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Published Feb 22, 2018
Johnson likes Franks' skill set, but open quarterback competition looms
Kassidy Hill
Inside the Gators

“I truly believe there is no better place in America to play quarterback than the University of Florida.”

That has been the impression Florida Gators quarterbacks coach Brian Johnson has received since arriving in Gainesville. As he told reporters on Thursday, “you walk right outside that stadium and you see three Heisman Trophy winner statues out there. That excites me as a position coach. Coach Mullen always talks about the Gator standard. To me, that’s what the Gator standard is. We have some huge shoes to fill in that room. We’re definitely up for the challenge.”

And a challenge it will be, as Johnson along with new head coach Dan Mullen and co-offensive coordinators Billy Gonzales and John Hevesy look to turn around an offense that has been dismal for years now.

Johnson will have a full room to mold but all eyes will be on two young players—true freshman and early enrollee Emory Jones along with incumbent Feleipe Franks. While Johnson understands Franks has experience the others done, both guys along with every quarterback on the roster will get their chance to impress in spring ball.

“It’s gonna be open. We’ll put everybody in the position to see what they can do. The beauty of us all coming in, I talked to the guys about this yesterday, everyone’s kind of starting from the same spot in terms of learning our offense. I think sometimes it’s very, very hard to make up for the experience or lack thereof of some of the guys. I think that’s life’s best teacher — experience. [Feleipe] might have some advantages in having played in SEC football games before but from a standpoint of us practicing and putting in the offense, everybody is kind of starting from ground zero.”

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