Florida's Graham Mertz promoted to Davey O’Brien QB Class of 2023
On Tuesday afternoon, Florida quarterback Graham Mertz received more national recognition for his strong play throughout the 2023 season.
The Wisconsin transfer is posting career numbers during his first season with the Gators and has now been promoted from the Davey O’Brien National Quarterback Award’s Midseason Watch List to the Davey O’Brien Quarterback Class of 2023.
This list features 30-plus quarterbacks who remain in the running for the Davey O’Brien Award.
A native of Overland Park, Kansas, Mertz has completed 195-of-257 passes for 2,127 yards, 14 touchdowns and just two interceptions. His completion percentage of 75.9 leads the SEC and ranks third in the FBS.
Mertz is the first Gators quarterback to kick off the season with six-consecutive performances with a completion percentage above 70 percent. He is also one of 11 UF quarterbacks to throw for 400 yards in a single game. That happened on the road against South Carolina and resulted in SEC Offensive Player of the Week honors.
In that victory over the Gamecocks, Mertz completed 30-of-48 passes for 423 yards, three touchdowns and no interceptions. He led a pair 75-yard touchdown drives in the fourth quarter and the game-winning drive with less than three minutes left on the clock.
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The history behind the Davey O’Brien Award
The Davey O’Brien Foundation was created in 1977, and the National Quarterback Award, the oldest and most prestigious college quarterback award, was first issued in 1981.
In 1938, O’Brien, who wore No. 8 as a star quarterback for TCU, became the first player ever to win the Heisman Trophy, Maxwell Award and Walter Camp Award in the same year. He was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1955.
Over its time, the Davey O’Brien Foundation has given away more than $1.2 million in scholarships and university grants to help high school and college athletes transform leadership on the field into leadership in life.
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