Bryan's Stock on Rise Heading Into Georgia Game
Gators defensive lineman Taven Bryan gained national attention after his career-best game on Oct. 14 against Texas A&M.
http://floridagators.com/news/2017/10/25/scott-carter-player-to-watch-taven-bryan.aspx
GAINESVILLE, Fla. -- Florida's Wyoming Wildman is starting to attract national attention.
In the case of Gators redshirt junior defensive tackle
Taven Bryan, that's a good thing. A very good thing considering Bryan is draft eligible and is having the best season of his UF career.
#Chomp pic.twitter.com/XSE6mEgRhZ
— PFF College Football (@PFF_College)
October 25, 2017
If I've written this once the past four years, I've written it a dozen times: Bryan has always had the physical tools to be a dominant man-child in the middle of the Gators' defensive line. We finally saw what potential transformed into production means on the field in Florida's loss to Texas A&M.
Bryan had easily the best game of his college career, running over, around and through Aggie offensive linemen to finish with a career-high seven tackles and 1.5 sacks.
Why did Bryan finally have the kind of dominant game we've all waited on from him? Opportunity + preparation.
Bryan had to wait his turn with the Gators, in part because of talented players such as
Caleb Brantley ahead of him on the depth chart. Bryan also admittedly had a lot to learn when he first arrived at UF in the spring of 2014 from Casper, Wyo.
"I never watched football,''
Bryan said then. "I was always outside hunting and fishing and stuff."
Bryan redshirted in 2014 and then was eased into the defensive line rotation the past two years, registering 26 tackles and 4.5 tackles for loss. Bryan enters Saturday's game against No. 3-ranked Georgia with a career-high 20 tackles and three sacks, totals the Gators hope Bryan adds to significantly the rest of the season.
A good time to start would be against the Bulldogs, who feature perhaps the nation's top 1-2 running back tandem in Nick Chubb and Sony Michel. The duo has gained 1,180 yards and scored 14 touchdowns through seven games.
Bryan's breakout performance against Texas A&M did not go unnoticed outside Gainesville city limits.
In its
midseason NFL mock draft,
CBSSports.com has Bryan going in the first round (15th overall) to the Tennessee Titans.
Get to know this name. Bryan is a 6-foot-5, 293-pound havoc-wreaker at multiple defensive line positions. He has long arms that he knows how to use to beat offensive linemen, a nice burst off the snap, and enough strength to win with power on occasion. If he has a standout combine, Bryan's stock could soar, and the
Titans could use an injection of youth to their edge-rushing unit. --
CBSSports.com
While it's way too early in the draft process to have an accurate gauge of Bryan's draft stock, he is clearly a player on the rise. Bryan's performance against the Aggies has more than Florida fans talking about the Wyoming Wildman for a change.