Having a true duel threat QB that is willing to run would give us a punchers chance against Utah. Have him ready for some series and let’s see what happens.
Gators to Hire Ron Roberts as LB Coach, Co-Defensive Coordinator ?
- Thread starter Jeff from Jax
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I am glad Toney is gone. He had players almost as confused as 3rd and Grantham in many passing situations. Luckily he headed to the NFL and we aren't stuck with him.
We won't have 3 losses going into the McNeese game. That is his likely first few snaps unless he gives him a series at the end against Charlotte. Depending on the status of Engel possibly.
Should Billy Napier follow other SEC head coaches and stop calling plays?
Lane Kiffin, Eli Drinkwitz, Hugh Freeze and even Jimbo Fisher are relinquishing play-calling duties. Not Billy Napier. Is that a good thing or bad thing for the Gators?
www.saturdaydownsouth.com
I swear, why does anyone worry about recruiting?
Put Max Brown at DT and that athletic savant will have 110 tackles and 22 sacks.
Cornerback? Please. Ain't nobody catching a pass against him and I hope they're ready for his 11 interceptions.
Wildcat packages? What is this? 2006? Just line his ass up in the backfield with Metz and gadget play every down. He'll rush for 1200 yards off of pure Oklahoma 3A talent alone.
And don't get me started on punt returns. Brandon James? Percy Harvin? Riff raff if you ask me. Max Brown would never let a block in the back call get in his way.
And while he's at it, he can throw a 99 yard touchdown pass, run over to the baseball stadium, hit a grand slam, and be back in time to sing the fight song.
Meanwhile I guess Napier is just being an old curmudgeon who doesn't know the difference between a forward pass and a burrito.
Christ.
Also, certain people around here are working extra hard to find things to complain about in recruiting. Because they don't know what to do if they can't complain about recruiting.
Because recruiting is going pretty poorly, amirite?
Put Max Brown at DT and that athletic savant will have 110 tackles and 22 sacks.
Cornerback? Please. Ain't nobody catching a pass against him and I hope they're ready for his 11 interceptions.
Wildcat packages? What is this? 2006? Just line his ass up in the backfield with Metz and gadget play every down. He'll rush for 1200 yards off of pure Oklahoma 3A talent alone.
And don't get me started on punt returns. Brandon James? Percy Harvin? Riff raff if you ask me. Max Brown would never let a block in the back call get in his way.
And while he's at it, he can throw a 99 yard touchdown pass, run over to the baseball stadium, hit a grand slam, and be back in time to sing the fight song.
Meanwhile I guess Napier is just being an old curmudgeon who doesn't know the difference between a forward pass and a burrito.
Christ.
Also, certain people around here are working extra hard to find things to complain about in recruiting. Because they don't know what to do if they can't complain about recruiting.
Because recruiting is going pretty poorly, amirite?
I want Sully fired immediately for not utilizing him on the diamond this year.
Danny,
Recruiting the lifeblood of any CFB program.
It's also talking season !
What do you expect us to do ?
Follow your example & just sit around & drink adult beverages ?
"Everyone loves the backup quarterback.
He has all the promise of an all-pro player without ever actually having to demonstrate it on the field. It is the blessing and curse of being second string."
The reason for all the talk about Max Brown is simple -
very few posters on this, or any other UF board, believe either Mertz or Miller are SEC capable QB1s.
We are looking / hoping for another viable option to emerge at QB1 that might help us to actually
WIN FOOTBALL GAMES - THIS YEAR.
Mertz has never taken the field - in an official game - as a Gator. His play (& Miller's) in the O&B Game was pitiful.
Miller in his one start - The Las Vegas Bowl - was even worse.
I realize that he kept our fabulous scoring streak alive & for you, Danny, that was enough,
The rest of us actually wanted to win that game & finish above .500 for CBN's first season - to help in recruiting.
Hope this resolves your confusion.
If not, just drink a lot more & entertain us with your clever sarcasm.
I think this narrative about Mertz’s performance in the spring game has become a bit of a problem and overblown people want to hate on the kid just because he was average at Wisconsin. Do you know Mertz’s QB rating at Wiscy last year was better than ARs this past season? I’m not sure why people just can’t wait to see how he does in a UF uniform in an actual game and then make judgements. I get we are fans and this is what fans do is make assumptions or predictions. But we have no idea how this team will do this year just based off a spring game.
