Appleby to start at quarterback against Iowa
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To the dismay of some Florida fans, the Gators won’t be making any changes at the quarterback position heading into their bowl matchup with Iowa.
On Thursday, Florida head coach Jim McElwain told the media in Tampa that graduate transfer quarterback Austin Appleby would start once again for the Gators against Iowa in the Outback Bowl, set to take place on Jan. 2 at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa.
McElwain added that he expects redshirt sophomore Luke Del Rio (shoulder) to be healthy enough to be available for the bowl game. Should Del Rio be cleared, he’d serve as Appleby’s primary backup against the Hawkeyes.
“I don’t think we’ll have to do that,” McElwain told reporters of playing one of the two freshmen quarterbacks.
Since Florida’s 54-16 loss to Alabama in the SEC Championship Game, the question has been on everybody’s minds whether McElwain would opt to burn Feleipe Franks or Kyle Trask’s redshirt for one game of bowl action and 15 practices to work with the first-team offense.
It was a possibility that McElwain wouldn’t rule out following the Gators’ loss to the Crimson Tide.
“That's one of those deals I think we have to sit down with them and their parents and handlers and all that,” McElwain said last Saturday. “I'm not sure it's fair, but at the same time, I know they want to play. So we'll see.”
Now, it doesn’t appear we’ll likely get to see Franks or Trask in live action in a non-scrimmage environment until at least the start of the 2017 season.
If the Gators are unable to land Baylor transfer quarterback Jarrett Stidham, Del Rio will be the only quarterback on the roster with any prior playing experience at the college level heading into the 2017 season-opener against Michigan in Dallas.
Appleby has thrown for 1,225 yards and eight touchdowns against five interceptions on 61.4% passing this season in eight appearances (six starts), most recently tossing two touchdowns against three picks against Alabama. Del Rio, who has suffered knee and shoulder injuries this year and has missed the past four games, is 56.7% passing on the year for 1,358 yards and eight touchdowns against eight interceptions.
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