Will John Brantley Emerge From the Shadow of Tim Tebow?

John Brantley has a lot to prove this year

In the annual spring Florida football game known as Orange Vs Blue, John Brantley looked razor-sharp completing 15 of 19 passes and throwing for 201 yards and a touchdown. This is a good start for a player that will be playing in the shadow of Tim Tebow. Brantley has sat on the bench behind Tim Tebow for three years playing sparingly and learning the system. This year with Tebow in the NFL, Brantley will lead the Florida Gators on a quest for another national championship. Those are some very big shoes to fill.

John Brantley has big shoes to fill

Tim Tebow is considered a legend in Florida football. He will always be remembered and loved by the Florida faithful for what he has done on and off the field. He was almost more loved for his leadership than his actual football talent. There are speeches immortalized on campus and his picture is still plastered all over the Florida Gators website, in short he is considered by some to the best player in Florida football history. So what does that mean for John Brantley?

Unfortunately it means that the comparisons to Tim Tebow will be ongoing throughout the year especially when the season kicks off on September 4^th. It may not be fair because after all they are completely different players, but it will be inevitable. The only way the comparisons will stop is when Brantley wins football games. In my opinion the Florida football fan base may be pleasantly shocked because Brantley has more talent than Tim Tebow.

The first play of the spring game was a flawless 47 yard strike from Brantley to Deonte Thompson displaying his deep ball ability something that Tebow was lacking. Brantley concluded the day with a new Orange and Blue first appearance record, completing 78 percent of his passes (.789) highlighting his accuracy. One game does not make a career, but it is a good sign of things to come. John Brantley is not a freshman either he has plenty of experience.

Last year he played in seven games finishing the season 36-for-48 for 410 yards, seven touchdowns and zero interceptions. He can also move the ball on the ground as he has tallied 67 rushing yards on 13 carries. Overall the redshirt junior quarterback has thrown for 645 yards and 10 touchdowns in 16 games of play as a backup, so his time behind Tebow was not wasted.

John Brantley will be a very good quarterback and will lead the Gators to plenty of wins in his tenure as quarterback. The team is very excited to have a different type of quarterback and it will pay dividends. Who knows maybe the Gators will win the National Championship and everyone will forget about Tim Tebow……yeah, not likely.

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