When Jeff Driskel went down with a season-ending injury against Tennessee, backup quarterback Tyler Murphy took advantage of a golden opportunity.
In his first stretch of significant playing time at Florida, Murphy tallied 218 all-purpose yards and two touchdowns during a 31-17 victory against Tennessee on Saturday in The Swamp.
Since then, Murphy has quickly commanded the national spotlight.
Some have compared him to Tim Tebow. South Carolina coach Steve Spurrier called him the “most impressive player in college football” last weekend. There was even a phony Twitter account impersonating Murphy.
Also, his cell phone will not stop buzzing with text messages from friends and family.
So, Tyler, what have the past 48 hours been like?
“They’ve been a little hectic, I guess you could say,” Murphy said.
What Murphy accomplished Saturday was what Miami coach Al Golden first envisioned when the Gators called the two-star recruit in January of 2010. Despite Murphy’s commitment to Golden’s Owls, the coach supported Murphy’s decision to visit Gainesville.
“He said he would encourage that because it was a program that not many get chances, a place that not too many people get a chance to play at,” Murphy said of Golden’s response. “So he was very encouraging, and he was really helpful to the process.”
Until Florida called, Temple was the only FBS program to offer Murphy a scholarship to play quarterback. UConn and Syracuse both offered Murphy as an athlete.
“I wasn’t happy about it,” Murphy said. “I played quarterback all my life. I wanted to continue playing quarterback. It was just something I thought I was good enough to do at the next level, so I didn’t want to sell myself short.”
After hearing of Murphy’s performance, Golden told the Palm Beach Post on Monday, “We got cherry picked.”
Although Murphy waited three years, two games and half a quarter before getting his shot as Florida’s quarterback, he did not simply wait for opportunity to knock.
He always prepared for the moment his number would be called — if it was even called at all. Defensive back Jaylen Watkins, Murphy’s former roommate, said the signal-caller’s work ethic has never wavered, no matter where he fell on the depth chart.
“I’ve witnessed him put in work consistently,” Watkins said. “He went from being a third-string quarterback. He always prepared like his chance was going to come.”
While teammates play video games, Murphy joins them to hang out. But he brings his laptop with him. Some sort of football is always on his screen.
“He won’t play,” Watkins said. “He just sits there and watches film.”
But Murphy doesn’t exclusively watch the Gators. He watches a lot of NFL footage.
His favorite player is New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees.
“I’m definitely going to try to take some things that he’s done,” Murphy said of emulating Brees.
“He encourages the guys to do well and stuff like that. I’m definitely going to try to keep encouraging my teammates to excel.”
Murphy is grateful for his teammates’ support as he battled for playing time, and he hopes they will help him stay the course now that he’s the starting quarterback.
Hard work got him to where is now. He does not want waste his new opportunity.
“I told them that if they feel like I’m not working as hard as I was before, don’t be afraid to call me out because, as a team, we’ve got to hold each other accountable and stuff like that,” Murphy said. “Nobody is perfect.”
Follow Joe Morgan on Twitter @joe_morgan.
Tyler Murphy runs the ball during Florida’s 31-17 win against Tennessee on Saturday in Ben Hill Griffin Stadium. The junior quarterback replaced an injured Jeff Driskel and completed 8 of 14 passes for 134 yards and one touchdown.
