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Published Nov 26, 2021
Third-and-Lang: On UF's Anthony Richardson, plus Jordan Travis' development
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Tom Lang
Director of Original Content, Warchant.com

Are your stomachs still full, or is there room in there somewhere for one more round of FSU football analysis?

If there is -- and we hope everyone had a Happy and safe Thanksgiving -- let’s look at the FSU-UF matchup through the eyes of the quarterbacks. Reports circulated around Gainesville late Tuesday night that Emory Jones suffered an injury and would be unavailable on Saturday. Then more followed that the explosive Anthony Richardson would be the starter.

So what does Richardson bring to the table? And what about the exponential growth in Jordan Travis' game? Let’s get right to this week’s Third-and-Lang:

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Anthony Richardson - Feast

Breathtaking athleticism is why many in the Gator fanbase called for Richardson to be the guy this fall. The 6-foot-4, 236-pound freshman can really run -- Richardson has racked up 374 rushing yards on just 40 carries -- so a defense has to account for him in the traditional run game.

The threat of Richardson's legs make for another level of headache too, as theses two plays against USF show:

Bring pressure on Richardson, and you had better get the 2020 Rivals four-star prospect on the ground. If not, he will outrun most linebackers for a big gain. The good news for the Seminoles is they are coming off of battling a similarly bulky and tough-to-wrangle Phil Jurkovec. Richardson's "goodbye" speed, however, is an extra danger this week.

Here, the threat of the run combined with a sell-job on the perimeter screen combine for an easy shot play downfield. No matter if it's Dan Mullen or a fan in the stands calling plays on Saturday, Florida State linebackers and safeties will be put in conflict by the Gators' dual-threat quarterback. Among other things, they need to be alert of Richardson's jab-step when they have a coverage responsibility.

Here is another example of how Florida tests eye discipline:

In a very similar concept to the kind that Mike Norvell and Kenny Dillingham dial up, this RPO look involves a pulling guard to draw the eyes (and feet) of second-level defenders. The lead back to Richardson's left appears to be blocking for an outside run but instead is a receiver all the way.

Adam Fuller's defense has seen a lot of this kind of offense when it's time for first-team against first-team reps in FSU's practices. It will need to lean on that training this weekend.

Anthony Richardson - Famine

As is the case with many gifted and young players, Richardson can make some head-scratching decisions. Here are two moments against LSU that show Richardson has a tendency to be generous with the football:

Pressure from an edge rusher (who plays the read-option element of this play brilliantly) forces an off-balance, underthrown ball.

Here is the similar story below, except it is pressure from an interior lineman that paves the way for an LSU interception.

If you like volatility, you're going to love this stat. According to Pro Football Focus, among 21 dropbacks in which Richardson faced pressure this season, he is 4-for-16 passing for 126 yards, one touchdown and four interceptions. Pressure from the defense leads to really good things 75 percent of time. The other 25 percent, Florida averages more than 30 yards per completion.

One final note on Richardson, his PFF passing depth chart:

Jordan Travis: Processing + Poise = Polish

One of the best examples of Jordan Travis' growth in Chestnut Hill was wiped away by an erroneous offensive pass interference penalty. Imagine that. But it doesn't take away from Travis flashing both the mental poise and the physical aptitude to get a play right from pre-snap to post-snap.

This GIF ran so long that we needed to split it up into two parts. Here first, Travis waiting out and diagnosing a blitz from the field safety:

Travis calmly assesses the pressure dialed up by Boston College and calls out a shift in his protection. The original play call remains on for the skill position players:

Jordan Wilson does an effective job of carrying two defenders to the breaking point of his route. Travis trusts his protection, stands tall and delivers a ball on time. This play combines what we saw from the Seminoles' signal-caller on 4th-and-14 (poise plus decisiveness) with an alert pre-snap adjustment.

More than ever before, Jordan Travis knows what he is looking at from defenses. A sign of real development.

One final clip, Jordan Travis' favorite route:

There is no doubt that when Travis cuts it loose on a rail or wheel route, good things tend to happen. The important thing to watch on this play is the depth of the receiver's route at the top of the screen, and how it influences the Boston College defender tracking Ontaria Wilson.

The comeback or hitch route creates a pick without contact and is sold well. The sidestep it creates at the 15-yard line is all the leverage Wilson needs to break open. Travis throws a strike. This is excellent coaching in action.

Finally, here's Pro Football Focus' look at the Jordan Travis passing depth chart for the season. Heady stuff here in all but one area, short left.

Contact Tom Lang by email at tom@warchant.com and follow @_TomLang on Twitter.

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Talk about this story with other Florida State football fans in the Tribal Council

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