Muschamp: Gators to play Driskel and Harris
Monday, October 13, 2014 | Football, Scott Carter
GAINESVILLE, Fla. – The Florida offense will have a different look Saturday against Missouri.
Not one quarterback, but two.
The first question posed to Gators head coach Will Muschamp on Monday at his weekly press conference concerned who was going to be Florida's quarterback – Jeff Driskel, who has started all five games, or Treon Harris, who came off the bench to lead UF to a road win at Tennessee nine days ago?
“They both will play this week and we'll work through the week, and we'll see how things go,'' Muschamp said. “Right now Jeff will probably start but they're both going to play.”
Driskel entered the season as the clear-cut No. 1 quarterback with Harris edging out fellow true freshman Will Grier for the backup job. The situation became muddled when Harris replaced a struggling Driskel at Tennessee and led the Gators on a pair of fourth-quarter scoring drives in a 10-9 win.
The tone changed suddenly when a sexual-assault claim against Harris was filed a week ago. He was suspended by the university and unable to practice or participate in team activities.
As the investigation played out last week, Driskel returned to business as usual and started Saturday's 30-27 loss against LSU, completing 14 of 25 passes for 183 yards, two interceptions and one touchdown.
Meanwhile, cleared by the university to rejoin the team on Friday when the woman dropped her sexual battery complaint, Harris watched Saturday's game from the coaches' box along with offensive coordinator Kurt Roper.
Harris has appeared in two games and thrown only six passes, but in each outing he has done something memorable. In a 65-0 win over Eastern Michigan in the season opener, Harris came in during mop-up duty and threw two passes – both touchdowns, 78-yarder to Demarcus Robinson and 70-yarder to Mark Herndon.
He reappeared at Tennessee and completed 2 of 4 passes for 17 yards and ran for 24 yards on four carries to inject some much-needed energy into the offense.
“Like Coach said in one of his interviews, he has the 'it” factor,'' Gators defensive back Keanu Neal said Monday. "You saw it in the Tennessee game, he's just comfortable in the pocket. He didn't really panic when things went wrong. He almost threw an interception and he didn't panic and he stayed in and did a great job.”
This isn't the first time the Gators have entered a game with plans to use two quarterbacks under Muschamp. In the 2012 season opener, Driskel and Jacoby Brissett each played in a season-opening win over Bowling Green.
That was more of a continuation of a battle in fall camp to determine the starter, and Driskel won the job. Brissett transferred to N.C. State after the season.
While Harris remains raw at the college level, he won a pair of state championships at Miami's Booker T. Washington High and concluded his prep career with 22 consecutive wins.
As for Driskel, the 6-foot-4, 235-pound junior from Oviedo has been up and down since leading the Gators to a pair of wins over Eastern Michigan and Kentucky to start the season.
In those two games, Driskel completed 56 of 98 passes (57.1 percent) for 543 yards, four touchdowns and an interception. Over the last three games – losses to Alabama and LSU and the win at Tennessee – Driskel is 34 of 76 (44.7 percent) for 335 yards, seven interceptions and two touchdowns.
Driskel accepted the news Monday the way you would expect from one of the team's leaders.
“Treon and I are both going to work hard this week,'' Driskel said. “We're both going to work for each other and we're both going to hope that other person does well when they're in. Obviously that's something that we think that can help the team, so if it's going to help the team, I'm all for it."
Driskel accounted for 83 percent of the Gators' offense Saturday (183 yards passing, 71 rushing) in the loss to LSU. However, he lost a fumble and threw a pair of interceptions to fuel the criticism on social media about his recent play.
Gators quarterback Jeff Driskel after a first-down run against LSU on Saturday. (Photo: Tim Casey)
Despite the criticism Driskel said he has not lost confidence.
“Just because I haven't made all the plays I would've liked to doesn't mean I'm not confident,'' he said. “I'm still confident in my ability, what I can do and what I can do for this team. I don't think my confidence has ever been shaken.”
Muschamp did not offer specifics on how the Gators might use Driskel and Harris.
Florida has had success in the past using two quarterbacks, most notably in 1997 when Doug Johnson and Noah Brindise rotated and in 2006 when current Gators receivers coach Chris Leak gave way to freshman Tim Tebow in certain situations.
Both of those situations were unique.
This move is more based on performance as the Gators search for ways to boost offensive production heading into a challenging four-game stretch against SEC East foes.
Harris could be the missing ingredient.
“He's got a certain persona about himself,'' Muschamp said. “He's a winner. Again, a guy that has shown the ability to make some plays, take the ball in the right spots, accurate with his passes, has a certain confidence about him.
“In practice, that's something that really jumps out at you. It's his playmaking ability to be able to make those things happen.”
Driskel said he has never played in a two-quarterback system but is determined to do his part to make it a success if that's the plan Florida uses.
“It has worked for a lot of people,'' Driskel said. “There's nothing to say it won't work for us. You know, believe it or not, I'm not worried about me, I'm worried about the team.
“I want the team to play well. If it's going to help the team, I'm all for it. We're confident in Treon. I think the guys are confident in me as well. It's not going to be something that's going to divide the team or anything like that. We've got mature guys that can handle it.”
