Spring Practice info: another spring in the books for UF football

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maheo30

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Personally, I'm shocked a 5'9 170lb and a 5'11 179lb corner can't see the field at UF. Who knew? Every recruiting service in the country missed (sarcasm). Genius Mac strikes again.

:banghead::banghead::banghead:
 

BMF

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Wasn't sure where to put this, but this is the Game 3 opponent this season....the McElwain Pay-Back Game (smh):



QB trouble in Fort Collins
Tough news for Colorado State third-year QB Collin Hill, who tore the ACL in his left knee last week, after suffering the same injury in the 2016 season and redshirting in 2017. This new tear, according to a school news release, came while playing basketball.

Don’t mean to be callous or make an example here, but looking down the road to a world in which archaic agent and name, image and likeness rules are finally deregulated, this news has me wondering how college athletes might eventually approach their non-scholarship-sport time with potential extra money readily available. We have seen too many pro athletes forfeit their fortunes over obscure off-the-field contract violations in the past. (And I am having flashbacks to my high school’s football coach throwing a fit over any of his players shooting around in-season.)

In the meantime, the Rams, who open spring ball March 19, could be forced to go the grad transfer route. Their next-most-experienced QB, redshirt junior J.C. Robles, has seen only mop-up duty during his time at Colorado State.
 

Swamp Donkey

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Or move over some failed WR's!! :D
200w.gif
 

Gator Fever

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:rolleyes4:

There isn't a competent passing team on our schedule. We could draft band members and be ok at DB.

Sometimes Missouri can a little but they didn't have to against us after rushing for well over 200 yards.
 

BMF

Bad Mother....
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Sometimes Missouri can a little but they didn't have to against us after rushing for well over 200 yards.

Missouri is the best passing team on our schedule....and they have a legitimate QB. Derek Dooley is calling the plays this year, so that will be something to watch (how much he changes what they did last year).
 

Acecustis

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Sep 25, 2017
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Fred is doing work, he just isnt talented.

Jordan.... I just don't get it. At one point he looked like a future Superstar and was arguably the best lineman as a true freshman. he's been in a free-fall since then.

A player the caliber of Fred Johnson being basically a 4 year starter at the University of Florida is an embarrassment
 

BMF

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Spring Preview: UF needs surge from 2nd-year starting safeties
GatorBait.net previews the safety position ahead of spring practice, with a number of players likely in contention for the two starting spots.

https://florida.247sports.com/Bolt/...rge-from-2nd-year-starting-safeties-116281977

GAINESVILLE, Fla. -- Florida players are returning from spring break this week after taking a bit of time off between a grueling stretch of strength and conditioning and the beginning of spring practice. With spring ball set to begin on Friday, GatorBait.net takes a look at each position to provide you with our three top questions, how we think the depth chart will turn out following spring ball and more.

___________
Safety
___________

THREE KEY QUESTIONS

*** Which version of Chauncey Gardner-Johnson and Jeawon Taylor will Florida get?

There was a seriously noticeable difference in the play of these two from the first half of the 2017 season to the second half. For one, Taylor was further down the depth chart and didn't play a whole lot. Gardner-Johnson couldn't take down a tackling dummy in the first half of the season. But he really locked in and played much, much better down the stretch. In a scheme that should provide him more flexibility to rely on his eyes and athleticism to read and react, he should thrive. Taylor will likely be put into a position where he plays more toward the box, where he emerged as a strong tackler late last season.

*** How will Florida use Brad Stewart?

We didn't list Stewart among the possibilities at the nickelback position when we previewed the cornerbacks yesterday, but he could be. The reason we have him at safety right now is because we don't have a whole lot of confidence in Davis and Lenton at this point, and Florida needs another safety who has some range and can roam in the back end. Stewart, though a solid player physically who can tackle, does fit that mold. With freshman Amari Burney being more likely to play in the box, Stewart seems most likely to emerge as a third key safety to complement Gardner-Johnson and Taylor.

*** How much will the scheme change benefit the safeties?

With a young secondary last year, Florida's scheme really did very little to help the young guys out. The Gators rarely blitzed, opting to sit back and essentially try to simply out-talent teams. The secondary looked overwhelmed early in the season and opposing quarterbacks were often able to pick apart zone coverage due to the lack of consistent pass rush. There will be a significant change in defensive philosophy this fall; in fact, it's hard to imagine two more polar opposite systems than Randy Shannon's and Todd Grantham's. If the front seven can pressure the passer routinely, the safeties should benefit and could come away with a lot of takeaways next fall.
___________

HOW WE PROJECT THE POST-SPRING DEPTH CHART

Strong Safety:

Jeawon Taylor, JR
Amari Burney, FR
Quincy Lenton, RSO

Free Safety:

Chauncey Gardner-Johnson, JR
Brad Stewart, SO
Shawn Davis, SO

Explanation: The depth chart at safety looks pretty good, to be honest. Gardner-Johnson played much better football at the end of the year last season, while Taylor also showed signs he was starting to turn the corner. Add talented sophomore Brad Stewart to the mix, along with promising true freshman Amari Burney, and Florida should definitely be able to find at least three guys that can play in this group.
___________

WHAT WE WANT TO SEE

We like the potential of a lot of guys here. Gardner-Johnson can be a star in the SEC, despite his rough start last year. Taylor can be a very solid starter with his size and physicality. Stewart and Burney both have very promising careers ahead of them. But none, including Gardner-Johnson, are really all that proven right now.

