That might not make anyone at Florida feel better after losing starting quarterback Will Grier to an NCAA suspension for the remainder of this season and the first six games of next season, but remember where the Gators were a few months ago.
Advertisement
Grier was completing 65 percent of his passes, and had 10 touchdowns, compared to three interceptions. In his absence, sophomore quarterback Treon Harris will take over and start against LSU.
According to his coach, Jim Mcelwain, Grier failed a drug test administered by the NCAA. Hours before the suspension bombshell broke, Florida put out its weekly notes that were full of stats showing Grier was doing things as a freshman that compare favorably with Tim Tebow. Florida running back Kelvin Taylor, the son of former National Football League star tailback Fred Taylor, has run for 438 yards and seven scores.
McElwain and offensive coordinator Doug Nussmeier had done a good job catering the offense to Grier’s strengths, allowing him to get comfortable with quick passes and building his confidence as a starter in the SEC. “I don’t want anybody in here to forget we’re in this for these young men”.
Harris has appeared in four games in 2015, registering 19 completions on 27 attempts for 269 yards and two touchdowns.
“I really hope people can learn from this and learn from my mistake”, an emotional Grier said at a press conference. And as you going into this I felt like we had two great quarterbacks. When Fisher was asked about Grier, his face noticeably turned into disbelief as he uttered “Wow”. It’s an honest mistake, and yet can be prevented by checking with our medical staff. This is a mistake we’ll learn from. Redshirt freshman Will Grier is suspended for one year after testing positive for performance-enhancing drugs. The Gators will be favored in those games, and if they win them, that’s nine wins. “We didn’t produce much in the second half last week”.
The news sent waves through the college football world ahead of the primetime meeting Saturday between No. 6 LSU (5-0, 3-0 Southeastern) and No. 8 Florida (6-0, 4-0). The way I look at it, the Gators have no choice but to trust Harris. He could have had Florida issue a statement that used words that weren’t his own, or he could have waited and sent out a tweet.
UF will appeal Grier’s suspension, McElwain said.
That tweet was obviously popular, but I originally planned to write a post on it rather than a tweet, so I’m going to expand on it a little bit – and also explain why Florida could never have been the first team to secure the distinction. Harris removed himself from the quarterback competition earlier this year when he was suspended, and then Grier played well enough to keep his job.
Advertisement
Harris started Florida’s opener against New Mexico State, and he and Grier split the snaps in the second week against East Carolina.
