- Oct 15, 2014
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Fall Practice
- Thread starter GatorJ
- Start date
- Jun 11, 2014
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- Jun 13, 2014
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I think we are going to get about what you see on tape with Zaire at ND. He at least protected the ball in his limited playing time there. His receivers here will be better however.
chferg
#CousinEddieTime
- Aug 5, 2014
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The best offensive show on TV this season. So we will be like the 99 - early 2,000s St Louis Rams offense. I like the confidence however.
What a time to be alive...
Some of the most fun I had watching my home-state team; Warner, Faulk, Bruce, Holt, etc...amazing
- Jun 11, 2014
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How the heck do we injure backs during practice without pads?
Gator2222
Well-Known Member
- Nov 25, 2016
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http://www.tampabay.com/blogs/gator...k-zaire-gets-floridas-first-team-reps/2332578
GAINESVILLE - Feleipe Franks was the Florida Gators' first-team quarterback for the first few moments of the first practice of the fall.
Whether that will continue beyond today (or beyond the few moments of practice open to reporters) remains to be seen.
Malik Zaire made his Gators debut. His roster size (6-foot, 225 pounds) seems a little generous, but he looked quick, even in passing drills. I counted six overthrown passes, but neither Franks nor Luke Del Rio looked particularly sharp, either.
We'll pause here to repeat a few important facts. First moments of the first practice. I'm not reading much into it.
What I am reading something into: Zaire worked with the veterans, not rookies today. Redshirt freshman Kyle Trask, however, worked with the rookies. It certainly seems as if the quarterback battle is now down to three - Zaire, Del Rio and Franks. Not a surprise, but still worth mentioning.
Two other notes:
One day after coach Jim McElwain said Chauncey Gardner would remain at cornerback, Gardner began practice at safety. The Outback Bowl MVP apparently is a candidate to replace last year's leading tackler, Marcell Harris, who will miss the season with a torn Achilles.
Electric true freshman Kadarius Toney took reps at receiver. He spent the spring at quarterback and could still see time there in specialty packages this season.
GAINESVILLE - Feleipe Franks was the Florida Gators' first-team quarterback for the first few moments of the first practice of the fall.
Whether that will continue beyond today (or beyond the few moments of practice open to reporters) remains to be seen.
Malik Zaire made his Gators debut. His roster size (6-foot, 225 pounds) seems a little generous, but he looked quick, even in passing drills. I counted six overthrown passes, but neither Franks nor Luke Del Rio looked particularly sharp, either.
We'll pause here to repeat a few important facts. First moments of the first practice. I'm not reading much into it.
What I am reading something into: Zaire worked with the veterans, not rookies today. Redshirt freshman Kyle Trask, however, worked with the rookies. It certainly seems as if the quarterback battle is now down to three - Zaire, Del Rio and Franks. Not a surprise, but still worth mentioning.
Two other notes:
One day after coach Jim McElwain said Chauncey Gardner would remain at cornerback, Gardner began practice at safety. The Outback Bowl MVP apparently is a candidate to replace last year's leading tackler, Marcell Harris, who will miss the season with a torn Achilles.
Electric true freshman Kadarius Toney took reps at receiver. He spent the spring at quarterback and could still see time there in specialty packages this season.
- Jun 12, 2014
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Didnt realize Zaire is only 6'-0"...which means he's probably 5'-10".
- Jun 30, 2014
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- Jun 13, 2014
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Looks to be about 5'11" or just under 6 feet based on him and LDR standing next to each other.
- Sep 8, 2014
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McElwain highlights couple standout groups from first day
Florida coach Jim McElwain pinpointed some areas of the team he was really pleased with following the team's first fall practices.
http://florida.247sports.com/Bolt/M...7-62-4E-F8-32-7D-B3170803_184538FloridaGators
GAINESVILLE, Fla. -- Florida held its first fall practices on Thursday, and coach Jim McElwain came away impressed with what he saw, particularly from the first session of the day with the team's newcomers.
That group stood out right away from a physical standpoint, with a trio of towering defensive linemen and six very well-put-together freshmen defensive backs.
"You know what, we did pretty darned good in recruiting, guys," McElwain said. "I really feel without naming guys that it was really a good-looking crew. I like the way that they hustled. I liked the way that they didn't get affected by the chaos that's created in our practice plan."
The third-year coach singled out the defensive backs in particular for how they looked.
