What Florida fans should know about Tramell Jones as a possible first start looms

Based on how things are looking, there is a fairly decent chance Tramell Jones is going to be the starting QB for Florida this Saturday against Texas as Aaron Philo is dealing with a shoulder injury. It would be th first career start for Jones if he were to get the nod.

Philo is considering a game-time decision for this Saturday.

Tramell Jones could be the starting QB this Saturday against Texas

For those who follow recruiting or the offseason QB battle, the story of Jones has been documented. For those who don’t follow all the offseason storylines, the following is an unofficial introduction.

Jones is a former four-star QB out of Jacksonville. He was originally an FSU commit before he flipped to Florida in 2024. At the time in 2024, we said of Jones:


“He stands tall in the pocket, never feels panicked, and keeps clean mechanics, whether he is throwing a screen or throwing 30+ yards downfield. He is capable of scrambling, though that's not a key component of his game.

What we would say holds him back from us declaring he's a bonafide top 100 player is that he tends to float his passes rather than drive through them. Also, fair or unfair, being 6'0" is a knock against trying to project him at the next level.”

Since arriving on campus, most of that has held true. Jones unexpectedly won the backup job last year behind DJ Lagway and appeared in the opener against LIU and against Kentucky. Once Lagway left, Jones found himself in a QB battle this offseason with Philo.

The irony in our initial scouting report from high school was that we noted he didn't drive the ball, because the core of this offseason's QB battle was Jones's arm strength relative to Philo's. Whether it was practice clips or the spring game itself, Jones felt like the “better” pure QB between the two.

Sumrall himself basically admitted that Jones had better tools than Philo, but that Philo’s knowledge of the offense itself is what won him the job.

While Jones did appear in mop-up duty against FAU and Campbell, Philo was fine in Florida’s first four games, and the debate over the starting QB mostly died down. But even before Philo showed up on the injury report this week, the debate had reopened. As we noted after the South Carolina loss, Philo wasn’t the problem, but he also didn’t feel like the solution.

The hope with Jones is that Florida can unlock a bit more verticality, which could open up the run game that has been stifled these past two games. 

As of now, no official decision has been made, but Jones has been getting first-team reps this week.

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