Who is the Florida starting QB today vs FSU? Week 13 update on Gators' QB Situation

The Florida Gators are in a do-or-die spot heading into their Week 13 contest against rivals Florida State. The Gators are on a four-game losing streak with an overall record of 5-6 (3-5 in the SEC) for this campaign and their hopes for bowl eligibility hang in the balance. If Florida loses this game against the Seminoles, then it officially brings an end to Billy Napier's second year as head coach.

One of the most interesting aspects of the Florida vs. Florida State game is that both these teams will be without their starting quarterbacks because of injuries. So will be stepping up as the starting QB for the Florida Gators in this rivalry game of Week 13?

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Who is the Florida Gators' starting QB today?

With Graham Mertz out for the season following a collarbone fracture last weekend against Mizzou, the responsibility now lies on the shoulders of redshirt freshman Max Brown. Brown is a part of the recruiting class of 2022 and will have his first career start this weekend against the undefeated Florida State.

Coach Billy Napier spoke about Brown before his debut as QB1 against the Seminoles, stating that he is confident in Brown's abilities and that he did pretty well during this week's practice with the first team.

He told the media:

"He's done a great job. It's been a good week. It's fun to see the players rally around him. Everyone knows where he started Day 1, and they know where he's at now as a player, and ultimately, they respect that.

"Helps that he was productive when he got in the game last week, that helps him mentally. But you know, there will be some butterflies, you know that's coming. But Max he's done a great job so far this week."

Napier then also went on to talk about how Brown's inexperience could be a factor in the Florida Gators' chances of winning the Week 13 game:

"Everybody understands they need to raise their level of play to help make up for Max's experience factor. But Max is definitely a different type of player than Graham, and there will be some elements there that could be a factor."

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Who is Florida Gators' backup QB?

According to the Gators' depth chart for their game against Florida State, Max Brown will have graduate transfer and walk-on Micah Leon as the backup quarterback and walk-on freshman Parker Leise as the third-choice quarterback.

Micah Leon initially began his collegiate career with NC State back in 2017. However, he did not make any appearance for them and transferred to UConn in 2019 where he made his debut in one game in 2021.

Leon saw limited time in his 2023 debut campaign for Florida, where he put up 16 passing yards during the team's 47-9 win against McNeese State back in September.