Florida Gators preparing for both Jayden Daniels and Garrett Nussmeier
GAINESVILLE, Fla. — There haven’t been many quarterbacks better than LSU signal caller Jayden Daniels this season. Whether the quarterback will be able to continue his Heisman campaign this week when the Florida Gators travel to Baton Rouge remains to be seen.
Daniels suffered a head injury during the Tigers’ loss to Alabama last week. The quarterback was not able to practice on Tuesday but was going to try and practice on Wednesday, according to LSU head coach Brian Kelly.
“He worked out this morning and it appeared that workout went well, which is the last stage before he’s cleared for non-contact practice,” Kelly said. “We expect him to practice today. If all things go well today, he will be cleared for contact on Thursday.”
The television broadcast called Daniels’ injury a concussion, something Kelly confirmed on the SEC teleconference.
“I don’t know the medical bar for that, but I can tell you he has moved through these stages to the point where he worked out this morning, ran 20 miles per hour and today will be able to practice in a non-contact fashion,” Kelly said Wednesday. “If he goes through today’s practice, then we decide what his preparation level vs. (Garrett) Nussmeier’s preparation level and make a determination on the starter.”
Gators still preparing for Jayden Daniels
That makes Florida’s job of preparing for LSU this weekend more difficult. The Gators will continue to prepare for Daniels but also need to be ready for his backup, Garrett Nussmeier.
Top 10
- 1
Phil Longo Fired
Wisconsin announces firing of OC
- 2
Iowa QB out
Ankle injury sidelines Brendan Sullivan
- 3
Peter Boulware chimes in
FSU legend offers Norvell advice
- 4
Paul Finebaum
'Kirby Smart was different'
- 5
AP Poll Shakeup
New Top 25 shows big fallout from Saturday
“I think it’s part of the challenge this week, the uncertainty around their quarterback situation,” Florida coach Billy Napier said on an SEC teleconference call on Wednesday. “Both of these players have experience and they’ve both done a nice job of moving the offense. I think Nussmeier, because of kind of the flow of the last couple years has had an opportunity to play significant snaps and really play at some meaningful times.”
The name should sound familiar to Florida fans. Garrett’s father, Doug Nussmeier was Florida’s offensive coordinator from 2015-17. Garrett Nussmeier doesn’t have the experience that Daniels does, but Napier was complimentary of the backup on Wednesday.
“They both do a good job of making decisions, distributing the ball,” Napier said. “Obviously I think Jayden has played as well as any player in the country this year and had some really impressive performances. Jayden’s ability to run I think is the great equalizer. I know I mentioned that earlier.
“But Nussmeier is, he knows the system, he’s accumulated reps in the system and they just have a fantastic front and skill players around him. Either way, there’s a great challenge here and one that’s going to require us to be at our absolute best.”
