Graham Mertz Showing He is the Florida Gators' Starting QB

A strong showing on Saturday shows that Graham Mertz is here to stay.

Sep 21, 2024; Starkville, Mississippi, USA; Florida Gators quarterback Graham Mertz (15) reacts after a game against the Mississippi State Bulldogs at Davis Wade Stadium at Scott Field. Mandatory Credit: Matt Bush-Imagn Images / Matt Bush-Imagn Images

Florida Gators quarterback Graham Mertz seems to be showing Billy Napier that he should still be the starter in Gainesville with the way he has performed these last couple of weeks.  

It is never easy to return from injury and instantly be what you were. You have to get back into the flow of things and knock off the rust built up while away. For Mertz though, it wasn’t just that he’s dealing with. He’s also contending with star freshman DJ Lagway looking over his shoulder every game after the stellar day he had in Week Two against Samford. 

However, it looks like he is up for the challenge.

Against Texas A&M, Mertz was 12-for-15 with 195 yards, one touchdown and an interception. Then, he followed this up with an even better performance against Mississippi State to help lead his team to their first win in the SEC in 2024. Against the Bulldogs, Mertz finished the game 19-for-21 with 201 yards and three touchdowns. He also rushed for 24 yards and a touchdown. 

"So for me I mean if you can always keep the ship right, that’s what life is about," he said. "Obviously there’s going to be stuff that’s going to be thrown at you, but how do you stay committed to what you’re doing, doing it with the people you’re doing it with, and have fun doing it, so, it’s been awhile, it’s been awhile. These past couple weeks have been long.”

So, I’d say that Mertz has shown he is the starter for at least a couple more weeks with the way he has played in their first two SEC games. That doesn’t mean Lagway shouldn’t see the field though. Lagway is too talented to not. What it does mean is Mertz should see the lion share of the plays. He should be playing most of the drives. 

For Lagway, he should be sprinkled in from possession to possession to help create confusion for opposing defenses. Bring him in for runs sometimes and then throw in play actions occasionally. You can give him full drives here and there, but don’t do it when Mertz has the hot hand. 

This is something that was handled better in their win over the Bulldogs and resulted in a way better outing from Mertz. The one thing Napier changed in this game was that Lagway would get a full drive every third possession instead of every other. In turn, it led to a better overall day for the offense and less choppiness from drive to drive. Florida did play against an ugly defense, but still, the offense looked much improved. 

This is something Mertz reiterated as well after the game. 

“Yeah it did. I was talking to DJ, I thought we were just really efficient. I was most proud of him, we had a great plan going into the game,” Mertz said. 

There's also the fact that each quarterback does different things and affects different parts of the team. Mertz is seen as the unquestioned leader. Lagway has become a leader on the team, but he's still growing.

"The team respects and loves both those guys. And they affect different parts of the team. DJ affects the younger part of our team. Graham is more established, and has the respect of the entire team. It's his team. He's the leader of the team," Napier said. "So it works best when they're on the same page, they're encouraging each other, they're working together throughout the week, and they're preparing together, and there's a confidence and an encouragement and selflessness that I think is best for both players and for our team."

In the end, if Napier believes the two-quarterback system is the way moving forward, that’s fine, but Graham Mertz has shown he’s up for some competition and should clearly be the starter for the Gators right now.