Gainesville College Ga

John Brantley will be the Gators' starter, but can he keep the job?

GAINESVILLE — There is no quarterback controversy at Florida — at least not yet.

Coach Will Muschamp said definitively Friday that John Brantley is the Gators’ starter. The senior from Ocala has been the best player throughout spring practice and offseason workouts and separated himself from the three other scholarship quarterbacks on the roster heading into the first practice of the season Saturday.

But the question nearly every Florida fan has is this: Will Brantley be better than he was last season? If not, will there be a change?

Practices are closed to the public and the media, so anyone outside the team will have to wait until the Sept. 3 season opener against Florida Atlantic before that question can begin to be answered. But Brantley offered a hint during Friday’s annual media day that things might be different in 2011.

“My confidence is a lot higher now since when the coaches arrived,” Brantley said. “When the new coaching staff got here, it was all new to me. Now that I have spring football under my belt and have had all summer to study the playbook, I think as a team we’re ready to go.”

Restoring Brantley’s confidence was the No. 1 thing offensive coordinator Charlie Weis had to do during the spring. Brantley’s confidence was pretty low after a season in which he threw for 2,061 yards, nine touchdowns and 10 interceptions — including three touchdowns and nine interceptions in the final nine games.

Florida can’t afford for Brantley to flounder again. After a September schedule that includes FAU, UAB, Tennessee and Kentucky — teams the Gators should beat — October brings a brutal stretch against Alabama (preseason No. 2 in the coaches’ poll), LSU (No. 4), Auburn and Georgia. Though none of the Gators’ other quarterbacks has played in a college game, the two-week break before the Georgia game in Jacksonville would be the ideal spot to make a change if one is warranted.

But which quarterback would get the call?

Heading into preseason practices, redshirt freshman Tyler Murphy is No. 2. The 6-foot-1, 205-pounder from Wethersfield, Conn., was the best of the quarterbacks in the spring game — much better than Brantley (4 for 14, 45 yards) — and completed 7-of-11 passes for 68 yards, one touchdown and one interception.

“Coach Weis came in, [and] I just opened my eyes and ears and tried to take it in and learn and keep working at it,” Murphy said. “If you work at something long enough, eventually you’ll get it, so that’s what I’ve been doing. Hopefully, the hard work will come through and pay off.

Florida Gators 2011-12 College Basketball Schedule Is a Brutal One ...

By my count, I see no fewer than six NCAA Tournament locks in there. Ohio State and Syracuse will be on the road. Both of those schools will be competing for a very high seed with national title aspirations.

Another school thinking national title will be Arizona, who will be coming to Gainesville. Expect to see Texas A&M, Florida State and UAB in the Big Dance as well. Other teams that could be tough on there are Jacksonville, who beat Florida a year ago, Rutgers and Rider.

If the Gators can escape this part of the schedule with three or four losses, the RPI should be right up there with the best in the country. Then will come the SEC slate which will include at least two games with Kentucky (last year there were three), Tennessee, Georgia and Vanderbilt.

By the time the postseason arrives, this Gator team will surely be battle tested. Hopefully, this will result in a high seed. And also hopefully, they won’t be worn out.

Read more College Basketball news on BleacherReport.

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