Kicking off our Florida Gators position battle series with the quarterbacks seems a bit moot, as for the first time in years, the coaching staff appears confident in their starter prior to fall camp.
Feleipe Franks has earned himself the keys to the offense.
Ending the 2018 season on a four-game streak of wins, a completion percentage of 65%, 862 passing yards, eight touchdowns paired with zero interceptions, and a Peach Bowl victory - UF's first New Years Six bowl game win ever - makes everyone forget about Franks early season struggles.
His ability to influence the Florida Gators "smash-mouth" run game is a cherry on top as well. In the same streak mentioned above, Franks posted 177 rushing yards and four scores by the use of his legs.
It's a breath of fresh air for Florida to enter a season with an unquestioned starter. But a question does remain: Who's the No. 2 QB?
Will it be former incumbent backup, who filled in when Franks was benched against Missouri last season, in redshirt junior Kyle Trask?
Or could head coach Dan Mullen and Co. choose to crown their prized, first quarterback signing at Florida in Emory Jones as the man behind the starter?
During the 2018 season, Jones was sparingly utilized in four games in order to preserve his redshirt, as the staff has a plan for him to lead this offense in the long-term after flipping his commitment from Ohio State.
In those four games, Jones went 12-16 on passing attempts, for 125 yards, two touchdowns and zero picks. He also tallied 41 rushing yards on 18 attempts.
By season's end, Jones had earned trust and praise from both Mullen and the team, specifically from Franks himself. And in return, Jones has respected and trusted the process of his development.
"He [Mullen] puts me in games and situations that help me grow," Jones stated following the Peach Bowl, a game in which he had four rushes for 14 yards. "That man knows what he's doing. He came at us, he's going to make us work hard and he loves us at the end of the day."
The staff has made it obvious that Jones will be the heir to Franks when that time comes, presumably in 2020 if Franks enters the NFL Draft. But would he benefit from remaining on a eased-development track up until that point?
With Trask, the Gators have a player who's been around for a while, and entered the field as the No. 2 QB before. He has been with the program for three years - albeit suffering a season-ending injury in two straight seasons. However, he relieved Franks in the Missouri game last year, going 10-18 for 126 yards and a touchdown.
There's always been potential with Trask - potential in which the Gators saw despite him being a Rivals 2-star prospect coming out of high school. Much like his time at Florida, Trask was a backup during his entire high school career.
D'Eriq King was the man behind center at Manvel High School, who currently plays at Houston despite reeling in offers from multiple Power 5 schools. King is now receiving hype as a potential NFL Draft pick in 2020.
But Florida saw talent in Trask despite a low rating. He completed 72% of his 132 passes for 1545 yards, 16 touchdowns and zero interceptions when sharing snaps with King. Despite his injuries while at UF, Florida has held onto the hope that Trask can be a serviceable fill-in when needed.
The potential that Florida has seen from him in the past, as well as his familiarity with the scheme and understanding of how the offense operates with Franks under center, will do Trask some favors entering camp. But is that enough to hold onto the reigns as the backup quarterback?
At this point, the arrow does seem to point in Emory Jones' direction. There's just too much hype and promise there for Jones to enter the season as the No. 3, and despite the fear of him possible transferring last season being shut down by no one other than himself, that fear could arise again if things get shaky at QB, but Trask gets a nod over Jones.
Trask will likely serve as the insurance policy to both Franks and Jones, a role that he has held and served well for years, dating back to his high school days. Whereas, Florida will undoubtedly create packages to get Jones on the field, even with Franks healthy and operating the offense, in 2019.
Expect Emory Jones to be the No. 2 on the two-deep QB depth chart when it drops this fall. And if Florida is comfortable enough to do so, expect him to get playing time in creative packages this season.
