Florida football name Wisconsin transfer Graham Mertz the Gators starting quarterback for the 2023 season Friday, On3’s Nick de la Torre reported Friday evening.
Mertz beat out veteran Micah Leon and freshman Max Brown to win the off-season quarterback battle. The 6-foot-3, 218-pound quarterback was a three-year starter at Wisconsin before entering the transfer portal earlier this offseason.
The Kansas native completed 57% of his passes for 2,136 yards, 19 touchdowns and 10 interceptions last season at Wisconsin. In his three years as the Badgers’ starting quarterback, Mertz threw 38 touchdowns and 26 interceptions.
Mertz is a true pocket passer and has negative rushing yards to this point in his college career. With Mertz at quarterback, Florida’s offense will undergo a major change in Billy Napier’s second season as head coach.
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Florida’s 2022 quarterback Anthony Richardson ran for 654 yards and nine touchdowns while throwing for 2,549 yards.
The Gators went just 6-7 in Napier’s first season including a disappointing loss against Vanderbilt in November. Expectations are low for Florida entering Napier’s second season. The Gators regular season over/under win total is just 5.5 for the 2023 season— the second lowest mark in the SEC above only Vanderbilt.
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Tennessee withstood a late game Florida comeback to beat the Gators 38-33 at Neyland Stadium last September. It was the Vols first win over Florida since 2016 and just their second win in the series since 2004.
The 2023 Vols open SEC play at Florida on Sept. 16 after facing Virginia and Austin Peay the first two weeks of the season. Tennessee is looking for its first win in Gainesville since 2003 and a strong performance from the Vols’ defense against Mertz would go a long way.
