Emory Jones’ progression over the last couple of weeks has been nothing short of remarkable.
After the Gators beat South Florida on Sept. 11, probably 90 percent of the fan base or more wanted Jones to be replaced by Anthony Richardson as the starting quarterback.
A week later, Jones and coach Dan Mullen were cascaded with boos after he misfired on a couple of throws during the first half against Alabama.
Next thing you know, he nearly led the Gators to an incredible comeback victory over the Crimson Tide. Then, against Tennessee, he became the first Gator to pass for 200-plus yards and rush for 100-plus yards in the same game since Tim Tebow. On Monday, he was named SEC co-Offensive Player of the Week.
This season has been a rollercoaster for Jones, to say the least. But he hasn’t been shaken by any of it.
“I do actually remember that moment [when I got booed],” Jones said. “Anything didn’t change for me, that event happening or the fans booing me or whatever they were booing. That didn’t really change anything for me. I just went to the sideline and tried to get coached up by the coaches, Coach Mullen and just go out there and try to perform better.”
In some ways, Jones’ journey this season feels very similar to Feleipe Franks’ in 2018, minus the crowd shushing. Now Jones is the veteran that some fans are looking for a reason to give up on, and Richardson is the hotshot freshman who can do no wrong in the eyes of Gator Nation.
Jones said that he’s continuing to feel increasingly comfortable and in command of the offense with every passing week. He thinks he played well against Tennessee, but there’s still more improvements that he needs to make.
“I know what’s going through my head when I’m watching the film,” he said. “I just was processing information, processing the defenses, and I was doing that pretty smooth. I made quick decisions. That’s me feeling more comfortable out there from what I know about myself.
“Overall, it was a pretty good performance by me, but there were a lot of things that I could still [have] done better and a couple of mistakes that I still made. I feel like we could’ve done a lot of things better as a team. We could have stayed focused, I’d say, more towards the end of the game. We could’ve stayed more focused and paid more attention to our details.”
It’s justifiable for fans to have high expectations for Jones this season. He’s in his fourth year playing for Mullen, considered perhaps the best developer of quarterbacks in the college game. Five first-year starting quarterback have won the Heisman Trophy in the last 14 years, including Tebow in 2007.
When you see quarterbacks around the country hit the ground running and put up huge stats from day one, it’s easy to view that as the norm or the only way to do things.
That hasn’t been the case with Jones, and that’s OK. He’s getting better every week and helping his team win games.
Jones’ season will be a process, and he’s steadily becoming the type of quarterback that the Gators need.
“Being in the game, I feel like I’m learning different things about myself and this team,” Jones said. “I’m learning how to corral the team, how to get the offense going in different ways, what guys need to get the ball in their hands to get them going early or just different things. Just handling the whole offense and managing the game.
“Another thing is just preparation-wise. I’m definitely preparing a lot more and different than I have been last couple years. I have to; that’s my job. I’ve just been preparing a lot differently and a lot more. It’s working out for me, so I’ll make sure I keep doing that.”