Back in 2006, Royals manager Buddy Bell had just watched his team lose 10 games in a row. When asked by reporters if he thought the Royals had hit rock bottom, Bell -- a crochety old baseball man at the best of times -- responded, "I never say it can't get worse." It's worth keeping that in mind, because if the Florida quarterback position has proven anything over the last 12 years, it's that things can always get worse. I understand the experience of watching Anthony Richardson throw a Hail Mary out of the back of the endzone is frustrating, as is watching him overthrow a couple deep passes. I get all of the frustrations with his inaccuracy and poor decision-making. But guys, I promise you, Anthony Richardson is not the worst it can get at quarterback. It can always get worse. If you think that losing Richardson is, by definition, addition by subtraction and that the quarterback position must be better with someone else, you're betraying a painful lack of imagination and memory. If you think that going 25-42 with 400 yards passing, three touchdowns and one interception against Vanderbilt represents an embarrassing level of QB play, woo boy. Look at the in-house replacement options. Kitna has looked pretty good in garbage time and emergency duty, but that represents all of 14 passes against bad competition. Jack Miller has 14 career passes, looked pretty unimpressive in the spring game and has more or less missed this entire season due to injury. Max Brown was an anonymous recruit we signed away from Central Michigan. Jaden Rashada is the Next Big Thing, but he'll be a true freshman, and he's coming in with the reputation as a big, athletic guy whose passing is still raw and in need of development -- sound familiar? The idea that you can just assume one of those guys will be better than Richardson is a huge mistake. What seems likelier -- Richardson harnessing his immense and visible talent, or Jalen Kitna emerging as a superior SEC quarterback as a redshirt freshman? It's fair to question just how likely the first option is -- the mental side of playing quarterback is exceedingly complicated, and the road is strewn with the corpses of physically gifted quarterbacks who never figured it out. But I know which option I'd rather bet on. You think we're replacing Anthony Richardson with Will Grier, and it seems to me much likelier that we're actually replacing him with Treon Harris. I don't know if we'll actually get to see it, but by far our best chance to be a good football team in 2023 is with Richardson at quarterback.
Sorry, but it’s beyond our control. He’s decided to move on and we can only wish him luck and find a QB on the roster or the portal to replace him. While he’s still playing, I’d like to see him continue to grow as a player instead of shutting it down.
I believe your take is "I prefer the devil I know rather than the devil I don't." Your prerogative. I prefer to say, "If we are going to be held hostage to getting AR to the first round, then I think it better to move on and take our lumps."
I can't control any of that. I can control being a fan and supporting whoever is QB and/or coach. I know that last year the whole of gator nation wanted AR. Now they have him, and some folks want some guy named Kitna. Tomorrow isn't promised to anyone- so AR get us a W in tallycrappy is my wish
He gone. He is not going to risk millions to stay. Get paid more, get better coaching. So simple even a caveman can see it.
Let me make sure I understand: Are you saying we should not aim to win a title out of fear that we'll be worse than this year?
I agree that Richardson probably is our best option for a "good" season next year - IF he decides to return, which I am frankly beginning to doubt. I'm also not so sure that delaying the inevitable is in the long-term interests of the program. If he does come back and continues to play as tentatively and as erratically as he has thus far, all we would have succeeded in doing would be to waste a year of development for whomever we do decide to go forward with as the starter once AR is gone. I also don't believe that the QB room is quite as empty as you seem to think, especially if the Hartmann to UF rumors turn out to be something other than a pipe dream. And as for the kid we stole from Central Michigan, he appears, to me at least, to be a more accurate passer with better touch and ball placement than AR has shown himself to be to this point. If you haven't looked at his hudl HLs yet, perhaps you should. His two-year stat totals read: 71.6% career comp avg, for 4416 yards, 68 TDs and 10 INTs. He ran for 2335 yards and another 33 TDs with 7.1 YPC as well. And if Billy has proved anything beyond the shadow of a doubt, it's that he knows an under-rated talent when he sees one (see Johnson/Torrence). JMHT.
I know. Do you think AR is going to play in the bowl game? After seeing. Hooker go down, I think he opts out.
I honestly don't know what to think about our AR after watching everything from warm-ups to the last pass on Saturday. It is perplexing and confounding . . . and I can't put my finger on it yet. The last pass was thrown way through the end zone. Many claim it was to avoid an interception going on his record. I disagree. What if AR was saying to himself, "Just don't be short. Just don't be short." He is so tantalizingly close to being absolutely dominant. He is clearly a grown man among boys out there. I don't think HE's afraid. Whether those who matter most in his life, and who are in his ear, CREATE fear is another thing.
I do not envy certain aspects of being a very talented player like AD. It's only human nature that opinionated advice is advanced by numerous entities in his life.