Spring will be about finding three guys that can really play, with at least one of them emerging as a real vocal and cerebral leader. Gardner-Johnson seems most likely to fill the vocal role. Can he also get down the communication aspect in the secondary? The safeties will be tasked with making sure everyone's on the same page in the back end. We want to see how disciplined and coordinated they can keep the defense this spring.

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BMF

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Mullen thinks four-star Watkins will play defense first
Florida four-star signee Justin Watkins won't arrive on campus until this summer, but coach Dan Mullen thinks he'll start off playing cornerback when he arrives.

https://florida.247sports.com/Bolt/...tar-Watkins-will-play-defense-first-116267585

GAINESVILLE, Fla. -- One of Florida's bigger question marks this spring is who will step in to provide some depth at cornerback behind proven starters Marco Wilson and C.J. Henderson.

None of the returning players on the current roster have done much, but a guy who will arrive this fall could make an impact there.

For now, coach Dan Mullen envisions four-star athlete Justin Watkins starting his career on the defensive side of the ball at cornerback. Watkins was rated as the No. 89 overall player in the country and was the fourth-highest rated prospect in Florida's 2018 signing class.

"Justin and I talked the other day. I think he might start at corner," coach Dan Mullen said. "That’s changed here or there, a couple different times. One of the things I told him -- I said, 'hey, we come to meetings, you get here the first day, you split into positional meetings. Where are you going to go?

"(He's) like, 'Wherever you want me to go, coach.' I’m not going to tell you where to go. I want to see where you feel most comfortable. When you look at a guy that’s a phenomenal athlete and has all the positional flexibility he has, I kind of say: where do you feel most comfortable?"

So it's certainly not set in stone that Watkins will be a cornerback, and whether he is could partly be determined based on how spring football plays out. If the Gators have unexpected contributors emerge at cornerback, perhaps he gets a look at receiver.

That could also happen if transfers Van Jefferson and/or Trevon Grimes aren't able to get an immediate eligibility waiver.

But if there aren't pressing needs at either position, Mullen sounds like he'll leave it up to Watkins ultimately.

"What we’ll do is, we’ll see what you do, what your ability and talent is, where that best fits the system," Mullen said. "For me to sit there and say, I think he’s going to be great at this position -- I’ve done that before, and I don’t look real smart at times. This guy, we recruit – we’re going to recruit him to be a corner, and they’re just absolutely terrible. And then, so we end up moving him to slot receiver, and he’s a great player. We recruit a guy to be a running back, and he’s a big-time free safety. I’ve had players before that think they’re a big-time running back, but they’re not. But they’re a big-time outside linebacker."

In other words, the expectation is that Watkins will figure into the defensive numbers, but Mullen won't get locked into that if Watkins isn't happy with it or he's not playing well there.

"I think a lot of that, once they get on the field it makes it easier, because you want to put them in a position to be the most successful," Mullen said. "But the last conversation I had with him the other day, he said he wants to start at corner, but that’s changed a couple times, and it’s still only March. Depends on what he had for breakfast this morning."

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Swamp Donkey

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Speak of the devil....


Jesus, did he get hurt while practicing in a no contact redshirt (after not playing for seven years) again?
 
Last edited:

lizardbreath

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Nov 5, 2016
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Personally, I'm shocked a 5'9 170lb and a 5'11 179lb corner can't see the field at UF. Who knew? Every recruiting service in the country missed (sarcasm). Genius Mac strikes again.

:banghead::banghead::banghead:

I know I sound like a broken record, but if McElweenie isn't the lamest excuse for a HC I've seen in the SEC in recent years, who the hell is? I know, Zook and Muschamp deserve dishonorable mentions - but at least they looked like FB coaches (maybe it was the socks).
 

maheo30

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Speak of the devil....



If it were based purely on physical ability then I'd say yes. He's got the best mechanics on the team by far. They are flawless. He can make every throw and has excellent touch. However, experience matters. The dude has not played much. To make matters worse, all the reporting on Trask is he is an extreme introvert. So much so it affected his play on the field. I think Franks and EJ are the guys this year. When it comes to Trask, I'll believe it when I see it.
 

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