TALLAHASSEE, Fla. -- Has there been a more bizarre career trajectory than the one current Florida quarterback Feleipe Franks is on, with no clear idea where it might end up?

After being thrown into the fire a year ago as a redshirt freshman, Franks became the de-facto punching bag for a fanbase starving for functional offense and better quarterback play. Even as Florida raced out to a 6-1 start to the season in 2018 there were the constant grumblings about Franks' play.

Now, after a 9-3 regular season in which Franks became the first quarterback at Florida to start in every single game since Tim Tebow in 2009, here's where we sit.

Franks has gone 175-of-299 passing for 2,284 yards and 23 touchdowns, while throwing only six interceptions. He's also added six scores on the ground, adding 276 yards rushing. Of the quarterbacks that have played for Florida since Tim Tebow, the most touchdowns any accounted for in a single season was Jeff Driskel, with 16 in 2012. Franks has 29, yet he has endured loud boos at home games (South Carolina) and questions linger in the fanbase about his future as the starter.

"We talk about it all the time, I said the opinion that matters is the one that’s in the (quarterback meeting) room," coach Dan Mullen said.

That opinion has been firm and steadfast since Mullen arrived on Day 1.

"You don’t have to look over your shoulder," Mullen told Franks. "We’re going to believe in you, we’re going to give you confidence and if you go out there and throw picks, we’re not going to pull you. What you need to do, you’re only going to take a seat if you start whining or get like droopy-faced or not confident, or not coming off the sideline trying to learn and get better. And I think once he understood that, as the season went, he did really well."

The numbers really don't lie.

Sure, there's something to be said for the eye test. Franks doesn't always see an open receiver. He doesn't always get the ball out quite on time. There are still some mistakes here and there.

But the facts are that he's been the guy at quarterback for an offense that has made a remarkable statistical turnaround. Remarkable.

"It’s all really Feleipe and his mindset," receiver Van Jefferson said.

That mindset has been to simply keep working and keep improving. For a player getting constantly lambasted by fans and media alike, doing that isn't always easy. Franks has rubbed some the wrong way by shushing his own fans or his sometimes seemingly care-free attitude and approach.

He's getting the job done, though. That's a huge credit to Mullen, but also to Franks.

"I think he’s meant, just developmental-wise, he’s helped develop me from last year going through trials and tribulations and just now being able to be older and know what to expect coming to a college game, know how to handle certain situations when things aren’t going your way and just keep on pushing," Franks said.

"I think that’s what I did really good at. Coach Mullen and coach (Brian) Johnson have helped me a lot with that, just keeping my mind straight and on track, and it’s helped me out a lot."

Like everything in the program with Mullen taking over, development has been a process.

Franks soaked in way too much social media a year ago, when the hate was flying fast and furious. Even now, it's clear he still occasionally hears what's being said about him. After all, boos in your own stadium are fairly hard to ignore.

His reads, speed through progressions, deep-ball accuracy, touch on passes, those are all things fans have focused on as weak spots in Franks' game. What was perhaps the biggest weakness of all is something that hasn't been talked about much, though.

Franks has managed to either tune out the outside noise or dial it in and use it in a productive manner. That's no small feat. It's definitely not something well he did in his redshirt freshman season or even early on in 2018 under Mullen.

"When you’re 20 years old that’s hard to understand and grasp sometimes," Mullen said. "I don’t leave the office a whole lot so I don’t understand (what's being said out there). I don’t know the opinion that’s always out there. But when you’re a young guy, you’re out there looking at that stuff."

That Franks has managed to handle that is impressive.

Just like his 16-of-26 passing day at Florida State, with Franks accounting for 254 yards passing and three touchdowns. Those are the kind of outings Florida fans wouldn't have seen out of the redshirt freshman a year ago.

Mullen knows that even performances like that won't quiet all the doubters. But if Franks can just keep managing to focus on the important things... who knows? Maybe his numbers can improve even more.

After all, the Florida head coach has a history of developing some pretty good quarterbacks. Some of them with a far lower skill set than Franks'.

"I know it’s tough to play quarterback at the University of Florida," Mullen said. "Everybody’s got pretty high standards. But first year in this system, as a sophomore, he’s put up some pretty good numbers this year."