ESPN's grim ranking of Florida's QB could signal a tough year ahead. Will Aaron Philo or Tramell Jones elevate the Gators' offense against SEC defenses?
With DJ Lagway off to Baylor, new Florida head coach Jon Sumrall has a big decision to make at starting quarterback in Year 1 of his tenure in Gainesville.
Sumrall has dealt with quarterback issues before, losing star signal-caller Darian Mensah to Duke when he was at Tulane last year. Jake Retzlaff led the Green Wave to a College Football Playoff appearance in his first year as a starter.
This spring, the Gators will have a quarterback battle between redshirt freshman Tramell Jones Jr. and Aaron Philo.
Philo transferred to Florida from Georgia Tech after his offensive coordinator with the Yellow Jackets, Buster Faulkner, joined Florida under Sumrall.
Ben Connelly of ESPN is predicting Philo earns the job in the fall. He gave a troubling prediction for UF, ranking Philo as the No. 43 quarterback in the Power 4.
"Another small-sample god, Philo showed loads of potential in two years backing up Haynes King, but his only start was against Gardner-Webb; now, if he beats out a couple of four-star youngsters (namely, redshirt freshman Tramell Jones Jr.), he'll take on Georgia, Ole Miss, Texas, Oklahoma, and quite a few other high-level defenses.
"He could be great, but there are no guarantees."
Recently, Sumrall suggested Florida would have a true competition at quarterback this spring. He hasn't given the nod to Philo just yet.
"And so there's constant competition," Sumrall said. "I think you're always competing. I don't know how anybody has a leader in a clubhouse or any job, and we haven't taken a practice rep, you know.
"So I'm excited about watching all those guys compete. I think they've done a really good job competing with each other to this point, encouraging each other, challenging each other, pushing each other."
Florida needs the competition to sharpen the skills of Philo and Jones. The two quarterbacks don't appear to be scaring many teams this offseason.
Having the No. 43 quarterback is a worry for the SEC program. If Philo and Jones don't improve throughout the season under Faulkner, it could be a long campaign for the new head coach.