Mertz was 18-29 for 244 yards and a TD and 0 interceptions. That’s a pretty decent stat line that can win you games. If he does that in games this year we will win a lot more than 5-6 games assuming our defense takes a step forward like expected. We will miss ARs explosive plays but if you go back and watch his film from last year for the most part he couldn’t hit the broad side of a barn, especially when it came to short and intermediate throws his accuracy got worse.
With that being said I don’t put a heck of a lot of stock in spring games as it is but I will make this very clear. Max Brown is not better than Mertz.
Paco,
Other than his O&B game performance, what else do we have to judge Mertz by ?
If Mertz was a good, multi year starter at QB1 for Wisconsin,
why did he enter the Portal & leave ?
Why didn't Luke Fickell try to keep him ?
CBN has yet to name his QB1. It could be either Mertz or Miller.
In Miller's case we have TWO pitiful spring games & the Las Vegas Bowl to judge him on - No Thanks !
Scoring 10 points against our defense (last in the SEC) won't win any games in the SEC !
Obviously, having a better QB Rating than AR doesn't mean very much does it ?
Curious, what will CBN base his choice for QB1 on ?
What else is there to go on ?
Fall practice & another, less controlled scrimmage or two ?
Respect your opinion; don't agree.
If that were true,
Why didn't Fickell try to keep talented, multi year, QB1 starter Mertz at Wisconsin ?
I just posted the stats for Mertz’s spring game. They were better than average. Mertz entered the portal because he didn’t want to play in Wisconsin’s offense. He’s had 3 different offensive coordinators at Wisconsin. They were Paul Chryst, Joe Rudolph and Bobby Engram.He was done with it at that point.
Fickell did want to keep him around
“Had lots of conversations with Graham,” said Fickell, who was driving to Chicago during the call. “Had some conversations with his family as well. It is a tough situation and he knows that.
“We want nothing but the best for him… Encouraged him to stick around here to wait and see how the changes go. But I think at some point in time some of those guys feel like that’s something they need to do. “That’s not what I encouraged him to do. But I also respect that and we’ve got to continue to move forward in all that we’re doing.” I think you need to look at Wiscy’s QB situation without Mertz. I know about it but I will let you do a little homework and see if you can find some info on it. Fickell certainly wanted to keep him around.
And no Max Brown isn’t better than Mertz. Not even close.
You are generally a good poster but if you are going to challenge my thoughts, etc. I would appreciate it if you did your homework on why Mertz left Wiscy because you obviously didn’t know why. You likely need to do some more research on Max Brown. But I understand that is difficult since we don’t have a lot of intel in him, etc. But I do know how Max Brown did in spring practices and unfortunately it wasn’t better than Miller or Mertz.
Now I don’t think Mertz is some great QB but I do think he deserves a chance as well. I just posted facts about the Mertz situation, etc. regardless if you think he is any good or not those are the facts.
I see your point but his stat line was one when you watch what was happening in the spring game the performance didn't look as good as the stats. It sounds like he is a real hard worker but I think we went and got a QB that doesn't have much of a chance to elevate this team though he is probably an upgrade over Miller. I wasn't a big AR fan as a passer either but he did bring that 55 yards a game or so rushing. What starting QB in the SEC would you take Mertz over them? Don't know much about the Vandy one and you have to consider what he has around him. Missouri's QB is about the only one I would have to think about it. I would even take that Mich State transfer at Auburn from the few times I watched him play. Of course having said all that I hope he proves us wrong and we go 8-4 or better.
May I ask how his performance didn’t look as good as the stats? Considering he was behind an oline with 2-3 starters out and Austin Armstrong blitzing on just about every play and putting pressure on the QB everytime they stepped back to throw. I actually think the opposite. I’m surprised Napier allowed Armstrong to do what he did in the spring game. You generally don’t see blitzing in spring games. Certainly not to the degree that Armstrong was doing it. But I also think it was part of the plan for the spring game.
And at no point have I said that Mertz is good but I do wish some people would at least do some homework first. That’s all I’m saying.
Unfortunately there wasn’t a lot of good options for portal QBs. I mean look who Bama ended up with & Hartman was always going to ND. Mertz wasn’t our first option. Our first option decided to stay where he was at.
And I know people on this board want to wish it to be true or convinced that Max Brown is some hidden gem but as much as people want it to happen again he’s not the next Kyle Trask.
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It looked like in real game situations we will probably get the same without much scoring. He gives that same appearance in most of the Wisconsin games. There were some options if we were willing to do it. That QB at KY on the Gators would likely get us an 8-4 record imo and if we lose to them again will likely be the difference in the game. I think that OK State QB who may end up 3rd string at Ole Miss was a better option also.
IMO, NO
Fickell favors a DT QB; Mertz NOT a runner.
