Florida quarterback Jeff Driskel met with the media today for the first time since returning to practice after an appendectomy:
-Driskel said he’s not very limited and has no pain in the spot his appendix used to be. He didn’t get all the reps he’d like because he is still getting acclimated to practice.
-Driskel said he threw the ball well, and said the team had a pretty good day offensively.
-Driskel feels like he could take a hit now if need be. He knows he won’t take a hit until August 31st against Toledo and doesn’t plan to wear any extra padding or rib protection over the area where his appendix used to be.
-Driskel is confident in the time he returned, he said he doesn’t think it was too early. The last hurdle he had to overcome physically was just general soreness that came when he threw the ball.
-Driskel says he hasn’t missed a beat mentally and was very cognizant of taking mental reps when he could.
-Driskel began getting ready to return by walking on a treadmill, then an elliptical machine, then real running, those helped him stay in shape while he was out. He didn’t do any weightlifting, just cardio.
-Driskel thinks the first team reps were huge for Tyler Murphy, he says the team can count on Murphy if he goes down.
-Driskel says he’s been working on throwing the ball before receivers make the breaks in their routes and not after, being more anticipatory than reactionary.
-Driskel says he’ll be better at not taking sacks because he has a feel for the protection schemes and knows what his linemen are doing in front of him so he doesn’t have to feel for them.
-Driskel thinks Florida is good enough to get to Atlanta and compete for an SEC championship, says they were so close last year they could taste it.