Florida quarterback Austin Appleby is taking a Tennessee fan’s GoFundMe account in stride.
Appleby is set to start at QB for Florida on Saturday vs. the Volunteers because of Luke Del Rio’s MCL sprain. An enterprising Tennessee fan set up a GoFundMe page for Appleby’s “funeral” on Saturday, though the page no longer exists. We are (not really) incredulous that it could have been deleted.
“They’re having a little bit of fun,” Appleby said via SEC Country. “I’d love to get my hands on the GoFundMe if it’s NCAA approved. If they can get me some cash, that’d be awesome. I can use it. I’m getting hungry, plus I can pay for freaking gas for my scooter. But no, it’s fun. It’s all good.”
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Appleby is of course joking about taking the money; we can’t imagine any way the NCAA would let him have it. And with the GoFundMe now deleted, it’s a moot point anyway.
The Purdue transfer is making his first start for the Gators after Del Rio suffered the knee injury in a Week 3 win over North Texas. Appleby was 119-207 passing for 1,260 yards, eight touchdowns and eight interceptions for the Boilermakers in 2015. The year before he was 144-272 passing for 1,449 yards, 10 touchdowns and 11 interceptions.
The winner of the game gets a head start in what looks to be a wide-open SEC East. Georgia needed a fourth-down touchdown with less than two minutes left to beat Missouri in Week 3 and Tennessee is dealing with injuries to key players too. The Vols will be without DB Cam Sutton, who fractured a bone in his ankle vs. Ohio.
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Nick Bromberg is the assistant editor of Dr. Saturday on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at nickbromberg@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!
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