Florida Gators

GAINESVILLE, Fla. — A couple of days before his 22nd birthday in December, quarterback Graham Mertz announced he was entering the transfer portal. Following four seasons at Wisconsin, 32 career starts, and a life lived under the microscope as the highest-rated prep quarterback to sign with the Badgers, Mertz pressed the reset button.

A few days later, he attended a Gators practice on his quest to find a new home. The trip reminded Mertz of visiting Wisconsin four years earlier and feeling he belonged there as one of the nation's top quarterback recruits.

Mertz starred at Blue Valley North High in Overland Park, Kansas, and had scholarship offers from many of the top programs in the country. While he recalls a message from Gators head coach Billy Napier, then at Louisiana, during his prep days, Mertz quickly connected with Napier and Ryan O'Hara, Florida's offensive analyst for quarterbacks, when they met at UF in December. Napier (Furman) and O'Hara (Arizona, Central Oklahoma) played quarterback in college and built their careers around the game's most crucial position.

They offered what Mertz wanted.

"My biggest thing is I want to be coached, and I want to be coached hard,'' Mertz said recently. "The standard here is exactly where you want it to be. It was nice to have that plan and hear that. They were 100 percent honest with me, telling me what they saw in my game, what I needed to improve, and how they would improve it. That was very refreshing.

"For me, it was a no-brainer." Ron Mertz is Graham's father and a former offensive lineman at Minnesota, where he was a member of head Gopher Lou Holtz's final recruiting class in 1985. Ron has spent his professional career in sales and marketing, currently the executive vice president of sales for House of Smith, a winery headquartered in Walla Walla, Wash.

Ron understands what is and isn't vital in transferring and served as his son's advisor during the transfer process. The Mertz family is also well-versed in college athletics. Ron and his wife, Amy, have produced three Division I athletes. Graham's sister Lauren played basketball at Kansas State, and his sister Mya played at Drake.

Once father and son discussed Graham's options, Florida fit like sunshine on a spring afternoon.

"There's a lot of things that come into it,'' Ron Mertz said. "The quarterback world is a unique place. For us, it was really, is the system a perfect fit for him? What kind of offense do they run? Is it something that can maximize his toolbox? That was an absolute 'yes' once he saw it live.

"And then it became culture fit, which is important for him. That was a big part of why he chose Wisconsin. He really felt good with the people around him, and he had that same vibe at Florida, particularly with the coaches."
 
Graham Mertz has been on campus for two months and is competing with returner Jack Miller, an Ohio State transfer a season ago, for the starter's job this spring.

Napier has not named a favorite and has said the plan is to add another scholarship quarterback to the roster via the transfer portal to add depth over the summer.

Mertz brought tunnel vision with him when he headed south.

"Whenever you are in a position like this – and there's only one of them – you've got to bring your best every day," Mertz said. "And if you're not, they'll find somebody that will. That's the nature of this position. That's the nature of the sport. On my end, I know if I handle my business, I will be great. That's my biggest thing: push myself every day to a higher standard, and that's where you see that growth."

Mertz has been omnipresent around the Heavener Football Training Center in his short time in Gainesville, studying the playbook, getting to know his new teammates, and doing whatever it takes to prove his commitment in helping Florida get back on track following back-to-back losing seasons.

"He stays in the building,'' running back Montrell Johnson Jr. said.

"I never see him leave,'' offensive lineman Austin Barber added. "When I get here, his car is here. When I leave, his car is still here."

Following a recent practice, many players moved on to whatever was next on their schedule. Meanwhile, Mertz and O'Hara were in an animated conversation about throwing motion as they traded imaginary tosses near the team's refreshment station. Ron Mertz is not surprised. He can picture the scene easily, telling Napier and O'Hara that they would have to tell his son when not to show up instead of the other way around.

"When he came to Florida, I loved his approach," Ron said. "He wanted to be the hardest-working person there and earn the respect of his teammates. That's what his mission has been."

Mertz displayed a similar attitude at Wisconsin, where he choked up last season when he told his father that the Badgers players had voted for him unanimously to be the team captain. Mertz signed with Wisconsin in 2019 and redshirted as a true freshman. He took over as the starter during the 2020 COVID season, and after his first game, Mertz was the most famous person in the Badger State.

In a 45-7 win over Illinois at a near-empty Camp Randall Stadium, Mertz completed 20 of 21 passes for 248 yards and five touchdowns. The following day, he called his parents to tell them he had tested positive for COVID-19. The infection forced Mertz to the sideline, and while he returned and had his moments in Madison, Mertz suffered the growing pains and harsh scrutiny that come with playing quarterback and living in a fish bowl.

He finished his Wisconsin career with a 19-13 record as the starter, with 38 touchdown passes, 26 interceptions, 5,405 passing yards, and a 59.5 percent completion percentage. Mertz battled injuries and suffered from a string of injuries to his offensive line and receiving corps. Following a 6-6 record last season, Wisconsin fired head coach Paul Chryst and replaced him with Cincinnati's Luke Fickell.

Mertz was far from a disaster, but Badgers fans expected the player they saw win MVP honors with a five-touchdown performance in his final prep game in January 2019: the U.S. Army All-American Bowl in San Antonio. Or the Mertz who dazzled fans in his memorable debut against Illinois.

