Appleby Enjoying Every Moment as Starting Quarterback

Following a close, defensive battle against Vanderbilt that resulted in a 13-6 win, Luke Del Rio was re-inserted into the starting lineup after returning from a knee injury. It seemed unlikely that Austin Appleby would get another chance to start for the rest of the season.

Fast forward almost two months later, and Appleby finds him himself in the starting role.  Not only that, but he’s led the Gators to back-to-back wins, including a wild one in Baton Rouge against LSU. The win clinched the SEC East and will send the Gators back to Atlanta for the SEC Championship Game.

Appleby’s Appreciation

Appleby says he couldn’t have imagined being this situation, and that he’s cherishing every second of starting for the SEC East champions.

And he should.

Appleby became the first quarterback to lead Florida to a win in Death Valley since Tim Tebow did it back in 2009. While only completing seven passes, he completed the biggest one of the game, a 98 yard strike to Tyrie Cleveland that swung momentum in Florida’s favor and helped the Gators pull off the upset. He said he enjoyed celebrating the win with his teammates despite being considered big underdogs by most of the experts.

From our own two yard line…one play changed the entire course of the game. #ClevelandRocks #UFvsLSU #GatorsWin pic.twitter.com/FZoFxllT9T

— Gators Football (@GatorsFB) November 20, 2016

Now Appleby gets to lead his team against two more vaunted defenses, Florida State and Alabama. Appleby cited the elite pass rushes that both teams have, saying Florida is going to “have our hands full” trying to contain those two units. However, he hopes the Gators can continue the momentum from their win over LSU. He hopes “the flood gates open for us and we can take this momentum and take it going forward.”

He’ll be relying on the rest of his offense to help keep up what they’ve built in their past two victories. Especially impressive in the recent run of success has been the strong play of the offensive line, despite some injuries.

The workhorse displays from Jordan Scarlett have also been key. Scarlett has gone over 100 rush yards 3 of the past 5 games, and in each of the past two.

Appleby says he’s proud of the way the entire offense has contributed to the success, from the receivers and the o-line to the hard running of Scarlett and Lamical Perine.

The Gators will ride the two backs, Appleby’s arm, and the momentum of the past two weeks into the their rivalry matchup against Florida State. While Florida hasn’t won the Sunshine Showdown since 2012, and they’ve been inconsistent in terms of winning consecutive big games, Appleby believes the team just needs to “stay hungry”. He says the team will be ready for the challenge FSU presents, as it’s an opportunity for the team to “increase our resume.”

Appleby says he always dreamed of coming to Florida ever since he was a little kid.

He’ll have Florida fans dreaming if he can continue leading these Gators to big wins.