There’s no bigger question for the Florida Gators right now than what they’ll decide to do with the quarterback position.

Following an abysmal performance against Alabama, redshirt junior quarterback Jeff Driskel was once again on the chopping block by Florida fans. Driskel has never made things look easy even when he was at his best in 2012, leading to the mob of Orange and Blue faithful and even a Gator football legend calling for Treon Harris, a true freshman dual-threat quarterback to replace him.

No matter how loud the fans get, Muschamp made it clear Wednesday during his press conference that’ll no imminent changes will be made at starting quarterback. He’s sticking with Driskel.

“Jeff needs to play better and I think he’ll be the first person to tell you that,” Muschamp said. “I thought he forced four or five balls in situations that you check the ball down, you take the ball somewhere else. He had four drops that I thought were all critcial downs, especially the second or third series of the game. You got a third-down conversion, the ball is on the money, you have to catch the ball. We had four drops, I mean that’s hard.”

RELATED: Inside the Numbers: Driskel struggling to complete passes

But is that the right decision? The Gators current plan doesn’t seem to be working well enough with Driskel leading the offense. So Muschamp needs to sit Driskel, right?

Wrong.

Let me clarify by saying there’s really no excuse for how poorly Driskel played last weekend at times how uncomfortable he looked against Kentucky two weeks ago. Yes, the wide receivers haven’t helped him out much, dropping some catchable balls. But for the most part, Driskel hasn’t made the throws he needs to be successful. He hasn’t had the look of a fourth-year quarterback.

But now is certainly not the time to make a quarterback change for the Gators.

Fans calling for a change seem to believe the final nail in the coffin for Driskel was his performance against Alabama – 9-of-28, 93 yards, one touchdown and two interceptions. Certainly, not a day Driskel wants to remember. But if you look at the bigger picture, is a bad performance on the road against the No. 3 ranked Alabama Crimson Tide, who currently boasts the SEC’s top defense, really worth making a change at quarterback to a true freshman with no collegiate experience?

It sounds like a rash decision, an overreaction.

There are some things Treon Harris can do well. Heck, he threw two touchdowns on two passes against Eastern Michigan. Reports out of fall camp suggest Harris possessed great decision-making and his dual-threat ability stood out as well.

This essentially tells us two things: he can throw against Eastern Michigan’s backup defense and he looks good against the Gators’ defense. With the way Florida’s defense has looked, I’m not so sure that’s a great accomplishment, either.

However, Muschamp understands that Harris can provide the offense with some change-of-pace and give opposing defenses different looks.

“He continues to improve and continues to do some nice things,” Muschamp said about his backup quarterback. “We’d like to have him get some snaps, depending on the situation in the game. But he had a good day [of practice] Tuesday, I’m very pleased with some things he did.”

“But Jeff gives us the best opportunity to win right now.”

RELATED: Emmitt Smith regrets Driskel tweet, apologizes to Gators

And Muschamp is right. There was never any sort of quarterback competition over the summer and fall camp. As great as Harris looked, there was never any actual push from Harris to compete for Driskel’s starting job. It’s not like there’s a Jacoby Brissett on the depth chart or some other upperclassman waiting in the wings.

More than likely, Muschamp is fighting for his UF coaching career this season. Can you blame him if he wants to risk his coaching fate on an experienced starting quarterback and hopes he fixes his mistakes instead of relying on a true freshman to navigate a remaining schedule that features four teams currently ranked, including the current No. 1 team? I sure can’t.

Now, if Driskel continues to struggle against teams like Tennessee, LSU and Missouri over the Gators’ next three games, then he may force Muschamp’s hand and the Gators’ head coach will probably need to make some sort of change.

But for now, put down your pitchforks Gator fans. Florida faces three of the four ranked teams on remaining on its schedule at The Swamp or at a neutral-site. Of the Gators’ remaining SEC games, only one team ranks higher than 44th nationally in pass defense – LSU.

Pass defense rankings (nationally)

  • Tennessee – No. 45
  • LSU – No. 8
  • Missouri – No. 76
  • Georgia – No. 46
  • Vanderbilt – No. 101
  • South Carolina – No. 119

 

If Driskel really is as bad as fans claim, he’ll show it against those teams, not against one of the nation’s top-five defenses on the road.

Let’s see how he responds in the coming weeks before you completely throw in the towel on No. 6.