Mertz, with the door open to reboot his career, saw a different path after Chryst's dismissal.

"I've had a lot of ups and downs, a lot of external changes that have kind of played a role in it,'' he said. "For me, it's refreshing just to get a fresh start and know in the end that you control how it goes."

Ron Mertz, who started coaching Graham in kindergarten, readily admits he is a biased father. But he knows a change of scenery can be beneficial and that while his son's stay at Wisconsin perhaps wasn't what fans envisioned, Graham is in a good place with two years of eligibility remaining at Florida.

"He came into Wisconsin and was tabbed the savior,'' Ron said. "Everybody thought he was going to be the five-time national championship quarterback that brings them out of their run-first thing. You can never live up to that kind of hype. He's carried in a bunch of life lessons from Wisconsin, good and bad. There are some thrills, and there are some disappointments. All that's part of it. He learns from both, and what I really like about his approach, his hasn't really changed.

"He ignores both the sometimes-justified, often-not criticism, and he also ignores the platitudes. He doesn't listen externally, which is great, particularly in this day and age. He just does his work. I think he's prepared for the next experience. It's the bright lights in the best conference."
 
Mertz has impressed the Gators since spring camp opened earlier this month. A traditional drop-back passer who played mostly under center at Wisconsin, Mertz is working primarily out of the shotgun at his new address.

Napier and his staff evaluated dozens of quarterbacks in the transfer portal following the departure of Anthony Richardson to the NFL Draft after last season. Mertz's experience and leadership qualities immediately made him a top target. Napier is confident the Gators made an excellent choice to bring in Mertz to compete with Miller this spring. Miller started Florida's 30-3 Las Vegas Bowl loss to Oregon State in December, his only playing time a season ago.

"Graham continues to make a great impression on all parts of the organization, and then certainly, I think on his teammates," Napier said Saturday as the team broke for spring break. "He's been very diligent from the first day, really aggressive. Oftentimes doing two-a-days, in the building the majority of the day, just really a professional approach, very self-aware.

"Very evident with the guys he started 32 games with a really good program."

Offensive line coach/coordinator Rob Sale has a similar view in his short time around Mertz.

"That kid is smart," Sale said. "Very, very impressed. He'll make the guys around him in that room better just by the way he prepares."

While the outside world talks about Mertz and wonders what he'll bring to the Gators, there's a good chance he is at the team's facility putting in work and leading by example.

He's got a new opportunity, a clear head and determined approach. Mertz is eager to see where all of it takes him.

"It's been a really smooth transition," Mertz said. "I love all the guys in that locker room. I'm very excited about what we're going to be able to do. And the cool part about this group is we know we've got a lot of work to do ahead of that. The guys are staying in the moment, which is what I love."
  GRAHAM MERTZ Q&A
 
Q: Growing up in the Kansas City area, surely you like barbecue?
A: I could talk barbecue all day. You've got Gates, you've got Q-39, Jack Stack, Arthur Bryant's, Kansas City Joe's, that's my favorite. They've got this new [sandwich] called Rocket Pig. It's crazy. It's like brisket, pulled pork, bacon, cheese, and then there are fried jalapenos. You go to Kansas City, and you gain 10 pounds in a week. Q: What do you bring as an experienced quarterback compared to the freshman at Wisconsin?
A: My biggest thing is, being in college football as long as I have, I've been around great leaders. We've got to make some ground up quickly. How do you do that? You've got to bring what you have learned to the party. And that's one thing I appreciate that guys have done, guys like Cam Jackson, Teradja Mitchell, a bunch of guys that have come from different programs and brought their own unique leadership styles. Me and a few of the guys were just like, 'we've got to go in there and just grind every day. Make that standard.' That's when we lead.

Q: Did you know any players here very well?
A: I knew Ricky [Pearsall]. We played Ricky when he was at Arizona State. I kind of knew him but got to really know him when I got down here. We talked a little bit. And once I got down here, we kind of started hanging out more.

Q: What is your best day ever in football?
A: I've got a bunch of those. I would say my first start in college. It was very exciting. 2020, COVID, a lot of uncertainty. It was one of those days, kind of back to normal after the whole lockout and everything. It was a fun game. It was a good day out on the yard. No fans. It was so weird. I can say, 'Hey, there was a time we were playing, and there were cardboard fans cut out in the stands.'

Q: What is a perfect meal?
A: My go-to: salmon, brown rice, and green beans. That's my everyday meal. But if I'm going to go all-out, you've got to go barbecue. I'm going to Kansas City Joe's. I'm getting the Rocket Pig, a side of fries, and a side of chicken gumbo. And a strawberry soda.

Q: If you had to listen to only three musical artists for the rest of your life, who is it?
A: I'm going to start with Chris Stapleton. I'm going with Rod Wave, a rapper. And the last one, I'm going with [soul storyteller] Anthony Hamilton. I'm going to get a good mix here.

Q: Who is the most significant influence on you sitting here?
A: My dad. He has taught me so many life lessons that go far beyond the field. He is one of those people that you look up to growing up. He kind of came from nothing and made it. He showed me what it truly means just to grind and work. That's one thing I will hold onto forever, the way he works and goes about his business. It's first class. That's something I hope to be one day.