For one half of football it seemed like the Florida Gators’ offense wouldn’t miss a beat without starting quarterback Luke Del Rio.
Austin Appleby threw for 213 yards and two touchdowns in the first half against Tennessee. Florida picked up 12 first downs, was out-rushing the Vols and had a 21-3 lead. Then the next six quarters happened. The Gators have been outscored 41-20 over the last six quarters and the fan swell of a potential quarterback controversy after the first half in Knoxville has been silenced.
Luke Del Rio will return to the starting quarterback role this Saturday when the Gators host the Missouri Tigers for homecoming. Del Rio would have likely started last week against LSU before the game was postponed due to Hurricane Matthew. With Florida sitting at 4-1, in the thick of the SEC East race, Del Rio’s return couldn’t have come at a better time.
“He’s like a general,” sophomore sunning back Jordan Scarlett said of Del Rio. “He calms everybody down in tough situations and brings us all together.”
Del Rio had a leg up on Appleby before the Purdue transfer even arrived. Del Rio played one season in Doug Nussmeier’s offense when he walked on at Alabama and spent the 2015 season in Florida’s offense last year while sitting out due to NCAA transfer restrictions. Some may call him a game manager, but that may be what Florida needs.
“He’ll just pick out some extra things. He’ll see a blitz that’s coming that the coach didn’t say we had to pick up on and he knows that it’s coming and be like, alright, we gotta get him,” Scarlett said of Del Rio. “He’s just a little bit more comfortable and knows what’s going on.”
Del Rio and Appleby are very different quarterbacks. Appleby showed a better arm and touch on deep passes in the first half of Tennessee, but Del Rio’s knowledge of the playbook, what the offense is trying to accomplish and what the defense is trying to do to stop that on each play is the biggest difference between the two. It’s ultimately what won Del Rio the starting job in fall camp and what the biggest difference has been in Florida’s offense the last six quarters. Not just in the passing game either.
“It’s an advantage, you know, because the DBs have to take account for him now, they’re not all just playing the run,” Scarlett said of what getting Del Rio back this week means. “So Luke takes a little bit of load off my shoulders. He has everybody in command.”
Monday Del Rio said the biggest thing that has held the Gators back has been consistency. Del Rio provided that consistency in the first three games before a knee injury sidelined him for two weeks. Getting him back this week should bring back some consistency to an offense that is currently ranked eighth in the SEC in yards and scoring.
“It’s big,” center Cam Dillard said of Del Rio Monday. “You know, he’s definitely helped us out a lot on offense, and he’s a guy that can go out there, get the job done and it’s great to have him back.”