"...
MADISON – Luke Fickell’s hiring likely will affect Wisconsin’s quarterbacks more than any other position group on the team.
Fickell, Cincinnati’s head coach for the last six seasons, prefers to recruit and develop dual-threat quarterbacks.
Desmond Ridder started 48 games in four seasons at Cincinnati from 2018-21. He passed for 10,239 yards and 87 touchdowns but also rushed for 2,180 yards and 28 touchdowns."
Wisconsin (under Mertz) struggled to find a rhythm offensively this season, particularly through the air. The Badgers ranked 76th in scoring offense (26.3 points per game) in the FBS and 115th in passing yards per game (183.8).
Mordecai, who also began his college career at Oklahoma, has spent the last two seasons with the Mustangs. Over 24 games, he’s thrown for 7,152 yards and 72 touchdown passes. He was a second-team All-AAC selection in 2021, and was named a semifinalist for the Davey O’Brien Award this season.
In three seasons, Mertz has 5,405 passing yards with 38 touchdowns and 26 interceptions, going 19-13 as Wisconsin's starting quarterback.
The Badgers are expected to land SMU transfer Tanner Mordecai, according to ESPN’s Adam Rittenberg. Once enrolled, Mordecai would be the second quarterback to transfer to Wisconsin, following Oklahoma’s Nick Evers.
It’s official. SMU Mustangs transfer quarterback Tanner Mordecai is transferring to the Wisconsin Badgers, adding to an already deep quarterback room for 2023 that just fielded Oklahoma transfer Nick Evers recently.
With Mordecai, the Badgers now have five scholarship quarterbacks for 2023: Mordecai, Evers, Myles Burkett, Chase Wolf, and Cole LaCrue.
https://www.buckys5thquarter.com/20...-smu-transfer-qb-tanner-mordecai-luke-fickell
Evers originally committed to Florida before deciding to flip to Oklahoma.
https://badgerswire.usatoday.com/lists/breaking-wisconsin-lands-former-four-star-qb-nick-evers/
"...I think you need to look at Wiscy’s QB situation without Mertz. I know about it but I will let you do a little homework and see if you can find some info on it. Fickell certainly wanted to keep him around." - Paco
Most likely scenario - Conversations between Wisconsin & Fickell were ongoing for weeks before his hiring was announced - contracts like this take time to negotiate.
Fickell was already talking to potential QB transfers before he was announced as Wisconsin HFC.
May not have been as classless as Deion Sanders at Colorado,
BUT
Say what you want, Fickell didn't want Mertz & made no effort to keep him - already had two QBs inbound via Xfer Portal.
Dates are for announcements; not when agreements were reached.
Nov 19th Mertz announces Xfer on social media.
Nov 27, 2022 Fickell announced as new Wisconsin HFC.
DEC 4, 2022 Mertz enters Xfer Porta
Dec 17, 2022 Evers announces transfer to Wisconsin
Dec 30, 2022 Mordecai announces transfer to Wisconsin
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If the QB on Kentucky can throw a pass like he used too. I was not a fan of taking Leary due to his shoulder injury and him missing spring practice. I think it was probably too risky for Napier to take a chance on him.
I can live with it this season I just hope we don't waste a good 2024 roster by not getting a proven one year rental QB.
And I agree that Leary is certainly more talented and a better QB but his injury makes me very nervous.
It would be illegal for Fickell to have conversations about potential transfers to Wisky before actually being the head coach. So no, that did not happen. Contract negotiations these days go fast. Can't tamper with an existing head coach without permission from his current employer. Fickel would not kick to the curb a 3 year big 10 starter with a winning record. Now would Mertz be the long term answer? Probably not. I agree that at his best Mertz will most likely be average. Brown looked lost in the OB game. I agree with Paco, this Mertz bashing and Brown gushing are silly at this point and devoid of true factual merits. We shall see what happens this upcoming season.
Looking at what Max did as a Jr/Sr in HS (70+% in both of his only 2 years of organized football) and what he did his Sr year while being awarded the OK 3A MVP, 61 TD's to 4 TO's, I won't be surprised Jeff.... 😉
=====
Why did Brown not make solid progress as a QB in 2022 and Spring of 2023?
The iG says it was from a lack of attention and coaching. It was so bad imo, that Max asked O'Sul and Billy to let him walk-on the baseball team....
Mertz, formerly a three-year starter for Wisconsin, and Miller, a 2022 Ohio State transfer and seasoned backup who started in place of Richardson for Florida's 2022 Las Vegas Bowl appearance, split first-team reps from day one of spring camp through the final, open scrimmage on April 13. >>> (while Max was mostly ignored, leading to him looking lost in the O#B game as anyone with a brain would expect) 🙄
The iG's 2023 football nightmare.....
