Back
After much questioning, Aaron Philo has been named Florida’s starting quarterback for the matchup with the Georgia Bulldogs on Saturday.
Philo suffered a shoulder injury in the fourth quarter against South Carolina - a game that the Gators lost. Tramell Jones Jr. started in his place against the Texas Longhorns two weeks ago, and led the Gators to an upset victory on the road, but Philo will resume his role as the leader this Saturday.
On Monday, head coach Jon Sumrall said he believed Philo would be ready to go and that he could have played in an emergency situation against Texas. On Wednesday, both Philo and Jones Jr. were listed as questionable on the SEC Student Athlete Availability Report.
Kirby Smart noted on Monday that both quarterback options were good for the Gators.
“Both are very talented. One beat Ole Miss mishandly, and one beat Texas on the road,” Smart said. “I mean, they're both completely capable, good players, knowing about both of them for a long time, and in terms of their ability, they're both plenty capable, especially in Buster's (Faulkner) offense. It's quarterback driven, but it doesn't require the quarterback to be perfect. He gives them so many options, and he can play to the strengths of each guy.”
What he said toward the end of that quote is important. This is a Buster Faulkner offense. Philo is Fualkner’s guy that he brought from Georgia Tech with him to Florida. The young offensive coordinator will have his guy against the Dawgs.
Florida’s offense was executing at a high level through the first four weeks of the season. The Gators scored 66, 52, 44 and 52 points in the first four games, with that last one coming against Ole Miss. Philo helped orchestrate this, but the Gators were also running the football really well early on.
Now, we will get to see a matchup of two legendary Georgia high school football quarterbacks in Philo and Gunner Stockton. Philo has the most passing yards ever in the state and Stockton has the most touchdowns. They will get to settle things on the collegiate level on Saturday in a historic rivalry game.