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PUBLISHED PARTING THOUGHTS SEGMENTS WITH APPLEBY:
Pt. 1: Reflecting on 2016 season at Florida
Pt. 2: 2016 offense, QB development under Jim McElwain and Doug Nussmeier
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UPCOMING PARTING THOUGHTS TOPICS:
Pt. 4: Malik Zaire and Luke Del Rio
Pt. 5: Reviewing units on the 2017 roster
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During the offseason, former Florida quarterback Austin Appleby has not only worked out with a number of current Gators in the quarterback room, but he caught a good glimpse of the group's progress throughout spring practices while he was in Gainesville getting ready for UF's Pro Day.
In the third segment of his five-part Parting Thoughts interview with Inside the Gators, Appleby shares insight on three of the young quarterbacks at that position: redshirt freshmen Feleipe Franks and Kyle Trask, and freshman Kadarius Toney.
ITG: What factors would you say led Franks and Trask on the redshirting path in 2016?
Appleby: It’s because you’re playing in an NFL pro-style offense, where it’s very complex. When you get in there and you don’t know how to ID a Mike and you don’t even know how to call a play, I think it’s very hard to be expected to go into a game and operate at the level you that you have to operate at in this conference in order to be successful. The run checks, the protections, there is some next level football that is run here that isn’t run at other places, and there maybe other schools that you can be zone read and show up day one and be an athlete and make plays. That’s just not the offense that we use here, and it takes time.
You’ve got to sit and take the reps, learn the system and make your mistakes on scout team and in the spring games. Understand what throws work, what don’t. I’m from the school of thought, having gone through it, that the redshirt year is the most valuable thing any player, any quarterback can go through.
I always tell these guys, they might be upset, they might not understand what a redshirt is all about. I say, "Guys, imagine you’re going into your senior year of high school again. That’s exactly what you’re going to be doing when you become a fifth-year senior." You learn now, you don’t rush it, you know what’s going on and you’re ready to go in there and get your opportunity, you make the most of it. If you put them in too early, you get ruined.
