Florida settles on starting QB while Oklahoma still ponders John Mateer ahead of meeting

The Florida Gators have figured out their quarterback situation before hosting the Oklahoma Sooners this weekend. The Sooners, though, still have not.

CBS Sports national college football senior reporter Matt Zenitz reported on Thursday that Florida is expected to switch from Aaron Philo to Tramell Jones as its starting quarterback against OU on Saturday night. That's the kind of news that will have Sooner Nation jealous of Florida fans, since most OU fans have been anticipating that notification about the Sooners changing quarterbacks.

Tramell Jones will start for Florida, but Brent Venables won't commit to OU's starter

Zenits actually reported the opposite about OU earlier this week, when he said on Monday that the Sooners are still expected to start Mateer, even after firing offensive coordinator Ben Arbuckle, who brought Mateer with him from Washington State ahead of last season.

That report will likely be proven accurate, but OU's quarterback situation is a bigger question mark than ever since head coach Brent Venables said during Tuesday's weekly press conference that "Everything's on the table" when asked if the plan was to start Mateer. The other options are Whitt Newbauer and Bowe Bentley, but neither has taken a meaningful snap yet.

If not for Mateer's turnover problems and obvious struggles, you could blame gamesmanship for Venables being tight-lipped about the Sooners' situation. He even agreed that there are difficulties in planning for Florida while preparing for two different quarterbacks.

"They're both very good players," Venables said. "I think, systematically, they ask them to do similar things. Philo's had more experience in the system, coming with Buster Faulkner from Georgia Tech. Both can run. Both are excellent throwers. They put the quarterback on the move and put a ton of pocket movement. They both throw the ball really, really well."

Saturday will just be Jones' second start this season. He led the Gators to an upset over Texas in Austin in his first start two weeks ago.

Even after Jones helped take down the Longhorns, though, head coach Jon Sumrall still went with Philo against Georgia last week, favoring experience in the big-time rivalry game. That didn't last long, though, as Sumrall pulled Philo in the second quarter after throwing a second interception.

Philo followed offensive coordinator Buster Faulkner from Georgia Tech, but that familiarity hasn't meant much success in the SEC (sound familiar?). He's completed 70.5% of his passes for 1,367 yards and nine touchdowns with five interceptions. He also has three rushing TDs.

Unlike Venables, though, Sumrall finally made the decision to move on from the veteran transfer and try a younger quarterback instead of continuing to trot out Philo with the offense stuttering. Jones has completed 70.8% of his passes for 579 yards and four touchdowns with three interceptions this season. He's also rushed for 77 yards and another score.

Jones wasn't exactly good against Georgia, though, completing 18 of 25 passes for 172 yards and an interception. But he did reach the end zone with his legs.

That's also still a lot better than what Mateer accomplished against Georgia. He turned the ball over in three straight possessions during the second quarter, but even then, with the Sooners down 28-0 at halftime, Venables and Arbuckle still left Mateer in the game for every single offensive snap.

Jones will get another opportunity to prove himself on Saturday, but who knows when Newbauer or Bentley will get their chance.

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