"Those defensive backs look like they belong," he said. "We've got a lot of camp left, but as far as walking off the bus, those guys are going to be OK. That's a good thing, now we've got to teach them what to do and get them comfortable in everything that we throw at them."
In the second session of the day with the veterans practicing, things got off to a little bit of a rocky start in the passing game.
Veterans Malik Zaire and Luke Del Rio and redshirt freshman Feleipe Franks threw in that practice and sailed several throws early on throwing to receivers against air. But they apparently settled in after the media left the open viewing portions.
"It was a little shaky to begin with," McElwain said. "You could tell some of the nerves, and yet as the practice wore on I thought we were very accurate in where we were going with the football. There were some big plays made on the outside, and that's a good thing, so we've just got to continue that moving forward."
McElwain also provided an initial assessment of Zaire in his first practice with the Gators.
"He does really have some good feet," the coach said. "He's got some real good pocket awareness. When it did break down, or I shouldn't say as much break down as when the defense was not in their pass rush lanes, he actually made them pay a little bit."
Finally, McElwain highlighted a position group he was impressed with in the veteran practice.
Ironically, it's one of the few units with the veterans that is made up entirely of sophomores.
"I liked what we got out of that linebacker crew, especially when we had (Kylan Johnson) at nickel today working with (David Reese) and (Vosean Joseph) in there," McElwain said. "I really felt there was kind of a sense of calm that here's some guys that have played a lot of ball."
Florida coach Jim McElwain pinpointed some areas of the team he was really pleased with following the team's first fall practices.
http://florida.247sports.com/Bolt/M...7-62-4E-F8-32-7D-B3170803_184538FloridaGators
GAINESVILLE, Fla. -- Florida held its first fall practices on Thursday, and coach Jim McElwain came away impressed with what he saw, particularly from the first session of the day with the team's newcomers.
That group stood out right away from a physical standpoint, with a trio of towering defensive linemen and six very well-put-together freshmen defensive backs.
"You know what, we did pretty darned good in recruiting, guys," McElwain said. "I really feel without naming guys that it was really a good-looking crew. I like the way that they hustled. I liked the way that they didn't get affected by the chaos that's created in our practice plan."
The third-year coach singled out the defensive backs in particular for how they looked.
"Those defensive backs look like they belong," he said. "We've got a lot of camp left, but as far as walking off the bus, those guys are going to be OK. That's a good thing, now we've got to teach them what to do and get them comfortable in everything that we throw at them."
In the second session of the day with the veterans practicing, things got off to a little bit of a rocky start in the passing game.
Veterans Malik Zaire and Luke Del Rio and redshirt freshman Feleipe Franks threw in that practice and sailed several throws early on throwing to receivers against air. But they apparently settled in after the media left the open viewing portions.
"It was a little shaky to begin with," McElwain said. "You could tell some of the nerves, and yet as the practice wore on I thought we were very accurate in where we were going with the football. There were some big plays made on the outside, and that's a good thing, so we've just got to continue that moving forward."
McElwain also provided an initial assessment of Zaire in his first practice with the Gators.
"He does really have some good feet," the coach said. "He's got some real good pocket awareness. When it did break down, or I shouldn't say as much break down as when the defense was not in their pass rush lanes, he actually made them pay a little bit."
Finally, McElwain highlighted a position group he was impressed with in the veteran practice.
Ironically, it's one of the few units with the veterans that is made up entirely of sophomores.
"I liked what we got out of that linebacker crew, especially when we had (Kylan Johnson) at nickel today working with (David Reese) and (Vosean Joseph) in there," McElwain said. "I really felt there was kind of a sense of calm that here's some guys that have played a lot of ball."
- Sep 8, 2014
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What Jim McElwain said after Florida’s first day of practice
https://www.seccountry.com/florida/what-jim-mcelwain-said-after-floridas-first-day-of-practice
GAINESVILLE, Fla. — Florida opened fall camp Thursday with a pair of split-squad practice sessions inside the indoor practice facility as rain poured down outside.
The first session featured the team’s rookies and young players while the veterans, including the competitors for the quarterback job, participated in the second session.
Gators coach Jim McElwain is met with reporters afterward. Here were the highlights from his post-practice comments.
