The Florida Gators are coming off a 5-7 season, and head coach Billy Napier is 11-14 through two seasons. Although the results haven’t been inspiring, super-super senior quarterback Graham Mertz feels change could be right around the corner for the Gators.
“I think the Gator fans are gonna like what they see,” Mertz recently said at the Manning Passing Academy (h/t On3). “I mean, I think we’ve got depth. Added a bunch of new guys on both sides of the ball. Experienced guys. But, across the board, the amount of depth we have, it’s different than last year.”
Depth is certainly key, especially in a conference like the SEC. Keep in mind, Texas and Oklahoma have joined the already-stacked conference, and Florida’s 2024 schedule does feature the Longhorns in early November.
In fact, Florida’s schedule looks to be quite the gauntlet with Miami in Week 1, Texas A&M in Week 3 and away games at Mississippi State, Tennessee, Texas and Florida State. The Gators also play Kirby Smart and the always-dangerous Georgia Bulldogs in “The World’s Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party” on Nov. 2.
That’s a tough schedule, and only half of it was mentioned. Mertz doesn’t seem concerned, though.
“I’m always optimistic about every season but I think we’ve got a special team,” he said.
Last season was Mertz’s first at Florida after he spent four at Wisconsin. He took a redshirt year in 2019 and got an extra year in 2020 because of the pandemic, so he heads into the 2024 season with five years of college football experience already under his belt.
Last season, he threw for 2,903 yards and 20 touchdowns with just three interceptions. He’s expected to be one of the best quarterbacks in the nation this season, so it’s going to be interesting to see if the Gators can back up his confidence.
