GAINESVILLE, Fla. – On Wednesday Oct. 12 2016, Will Grier will be free in the eyes of the NCAA. His year-long suspension as punishment for failing a test for a banned substance will end. If he were available, he would be ready to suit up and lead Florida against Missouri, but he’s no longer a Gator.

Back in Gainesville, Grier is something of a sore subject. He was the quarterback for the two biggest victories of Jim McElwain’s tenure, the 28-27 thriller over Tennessee and the 38-10 thumping of Ole Miss. After the big win over the Rebels, Grier led the Gators to a forgettable 21-3 win at Missouri.

The Gators were 6-0, ranked No. 8 and rising. And then it was all over.

Outside of last year’s Georgia game, in which Mark Richt started his third-string quarterback to shake things up, the Gators haven’t had a truly big win since Grier was suspended. The 2015 season ended with three miserable losses, and many fans and media members blamed those losses directly on the quarterback situation.

It’s hard to not think about what might have been with Grier at quarterback for the full 2015 season. The Gators had an incredibly talented defense with six starters now in the NFL. Kelvin Taylor was a 1,000-yard rusher. The passing game not only had Antonio Callaway, but Demarcus Robinson and Jake McGee led an excellent supporting cast. With Grier, there’s seemingly no way UF would have been outscored 97-24 in its final three games of 2015.

In 2016, the Grier era, as brief as it was, is still a sign of what might be. For the most part, the Gators offense has underwhelmed in the post-Grier period (13 games). And for some fans, it has looked a little bit too much like the offense from the Will Muschamp era, often struggling to crack the 30-point barrier.

It’s easy to forget, but in December 2014, coach Jim McElwain inherited one of the most undesirable quarterback depth charts imaginable. The Gators had only two scholarship quarterbacks, Grier and Treon Harris. McElwain did his best to boost the quarterback depth chart by seeking graduate transfers Josh Grady from Vanderbilt and Luke Del Rio from Oregon State.

McElwain’s quarterback situation became a headache again in December 2015. While official statements made by the two parties vary, one can piece together that Grier transferred because McElwain refused to guarantee that the quarterback would have the starting job in Week 7, this Saturday against Mizzou.

This week, there will likely be some fans who wish that McElwain had made the guarantee. Grier would almost certainly beat out Del Rio and Austin Appleby, who have started the first five games. And with Grier, there would be reason to feel more confident about the Gators’ chances against Georgia, Arkansas, LSU and FSU.

That’s not to say all hope is lost with Del Rio. The two-time transfer could very well get the offense humming back to the way it was a year ago with the redshirt freshman quarterback from Davidson, N.C. Del Rio certainly understands the playbook, and he’s undoubtedly a better fit for McElwain’s system than Harris was.

McElwain began recruiting Del Rio when the quarterback was in eighth grade, clearly believing in his talents. The big question, however, has always been whether Del Rio had SEC-caliber talent. He walked on at Alabama, and transferred to Oregon State before winding up at Florida.

Grier has proven he has SEC talent. And by the looks of the highlight tape, freshman Feleipe Franks has that raw talent too. In the spring game, Kyle Trask showed that he has the arm and the mechanics of an SEC passer.

For now, Gators fans hope that Del Rio is the key to getting the McElwain offense to fire on all cylinders like it did for those two magical games with Grier as the signal-caller.

The Gators have seen the offense occasionally flash from Del Rio, but only the Kentucky game, a 45-7 victory, can truly be pointed to as an impressive outing in 2016. And if not Del Rio, then Franks or Trask might be the answer in 2017 or later.

Grier, of course, will be in another huddle, leading another team toward the end zone.

Until the offense truly looks like it can drive the field when it needs a score, Gators fans can only wonder what might have been with Grier.