With Tyler Murphy establishing himself as a player who can hold his own in the pocket, the Gators could be looking at an overcrowded backfield soon.
If Florida’s current recruiting class holds steady, there will be at least five scholarship quarterbacks on the roster this time next season.
Assuming junior Jeff Driskel - who is out for the season with a fractured fibula - earns a medical redshirt, he will have two years of eligibility left.
In addition to Murphy, the Gators currently have two other quarterbacks on the roster who have not played at Florida - redshirt freshman Skyler Mornhinweg and true freshman Max Staver.
And rounding out the prospective quarterback group next year is four-star recruit Will Grier out of Davidson, N.C.
Driskel would obviously be the projected starter. He will still be the most experienced of the group and will be entering his third year in offensive coordinator Brent Pease’s system. If his rehab goes well, he should lock down the starting spot with ease.
But the rest of the quarterbacks might not be pleased with their chances for playing time.
When Grier committed in December, Driskel was the clear-cut starter, but he was only expected to be around till 2014 – possibly 2013 if his season went well enough.
Now, with Driskel possibly on the Gators’ roster for an extra year, Grier may weigh his options.
But while Driskel and Grier will hold the focus, Florida’s other scholarship quarterbacks may languish out of the spotlight.
Mornhinweg and Staver came in as three-star recruits in 2012 and 2013, respectively, and have been under the radar until now.
Mornhinweg moves up to the backup quarterback role with Driskel injured, and Staver moves from the scout team to the No. 3 spot.
If Grier is impressive and shows he could take over immediately after Driskel leaves, Mornhinweg and Staver may decide their future lies outside of Gainesville.
“There’s only one ball,” coach Will Muschamp said on the SEC media teleconference. “If a guy is not playing, obviously greener pastures are somewhere else.”
Follow Adam Lichtenstein on Twitter @ALichtenstein24.
Tyler Murphy took over at quarterback for the injured Jeff Driskel and completed 8 of his 14 passes for 134 yards and a touchdown Saturday against Tennessee.
