GAINESVILLE, Fla.-- Emory Jones has shown steady progress since his arrival to Gainesville over one year ago.
The former four-star recruit arrived on campus with plenty of expectations placed on his shoulders. On Saturday, the redshirt freshman quarterback participated in his second spring game this past weekend.
"I felt pretty good about it," said Jones. "We didn’t run a lot of stuff, but it felt pretty good.”
The signal caller finished the game throwing 6-of-13 for 117 yards, two touchdowns and one interception. He also led the Blue team on the ground, rushing for 38 yards on six carries.
“Me, Kyle [Trask], and Feleip [Franks]e, this is our second time going through the offense in the spring," said Jones. "We felt more comfortable going through the offense this year and the system. I mean we were all getting better the whole spring.”
"They all had pretty good springs," said Florida head coach Dan Mullen. "Every one of them has a little different skillset they bring to the table. I think they all put up pretty good numbers today, for where they are at in their development, and they’re doing it with kind of scattered groups. It’s great to see their continued development where they’re at.
"We’re a quarterback-driven offense. We put a lot on those guys. We have to have those guys ready to play.”
Numbers don't lie. In Jones' first spring as a Gator, the quarterback went 3-of-7 with two touchdowns and an interception.
"He did a lot better from when I first got here. Because my first spring game I think I had like three picks or something crazy like that," joked fellow quarterback Feleipe Franks. "But he’s a lot better than I was when I first got here and so I think it’s, like you say, night and day. He’s learning the offense, he’s learning how to manage a drive within the offense and stuff like that and just becoming a better quarterback. It just comes with time, just keep getting better and better.”
“He’s gotten better in everything," added quarterbacks coach Brian Johnson. "With him obviously coming in this time last spring and enrolling early has helped him in a bunch of different ways in terms of understanding the offense and understanding the plays and what’s expected of him and how we operate. He’s been more comfortable as well. He’s progressing at the rate and everyone is progressing at the rate we expect them to.”
A lot of it is on Jones.
He needed to be patient for his opportunities, and he needed to buy into the process.
“When I first got here, I mean I obviously came in here thinking I was going to play early, but it’s a different type of level of football. had a lot to learn," admitted Jones. "This is my first time ever playing college football. So, I had a lot to learn. This was my first time ever playing college football, so it was kind of hard. But I sat a year to get ready and do all that stuff, so I feel really confident now.”
It also helps that Mullen has a bit of a reputation of developing quarterbacks. According to Jones, with Mullen's rep it was easy to remain faithful to the process, especially when he can see first hand the difference the head coach is making in Franks.
“Just whenever my time comes, that’s when it is. I see him developing Feleipe. I see how Feleipe has grown over the last year, I mean it’s just crazy. I mean, you got a baller now.”
Jones is hoping that he can make even bigger strides the next few months.
“Just being quicker with my reads," said Jones about his priority this offseason. "Just making faster decisions, tucking the ball down when I need to.”