RELATED: Practice report from Day 1 | Photo gallery as Gators open fall camp
https://www.seccountry.com/florida/what-jim-mcelwain-said-after-floridas-first-day-of-practice
GAINESVILLE, Fla. — Florida opened fall camp Thursday with a pair of split-squad practice sessions inside the indoor practice facility as rain poured down outside.
The first session featured the team’s rookies and young players while the veterans, including the competitors for the quarterback job, participated in the second session.
Gators coach Jim McElwain is met with reporters afterward. Here were the highlights from his post-practice comments.
RELATED: Practice report from Day 1 | Photo gallery as Gators open fall camp
- “As always, the first day, it’s just fun to be back out there, it’s fun to be with the guys and more than that it’s fun to observe how they handled phase 5.”
- On the first session with the young guys: “We did pretty darn good in recruiting, guys. I really feel, without naming guys, that it was really a good looking crew. I liked the way that they hustled, I liked the way that they didn’t get affected by the chaos that’s created in our practice plan. If I was going to single out a group, those defensive backs looked like they belonged. Now we’ve got a lot of camp left, but as far as walking off the bus, those guys are going to be OK. That’s a good thing, now we’ve got to teach them what to do and get them comfortable in everything that we throw at them.
- On the second session with the veterans: “I thought the vets came back with a purpose. Really good excitement and you know what? Some of the things that we threw at them that were not necessarily told to the coaches or by the coaches to them, I thought they handled that really well as we got into some of our compete stuff and some of our situational stuff right off the bat. I thought that was really good. Heavy emphasis today down in the red area or short-field kind of stuff.”
- OL TJ Moore’s back “locked up on him a little bit. Other than we came out of it good.”
- “Liked the way all the quarterbacks threw. It was a little shaky to begin with. You could tell some of the nerves, and yet as the practice wore on I thought we were very accurate in where we were going with the football. There were some big plays made on the outside, and that’s a good thing, so we’ve just got to continue that moving forward.”
- On the energy of the veterans: “I think probably a little bit has to do with the fact that the expectations of them is obviously pretty low from the standpoint of the outside world. That’s OK. I think that they feel they have something to maybe prove.”
- On significance of Feleipe Franks taking fastball reps at first-team QB: “That he got reps on the first little bit. He deserves it. He’s a guy that came out of spring (atop the depth chart). Luke took some 1s today based on the drill, Malik took some as well in the red area. Those will flip as the situations change.”
- On Malik Zaire: “You know what, he does really have some good feet. He’s got some real good pocket awareness. When it did break down, or I shouldn’t say as much break down as when the defense was not in their pass rush lanes, he actually made them pay a little bit.”
- On Chauncey Gardner Jr. working at safety today: “It was a split squad thing where you’ve got to have all the numbers in there. Like I said, to probably build on the disclaimer, I wouldn’t read a whole bunch into it. But here’s a good thing is I do feel like we’re going to have some flexibility back there.”
- On Brad Stewart working with safeties: “Well, you know right now we’ve got to develop that nickel position. We’ve worked Marco (Wilson) in at that. Right now Brad kind of handled in at the safeties with that young group, more based on numbers than anything. The thing we don’t want to do is overload, we gotta figure out what they do best and then get them in that spot.”
- On physical size of freshman class: “That was one of the things I talked about, just trying to get longer, thicker, bigger. I think when you look at your schedule, some of those teams that you have to beat, a wiseman once told me that there’s a reason that lightweights don’t fight heavyweights.”
- On tight end DeAndre Goolsby: “We had to upsize his jersey. I think he sees this is his opportunity to jump in and go. He and C’yontai are really a good duo. I’ll be excited to see if he stays consistent. Just the interaction and the things you see around the facility, I’ve been really proud of his personal growth.”
- On getting the tight ends more involved: “I don’t think there’s any doubt … that’s one of those spots in an ideal world to be able to be flexible with your shifts, motions and formations, you can do a lot of that with those guys. We put a lot on them and we’ve got to get a lot out of them.”
- Sep 8, 2014
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Jim McElwain talks QBs after Florida’s first day of fall camp
https://www.seccountry.com/florida/...s-after-florida-gators-first-day-of-fall-camp
GAINESVILLE, Fla. — For all the offseason buildup and debate, and all the questions and perspectives levied at Florida’s media day, the Gators’ quarterback competition formally commenced Thursday as the team opened fall camp with a pair of split-squad practices.
The veterans, including quarterback contenders Malik Zaire, Feleipe Franks and Luke Del Rio, went in the second session.
