Anthony Richardson discusses growth as a leader

Florida quarterback Anthony Richardson is entering his first season as ‘the guy’ for the Gators. After dealing with a quarterback competition with Emory Jones and injuries throughout the season, Richardson will lead the way in Gainesville this fall. The new responsibility as the starting quarterback for the Florida Gators has already taught him some valuable lessons so far.

Richardson spoke about his new role at his press conference in Atlanta from SEC Media Days. He says not only has new head coach Billy Napier bestowed the leadership role onto him but he’s also given him a new perspective on how to lead in general.

“He has told me I have to be the guy and the leader. A lot of people look up to me. A lot of people are looking at me and expect me to do a lot of things,” said Richardson. “Throughout my years of playing football, people always told me I had to be a leader and I never really understood what that means. I thought I had to scream and yell but, now because I understand that, it means connecting with people, building relationships and bonds. If people can trust you and rely on you, it makes it a lot easier to lead them.”

Jones was the starting quarterback last year with Richardson playing in a support role. He got to watch firsthand as Florida unraveled throughout the year. They started 4-2 just to finish the season with a 2-5 stretch. While the collapse fell mostly on the defense, it spelled the end for that era of Gator football. Florida fired Dan Mullen before the end of the season and Jones transferred to Arizona State.

All that led to the opportunity ahead of Richardson and Napier. Since Richardson got to see what went wrong in 2021, he says it will help him lead in 2022. He wants the Gators to be a family over anything else, which should then help them succeed across the board.

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“I feel like it’ll be easier for us because of the bond we have with each other. Just being able to connect with each other and the family aspect when it comes to everything. Before you can be a football team, you got to be a family. You got to be able to want to play for your brother or your coach,” Richardson said. “If you can look to your right and see your brother has the same mindset, that makes things a lot easier. Whenever you do face adversity, because it’s going to come one day and you never know when it’s going to come, you got to be prepared for every moment. (It’s about) trusting your brother and trusting that he has your back.”

Florida will want to see progression from Richardson as a player. However, it already sounds like he has made major strides as a leader. That’s a big first step for Gainesville’s starter-to-be ahead of Napier’s inaugural season. It’ll be on Anthony Richardson to have the troops in line in time for the Gator’s massive opener on September 3rd against Utah.