"The ability to command the respect of those around them remains at the forefront of the (QB) evaluation,,,," Mertz has over 2,000 snaps, 32 starts, going 19-13) with 26 Ints while giving up 49 sacks..... His know-how, in and of itself, is a leadership quality 😂, one that Napier has (overly imo) praised Mertz for since his January arrival in Gainesville, (to the detriment of Brown's progress).
Can't run and he's a 50/50 throwing the ball, but he's a great experienced loser leader. All he has to do is hand ball to the RB's, with the OL plowing a hole thru a loaded box, and they're good to go,,, (= 5-7)..... 🤓
But this quote is giving the iG some hope for 2023 still...
"but Napier expanded on what he will look for from Florida's eventual QB1 when the Gators re-take the practice field. >>> I think you’ve gotta keep it simple from a football standpoint," Napier said. "You want to execute the plan. Move the team. Score points. (Miller 3-30 -- Mertz + Miller 17 total Pts)
"Experience seemingly provides Mertz and Miller an advantage over the younger Brown, who played baseball for UF during the spring in addition to football responsibilities. But Napier made note of the stamp Brown has left on the competition in an elevated role compared to his redshirt season. Max, I’ve really been pleased with the summer he’s had. He’s made an impression on our staff and the other players."
"I think recruiting works best when there’s opportunity to compete. You’re very aware of the situation at your position. We take that approach with every player (BS at QB so far in the iG oho). Got to earn it. That’s how you have a healthy culture in the locker room. Those guys will go between the lines and we’ll start distributing the reps (finally) and we’ll see where that takes us.” (hooray and about time...)
The iG's WAG / Wish List for the QB depth chart vs Utah:
Brown - Mertz - Miller - Leise - Leon
Giving the receivers something to hope for, and the RB's some help/relief, and to look forward to.
If Brown can't get it done when finally given a real, true, fair chance, then imoho, they/we are pukered for 2023....
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www.si.com
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Better yet guys, have him ready to be the SURPRISE and unprepared for starter, and run/pass stuff the ball right down the LAC-12 Chump's throats.... 🤓
I agree wholeheartedly! If we’re not moving the ball by all means put him in. If nothing else we’ll know more about what we have (or haven’t) got going into the SEC schedule. Think about this also, so guy are game time players but perform poorly in practice.
Yep Nick, Danny Wonderful was not really a solid 'practice player' but when the light came on.....
However, Max has not done poorly in practice, he just hasn't been given the 1'st team rep coaching time yet. We don't even know on his practice or his playing at UF yet, and imo, it's long past time to find out!
Florida OL Kiyaunta Goodwin no longer with program due to family hardship
Kiyaunta Goodwin transferred to Florida prior to spring practices this year
247sports.com
Florida OL Kiyaunta Goodwin no longer with program due to family hardship
Kiyaunta Goodwin transferred to Florida prior to spring practices this year
Damn, unfortunate for him and the Gators. His mom got cancer right? Can't imagine going through that.
Hard to judge in a spring game, probably the worst judgement anyone could make on a QB imo. However, my counter would be, I've never really seen Mertz be really good. He gets sacked a lot and can't really scramble. Now maybe that's Wisconsins offense but I just don't see it with Mertz. I would be surprised if he was the starter at the end of the season. Hopefully it works out and he plays above his ability and he makes it work.
Mertz was a pretty big time recruit and he is a better athlete than you think. He’s got a big arm and he can move a little bit. He started a ton of games in the second best conference in the country and has played in plenty of big time environments. Also, everyone will tell you that Chryst’s offense is TERRIBLE for qbs. Passing game is a complete afterthought. So I don’t think it’s impossible that he can come in here and run/manage a competitive offense. We’ll need a running game and defense.
And I’m all for a package for Brown where we threaten the qb run some. And by all means if he makes plays, let him play. I’m sure CBN is plenty motivated to move the ball and will play the guys he thinks give him the best chance to do it.
No, No, No…don’t you dare fall in to the fallacy trap you are being lured into…
In 2020, Florida was ranked #4 and damn near beat Alabama in the SEC title game and was doing just fine in 2021 before Mullen decided to quit and mail it in…
The “poor” overall condition of (and lack of talent within) our program after Mullen is being WAY overblown by those who want to make excuses for failure now…or who want to recklessly and incorrectly paint Mullen as some irresponsible villian…
The same people bemoaning the “terrible”condition of and lack of talent in Florida’s program are the same people touting the fact the we went to 3 NY6 bowls while Mullen was here…
hmmmmm?
