Backup Quarterbacks Take Center Stage as Florida Hosts Florida State

When Florida and Florida State fans circled their calendars for Nov. 25, they most likely weren’t anticipating a Max Brown versus Tate Rodemaker quarterback battle. But after season-ending injuries to Graham Mertz and Jordan Travis last Saturday, that’s exactly what they’ll get at The Swamp on Saturday night. And this matchup of backup quarterbacks has massive implications for the College Football Playoff.

Despite blowing out North Alabama last Saturday, Florida State (11-0) slid one spot to No. 5 in the AP Poll. They also dropped out of the top four in the College Football Playoff Rankings on Tuesday as well. With teams including Washington and Oregon threatening their playoff spot, the Seminoles need to defeat Florida to remain a playoff contender after this weekend.

Following their loss to Missouri last Saturday, the Gators (5-6) are in desperate need of a win. They have lost four consecutive games and need one more win to become bowl eligible. Gators star receiver Ricky Pearsall talked about how important a win is for the Florida football program:

Battle of the Backup Quarterbacks

The gameplans for Florida and Florida State were upended after injuries to their starting quarterbacks. Brown, Florida’s redshirt freshman quarterback, has attempted 12 passes in his collegiate career and hasn’t started a game. After replacing Mertz, Brown led the offense to multiple scoring drives vs. Missouri, giving the Gators a lead with less than two minutes remaining. Florida coach Billy Napier spoke on how the Gators are planning around their backup quarterback:

Rodemaker, Florida State’s redshirt junior quarterback, has only made one collegiate start, but he has much more experience than Brown. Rodemaker has thrown for more than 700 yards and seven touchdowns in his career with the Seminoles. He threw for more than 200 yards and two touchdowns last Saturday against North Alabama. Napier covered how Rodemaker’s experience will have an impact on the matchup:

The Gators will look to Brown to defeat  Florida State and avoid their first non-bowl season since 2017. The Swamp is sold out for the final game of the regular season and kickoff is set for 7 p.m. ESPN, 98.1-FM/AM850 WRUF will provide the coverage.

#Gators depth chart vs. FSU … pic.twitter.com/pm1RKhrtmg

— Scott Carter (@GatorsScott) November 23, 2023

Notes: Eighteen Gators will take part in Senior Day festivities prior to Saturday’s game: 

 Eddie Battle
Daniel Cross
Kingsley Eguakun
Jaydon Hill
Lyndell Hudson II
Jaelin Humphries
Carlson Joseph
Jalen Kimber
Micah Leon
Micah Mazzccua
Teradja Mitchell
Jonathan Odom
Ricky Pearsall
Justin Pelic
Jacob Watkins
Ja’Markis Weston
Dante Zanders
Keon Zipperer.

Former All-America linebacker and two-time national champion Brandon Spikes, a grad assistant coach on this year’s team, will be the honorary “Mr. Two Bits” on Saturday. … Florida and The National Football Foundation & College Hall of Fame will jointly honor Gators Great and 2023 College Football Hall of Fame electee Tim Tebow with an NFF Hall of Fame On-Campus Salute on Saturday. … Sophomore cornerback Devin Moore will be back for the Gators. Moore has missed UF’s last two games with an upper body injury. Starting left tackle Austin Barber remains questionable with an upper body injury. Barber sat out last week against Missouri. With Barber out last week, Dameion George Jr. started at left tackle, with Kam Waites starting at right tackle.

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