richardson’s throne if he chooses UF. He creates a near-seamless transition without any significant drop-off in play at the offense’s most important spot.

Not only does that give Florida the luxury of having an uber-talented piece to step into the fold and compete for the starting job immediately, but gives Rashada the potential to receive early playing time in his collegiate career.

Being able to sell that could give the Gators a leg up on others in contention for his services.

Recruiting

While on-field success trumps that of recruiting success, Florida fans have learned that a happy balance between the two is the recipe for sustained success.

Witnessing the Mullen era of Florida football was an all-gas, no brakes affair that burnt out after a hastily built foundation in year one.

Mullen was no stranger to utilizing what he had at his disposal.

Taking over a 4-7 team from Jim McElwain following an abysmal 2017 campaign, Mullen made quick work to turn around and win 10 games in year one of his duties as the Gators head man. Excelling with the players he inherited, Mullen put recruiting on the back burner as he looked to out-scheme the opposition.

It worked initially, giving Florida some of the most consistent success they had witnessed offensively since the last time Mullen walked the street in Gainesville and in their record. He returned the program to the SEC Championship game on the back of a historically dominant air attack anchored by the likes of Kyle Trask, Kyle Pitts, Kadarius Toney and others.

However, leading up to and during that SEC Championship game, the wheels had begun to fall off due to an evident talent gap against some of the league’s powerhouses.

Mullen talked about how they lost the battle in the trenches and the only way to win games like that would be to retool the lines with increased talent. No plan for action was created.

Neglecting the integral aspect of recruiting — content with pulling in middle-of-the-pack classes each year with no real plan for improvement — Mullen and Co. saw the product saw steeply decline in 2021.

The talent gap, lack of generational offensive talent and the same undisciplined unit resulted in the Gators completely spinning out in 2021, losing seven total contests.

As a result, Billy Napier was hired to replace Mullen at the top of the Gators program, looking to rekindle similar success on the field while providing sustainability by hauling in consistent talent off of it.

His first mission to expedite that process would be landing a player the caliber of Rashada at the quarterback spot. It may be a larger impact on recruiting than football, at least in the short term.

We have seen that reality play out recently.

SEC East foe Tennessee is an example of that blueprint.

Since landing quarterback Nico Iamaleava, the Vols have seemingly taken their recruitment efforts to the next level, contending for some of the nation’s top-tier athletes as a result.

Drawing considerable interest from IMG Academy wide receiver Carnell Tate and offensive lineman Francis Mauigoa, for example, the Volunteers are rolling under Josh Heupel as he enters year two as head coach.

While the situations are different due to the sample size he presented a season ago for the work he’s able to accomplish — especially offensively — the retort for rebuilding is the same for Florida.

Rashada would immediately attract talented skill position players and trench monsters to UF to play alongside him. He provides fellow recruits with the hope that if they continue their playing career at Florida, not only will they be developed at a high standard but the results on the field will be favorable as well.

Obviously, outside factors like NIL and relationships with coaches and personnel will play factors as well, but Rashada’s presence plays a role in getting a foot in the door for top recruits looking to continue their career with a fellow highly regarded prospect who they trust to let them shine.

Overall, it gets the ball rolling in a big way to begin drawing interest and even commitments from other high-caliber prospects in the near future.

Final Thoughts

As a staff that has stressed the importance of closing on the top players in the nation — especially at a position as crucial as quarterback — landing Rashada backs up the words that have provided comfort to Gator fans awaiting results on the new era of Florida football.

It shows that Napier and Co. are willing to put their money where their mouth is when it comes to drawing the best back to the University of Florida.

It’s an all-hands-on-deck approach that will require the best everyone in the building has to offer to show Rashada that Florida is the best possible destination for his short-term and long-term goals as a player and person.

If the Gators are able to land a commitment from one of the nation’s top quarterback prospects and establish their cornerstone of the 2023 class, the program will endure rapid changes for the better in every regard.

Simply put, Florida would take a giant leap forward in its mission to ascend back to the top of the college football world, no matter the lens you choose to view it through.

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