Unfortunately it isn’t that black and white. Do I think this should be some long rebuild? No, but this program isn’t in some quick turnaround where we are winning the SEC or competing for a playoff spot in year 2 either. Meyer and Spurrier are Hall of Fame coaches and even they wouldn’t be wining the SEC or competing for a playoff spot with this UF team in their 2nd year. Talent isn’t as good as they inherited and well the SEC East is much tougher because of well UGA unfortunately. When Spurrier and Meyer took over there was nobody in the SEC then as strong or loaded as these UGA and Bama teams. Spurrier took over a very talented team. He said so himself and well we know Meyer inherited a pretty damn good roster that Zook recruited. Unfortunately Mullen who is a good X’s and O’s coach has probably been the worse recruiter that UF has had in decades. You’d have to go back pretty far to find a head coach who recruited as poorly as he did and had poor roster management. Mullen’s roster management reminded me of Mike White’s. Just bad. Even McElwain recruited better. No the lack of talent isn’t way overblown. It really was one of the least talented teams UF has had in decades. Even those bad Muschamp & McElwain teams had more talent. Again do I think this should be some long rebuild? No! But the lack of talent and lack of speed on last years team is not overblown. Most of our best players on last years team were kids that Napier brought in. (Montrell Johnson, Etienne, Pearsall, O’Cyrus Torrence) That should tell you something. In year 1 with a new coach that really shouldn’t be happening.
I hate to make my post even longer but they say timing is everything. I’ve been a UF fan and college football fan since 1982. The SEC has always been pretty tough but this is the toughest it has ever been IMO. Do you disagree?? Not to mention now you’re adding Texas and Oklahoma.
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Agree that we are generally behind in talent of the upper teams in the league and that the SEC is stronger overall than it has been in years…
But if we have a losing record this year (2023), that is 3 in a row…next year (2024) it could be 4…looking at the schedule and roster development, it is being reasonably suggested that we will have a worse season next year…that would be the absolute nadir for this football program in the modern era (or at least since 1979).
There is also no excuse for losing to (or being behind) Vandy, South Carolina, and really UK…
In today’s portal and nil world, sadgator refuses to accept that for Florida under any circumstances.
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Florida OL Kiyaunta Goodwin no longer with program due to family hardship
Kiyaunta Goodwin transferred to Florida prior to spring practices this year
A buddy of mine texted me about this last night. Goodwin hasn’t exactly had the most stable upbringing, and his mom has been his anchor. Sorry to hear this as I know this is a loss for the Gators.
On the UK board, some posters are wondering if he’ll come back to UK, but the prevailing sentiment is that he’ll end up at Louisville. Best of luck to him,
You make some good points and people acting like a coach should be given 4 years to even go 8-4 at a place like UF are accepting failure. Year 2 in a rebuild is one thing but going 6-6/7-5 pre-bowl in year 3 is another. As far as coaches in modern times that went on to be an SEC championship or national championship level coach I think Dabo probably took the longest to show something and he even went 10-3 pre-bowl I think in his 3rd full season. And no UF coach in over 50 years didn't have an 8 win+ season in their first few years.
As far as refusal to accept, what does that mean? What are we going to do about it? I agree it’s unacceptable to be looking up at UK, USC jr, and even freaking Vanderbilt, but you can’t pin all that on CBN. Program was in terrible shape when he took over and then add NIL, free agency, and an absurdly competitive SEC.
I think everyone in the SEC is going to have to adjust expectations. When Tx and OK come in, an 8-win season is going to be a good season.
I think everyone in the SEC is going to have to adjust expectations. When Tx and OK come in, an 8-win season is going to be a good season.
Except for UGA this yr who us playing something worse than a pac 12 /AAC schedule. God I hate them
Beyond all of the above and I agree with a lot of the sentiment that at UF you should win and have a sustainable program - if you are only going to hire the next Saban or Smart...might as well stop playing football.
Setting things up so that if you aren't 12-1 in year two is beyond insane - almost no coach pulls that off. Fewer than that are the ones that can do so and then maintain it over time.
Hell - it was guys with these attitudes that ran Spurrier off.
8-4 won't be a good season for us. Even with that bloodbath schedule it would take 9-3 for a good year imo. Teams like KY will have a hard time pulling a 5-3 SEC season any longer though since they won't be protected by being in the East. A 9 game SEC schedule would make less 8-4 teams for sure though.
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