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The Houston Texans drafted former Florida football quarterback Graham Mertz with the 197th pick of the 2025 NFL draft, surprising draft experts and Gators fans alike.
Mertz was a stabilizing force under center for Billy Napier the past two seasons, particularly in his first year after transferring from the Wisconsin Badgers. While his results on the field were not particularly gaudy, he did manage to put up a sparkling completion percentage while exhibiting extremely robust game-management skills.
Unfortunately, Florida did not see much success in the record books with him calling the plays, but his talents helped fellow players maximize their potential. A great example is wide receiver Ricky Pearsall, who also transferred to Florida and translated his efforts on tandem with Mertz into a first-round draft selection.
The gunslinger originally from Overland Park, Kansas, saw his 2024 campaign cut short by a season-ending injury at the Tennessee Volunteers, which allowed true freshman DJ Lagway to ascend to his current role as the face of the Florida football program. Still, he started five games (while missing Week 2 with a concussion), completing 72-of-94 pass attempts for 791 yards (76.6%), six touchdown passes, one rushing score and two interceptions.
In 2023, Mertz started the first 11 games this season before being sidelined with an injury in the finale. He finished with career-highs in completions (261), passing yards (2,903), touchdown passes (20), completion percentage (72.9), passing yards per game (263.9) and efficiency (157.8) while only throwing three interceptions, marking a career-low and tying his career-best with four rushing scores
The crafty quarterback set UF program records of consecutive passes without an interception (239), consecutive passes completed (19), and season-best completion percentage with 72.9% (261 of 358) in 2023. Mertz also amassed 77 career collegiate touchdowns (64 passing and 13 rushing) between Florida and Wisconsin.
Follow us @GatorsWire on X, formerly known as Twitter, as well as Bluesky, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Florida Gators news, notes and opinions.
This article originally appeared on Gators Wire: NFL draft: Houston Texans select Florida QB Graham Mertz in 6th round
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Mertz was a stabilizing force under center for Billy Napier the past two seasons, particularly in his first year after transferring from the Wisconsin Badgers. While his results on the field were not particularly gaudy, he did manage to put up a sparkling completion percentage while exhibiting extremely robust game-management skills.
Unfortunately, Florida did not see much success in the record books with him calling the plays, but his talents helped fellow players maximize their potential. A great example is wide receiver Ricky Pearsall, who also transferred to Florida and translated his efforts on tandem with Mertz into a first-round draft selection.
The gunslinger originally from Overland Park, Kansas, saw his 2024 campaign cut short by a season-ending injury at the Tennessee Volunteers, which allowed true freshman DJ Lagway to ascend to his current role as the face of the Florida football program. Still, he started five games (while missing Week 2 with a concussion), completing 72-of-94 pass attempts for 791 yards (76.6%), six touchdown passes, one rushing score and two interceptions.
In 2023, Mertz started the first 11 games this season before being sidelined with an injury in the finale. He finished with career-highs in completions (261), passing yards (2,903), touchdown passes (20), completion percentage (72.9), passing yards per game (263.9) and efficiency (157.8) while only throwing three interceptions, marking a career-low and tying his career-best with four rushing scores
The crafty quarterback set UF program records of consecutive passes without an interception (239), consecutive passes completed (19), and season-best completion percentage with 72.9% (261 of 358) in 2023. Mertz also amassed 77 career collegiate touchdowns (64 passing and 13 rushing) between Florida and Wisconsin.
Follow us @GatorsWire on X, formerly known as Twitter, as well as Bluesky, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Florida Gators news, notes and opinions.
This article originally appeared on Gators Wire: NFL draft: Houston Texans select Florida QB Graham Mertz in 6th round
Continue reading...