Franks worked with the first-team during the Gators’ opening “fastball” period, but there is nothing to read into that. Nor was there anything revelatory to be taken from the limited throwing session open to the media.
But the quarterbacks will remain the main storyline each and every day until coach Jim McElwain names a starter.
RELATED: Practice report from Day 1 | Photo gallery | What Jim McElwain said after Gators’ first practice
As for day one, he liked what he saw.
“Liked the way all the quarterbacks threw. It was a little shaky to begin with. You could tell some of the nerves, and yet as the practice wore on I thought we were very accurate in where we were going with the football,” he said. “There were some big plays made on the outside, and that’s a good thing. So we’ve just got to continue that moving forward.”
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Ryan Young @RyanYoungSEC
With #Gators stuck inside, media stuck on opposite end of QBs. But here's some long-distance video of Malik Zaire and Feleipe Franks.
5:20 PM - Aug 3, 2017
McElwain said all three quarterbacks rotated in with the first team at points during practice and that the Gators’ use of two and three-spot drills will keep each significantly involved as camp moves forward.
While McElwain has had plenty of opportunity to evaluate Franks, a redshirt freshman who finished the spring atop the depth chart, and Del Rio, his 2016 season-opening starter, this was his first opportunity to see Zaire compete in practice.
The graduate transfer from Notre Dame has drawn praise from his new teammates for how quickly he’s picked up the offense and assimilated into the program. On Thursday, McElwain offered an encouraging critique of his own, highlighting how Zaire’s mobility was already on display in the first practice.
“You know what, he does really have some good feet. He’s got some real good pocket awareness. When it did break down, or I shouldn’t say as much break down as when the defense was not in their pass rush lanes, he actually made them pay a little bit,” McElwain said.
The competition has only just begun, though.
https://www.seccountry.com/florida/...s-after-florida-gators-first-day-of-fall-camp
GAINESVILLE, Fla. — For all the offseason buildup and debate, and all the questions and perspectives levied at Florida’s media day, the Gators’ quarterback competition formally commenced Thursday as the team opened fall camp with a pair of split-squad practices.
The veterans, including quarterback contenders Malik Zaire, Feleipe Franks and Luke Del Rio, went in the second session.
Franks worked with the first-team during the Gators’ opening “fastball” period, but there is nothing to read into that. Nor was there anything revelatory to be taken from the limited throwing session open to the media.
But the quarterbacks will remain the main storyline each and every day until coach Jim McElwain names a starter.
RELATED: Practice report from Day 1 | Photo gallery | What Jim McElwain said after Gators’ first practice
As for day one, he liked what he saw.
“Liked the way all the quarterbacks threw. It was a little shaky to begin with. You could tell some of the nerves, and yet as the practice wore on I thought we were very accurate in where we were going with the football,” he said. “There were some big plays made on the outside, and that’s a good thing. So we’ve just got to continue that moving forward.”
Follow
Ryan Young @RyanYoungSECWith #Gators stuck inside, media stuck on opposite end of QBs. But here's some long-distance video of Malik Zaire and Feleipe Franks.
5:20 PM - Aug 3, 2017
McElwain said all three quarterbacks rotated in with the first team at points during practice and that the Gators’ use of two and three-spot drills will keep each significantly involved as camp moves forward.
While McElwain has had plenty of opportunity to evaluate Franks, a redshirt freshman who finished the spring atop the depth chart, and Del Rio, his 2016 season-opening starter, this was his first opportunity to see Zaire compete in practice.
The graduate transfer from Notre Dame has drawn praise from his new teammates for how quickly he’s picked up the offense and assimilated into the program. On Thursday, McElwain offered an encouraging critique of his own, highlighting how Zaire’s mobility was already on display in the first practice.
“You know what, he does really have some good feet. He’s got some real good pocket awareness. When it did break down, or I shouldn’t say as much break down as when the defense was not in their pass rush lanes, he actually made them pay a little bit,” McElwain said.
The competition has only just begun, though.
- Sep 8, 2014
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Hmmm... from the pic, Del Rio is in front, followed by Zaire then Franks.
What does it mean? What does it mean?
I hope it means that Franks just took a rep, Del Rio is about to....w/ Zaire to follow. I hope....
- Jun 11, 2014
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Best guess, what would he have said if they practiced in the rain and someone got injured?
