Gators head coach Dan Mullen has used a two-quarterback system effectively in the first two games of the season. (Photo: Hannah White/UAA Communications)
The Opening Kickoff (Part IV): Spurrier on 2 QBs, They Said It, They Wrote It
Thursday, September 16, 2021 | Football, Scott Carter
GAINESVILLE, Fla. — While Florida's current head ball coach Dan Mullen is finalizing preparations for Saturday afternoon's tilt against No. 1-ranked Alabama, former Gators head ball coach Steve Spurrier appeared on SEC This Morning on Friday to talk about the big game.
Of course, the topic of conversation eventually drifted to Mullen's options at quarterback: starter Emory Jones and explosive backup Anthony Richardson. Former Gators head coach Steve Spurrier. (File photo)
Spurrier has been in Mullen's shoes in playing two quarterbacks consistently.
"I always felt if you've got two that are very equal, close to each other — Jesse Palmer and Rex Grossman — one of 'em was going bad, give the other one a chance,'' Spurrier said. "They usually came through for us. And then I'd go back. If I benched a quarterback, I'd always say, 'hey, this isn't forever, you'll be back pretty soon, just hang in there and be ready.' And they would come back."
Spurrier, who now serves as the University of Florida athletic department's current ambassador, is like the rest of us when it comes to Saturday's game. If both Jones and Richardson (hamstring) are healthy and ready to go, Mullen said both will play.
As for at crunch time, that's a wait-and-see scenario.
"We've got two good quarterbacks, I think,'' Spurrier said. "Obviously, Anthony Richardson has been spectacular the times he has played the first two games this year. What is going to happen tomorrow, I don't know. I tell people all the time that if the game is close in the second half, whoever trots out there is going to be the guy that Dan Mullen's got the most confidence. I sort of think both of them will play in the first quarter, the first half definitely and see how it goes from there."
As for more topic of conversation around the Florida-Alabama matchup, check out They Said It and They Wrote It:
THEY SAID IT
"These games are for for me. You get the opportunity to go out there and go play in an unbelievable environment against an unbelievable team, the crowd going crazy. This is what it's all about. This is why we do this." -- Gators head coach Dan Mullen on facing Alabama
"We got a little taste of that playing [Miami] in Atlanta, even though it wasn't the crowd noise there that we'll have this week. We've just got to play with poise." -- Alabama head coach Nick Saban dealing with the crowd noise at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium
"That's like one of the gods of college football. That's like, 'Whoa, he talked to me and I'm 16 years old.' I know people would die to have this relationship with Coach Saban that I have. But, you know, he's a cool guy. I'm not gonna lie, Coach Saban's cooler than a fan, man." -- Gators running back Dameon Pierce on being recruited by Saban and Alabama
"Regardless of who the coordinator is, the offense doesn't change from that perspective. There might be a new guy in the seat, but from a core, philosophical standpoint, it's going to stay the same. So, there's carryover for the players, and there's continuity for the players." -- Gators defensive coordinator Todd Grantham on first-year Alabama offensive coordinator Bill O'Brien
"I most definitely worked on that. I felt like most of my drops came because I never knew when my next opportunity would come. So, it was like, when it came ... I felt it was a little unexpected. Then it happened. But I was always working. A lot of my teammates, they can vouch for me." -- Gators receiver Jacob Copeland on overcoming dropped passes that plagued him early in his career
