Anthony Richardson drops back to pass in last year's game against Georgia at TIAA Bank Field in Jacksonville. (Photo: Tim Casey/UAA Communications)
Richardson Ready to Rewrite His Florida-Georgia Narrative
Tuesday, October 25, 2022 | Football, Scott Carter
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By: Scott Carter, Senior Writer
GAINESVILLE, Fla. — If Dan Mullen and Kirby Smart had been hanging out somewhere in Jacksonville Beach, tucked away under a shade tree with a chess board between them, Mullen's move would have been a desperado tactic in that game's lingo.
Hey, that sounds like an apt description here, too, though this game is sweatier than a chess match.
Mullen's decision to start then-freshman quarterback Anthony Richardson against No. 1-ranked Georgia a season ago — the first start of Richardson's career — is being revisited this week as the Gators (4-3, 1-3) prepare to return to TIAA Bank Field on Saturday for another clash with their Southeastern Conference rival Bulldogs (7-0, 4-0). Fast forward a year, and Richardson is Florida's starting quarterback, and Georgia is ranked No. 1.
The Gators hope the parallels end there.
Richardson departed last year's 34-7 loss injured and defeated, his starting debut a memory best left on the banks of the St. Johns. The move did little to salvage Florida's season or Mullen's UF tenure. Looking in the rearview mirror, it's easy to see why Mullen turned to Richardson.
Anthony Richardson walks into TIAA Bank Field last year before the first start of his career. (Photo: Jordan McKendrick/UAA Communications)
Mullen and everyone else watched Richardson breathe life into Florida's offense in a 49-42 loss to LSU two weeks prior, reigniting roars from fans calling for Richardson to take over for Emory Jones. If Richardson had played well and the Gators pulled off the upset, Mullen might still be Florida's coach. On the opposite end of the spectrum, it's easy to surmise that the untested Richardson had little chance to survive against a Georgia defense that featured five players selected in the first round of the 2022 NFL Draft.
Besides Georgia's dominant defense, Richardson took the field battling himself.
"Before the game, I'm not going to lie, I had a lot of jitters," Richardson said Monday. "I was in my head a lot. I was a little nervous, you know. First career start against the No. 1 defense, so I was thinking a lot."
The Gators provided a challenge for much of the first half. Florida trailed 3-0 when Rashad Torrence II's interception gave Florida possession at its 2-yard line with 3 minutes, 11 seconds left before halftime. A Richardson run went nowhere on first down. On second down, he broke free and picked up eight yards.
And then disaster struck.
Richardson fumbled, and Bulldogs linebacker Nolan Smith recovered at Florida's 11. Georgia's James Cook scored on the next play. On Florida's final two possessions before halftime, Richardson threw interceptions, leading to scores, including a 50-yard interception return for a touchdown by Georgia's Nakobe Dean with seven seconds left in the first half.
The quick turn of events sent the Gators to the locker room stunned. Richardson, meanwhile, walked off dazed.
He said the performance rattled around in his head in the offseason.
"I thought about it a lot because I didn't really showcase what I wanted to showcase,'' he said. "It kind of created a narrative that I wasn't ready."
Richardson finished 12 of 20 for 82 yards and two interceptions. He rushed 12 times for 26 yards and lost a fumble. Jones returned to start the rest of the season.
"I feel like I was doing pretty good until those last few minutes of the first half," Richardson said. "But just processing it and thinking about it has taught me a lot about football itself, how to manage the game, and how to control the game."
Richardson has started all seven games for the Gators in their first season under Billy Napier, still developing as a team leader and starting quarterback in the country's toughest conference.
Kirby Smart, who is 4-2 against Florida since taking over the Bulldogs in 2016, has seen enough of Richardson this season to see a different player.
"He's gotten considerably better to me during this season,'' Smart told reporters Monday. "You watch every game in sequence, and you say, 'man, this guy is growing and getting better.' And they don't just limit things for him. They put a lot of shift motion, they put a lot of things on top of him to handle, and he manages those well. The toughest thing dealing with Anthony Richardson is how you affect him. Because you gotta be careful. Some of the runs he's had have been better than backs have across the country.
"I give them a lot of credit — Billy a lot of credit for the development, what he's done from the start of the season to now in being successful both with his legs and his arm."
Richardson has passed for 1,367 yards, six touchdowns and seven interceptions, and he is second on the team with 391 yards rushing and six scores. He reeled off one of the runs Smart alluded to in Florida's loss to LSU two weeks ago when he raced 81 yards for a touchdown.
This time out against the Bulldogs, Richardson will be making his ninth career start, with five coming against ranked teams (and twice against No. 1).
For the 22-point underdog Gators to beat Georgia, Napier knows that Richardson will have to be much better than last season. Richardson is trending in the right direction in his coach's view.
"I think he continues to grow," Napier said. "There is no doubt the comfort level with all the things that contribute to quarterback play, not only our system but what the other side of the ball is doing, being able to speak that language — just a ton of growth relative to where he's at and the level he's processing at."
Richardson has moved past the disappointment of his struggles in Jacksonville and is eager to get another shot at knocking off the Bulldogs.
"There's still a ways to go, but I was just talking about it the other day — time does fly,'' he said. "It seems like yesterday it was my first start against Georgia. I feel like we were doing pretty good until the last couple of minutes of the [first half]. But I feel like I've made improvements as a player, as a person. I'm thankful that I even got the opportunity to play in that game.
"This one is an SEC game, so an SEC win would be great for us. Being in Jacksonville and winning that game would be a big win for us."
