- Oct 5, 2017
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Well, we are less than 3 weeks from Kickoff. Today, I'll look at the defensive backfield and special teams. Next time I will break down the schedule.
DB's
Review:
2018 was definitely a mixed bag for the defensive backs. At times they made made tremendous plays, such as Brad Stewart's picks against Tennessee and LSU or Henderson's hustle plays against Tennessee (in my opinion this is the biggest play of the season) and Carolina. Then there were times like most of Kentucky, McWilliams and company against UGA, and man was the young Trey Dean picked on against Mizzou (literally just found tape of the Mizzou game focusing on Henderson and while skipping around saw at least 2 TD's go towards Dean's man. With that said, Trey Dean did really well for a true freshman starter thrust into action after an injury to Marco Wilson against Kentucky. Remember, that '08 defensive backfield had a rough '07. If there was a weak link to the defense in 2018, it was the safety play. Yes, I did just list some big plays by Brad Stewart, but they gave up plenty of big plays and tackled like Chauncey at safety in 2017. Speaking of CGJ is gone, but definitely had a much better year after a rough 2017 experiment at safety. Henderson also allowed 0 TD's on the year.
CB/Star Preview:
This line up will be better than last years. Once Marco went down, as stated above, Dean was great for a true freshman, but only good judging by CB standards. That's to be expected. However, the season of experience will pay dividends. One, he will not be stepping for his first meaningful action on August 24 and two, what I haven't seen much on, is that he will have better knowledge of the workings of the defense then maybe any other backfield player. What I mean by that is, he knows the assignments of the CB's on a given play so instead of just knowing his position, his knowledge of where others are supposed to be may impact how he drops into coverage, angles he takes, etc.
Marco Wilson returns after missing the season with a leg injury. By all accounts he is moving like normal so far. If he keeps this up he will be dangerous. It should be noted that going into last year many believed him to be the better of the duo of him and Henderson (I literally pre-season graded the CB's B+ instead of A- due to Henderson...also review the comments). Now, we will have a cornerback duo as close to Haden/Jenkins, Tabor/VH3, and Tabor/Wilson as we can hope for. The key is for this group to stay healthy.
Oh and the biggest thing, Henderson and Dean did all of this under Charles Warren. The guy Law likes to point out was the CB's coach at UT for the Heave to Cleve (still need to get the guy in Section 13 on film admitting I said throw it to Cleve before the play, but that's a different story). This year, we have the upgrade of Torrian Gray. If they guys could take those steps last year, how much more can they do this year with more knowledge of the system and better teaching?
Safeties:
Here's what I'm hoping for, Brad Stewart stops getting suspended, Shawn Davis gets his life together, and Huggins returns from his "family situation". Also, maybe Lenton returning will be a factor as he was supposed to be one before injuring himself for the year in the pre-season (though BHG's announcer gave him a tackle against Colorado State while he was on a knee scooter). For you Donovan Stiner fans, maybe he proves me wrong, but I think with his playing time, less is more. Yes, any safety could have taken Fitzgerald on that blitz. This position is the key to the defense. IF they learn to tackle (what THAT Henderson play against Carolina) and IF they can get playing at a B or higher level, this defense could be special. Again, go watch Kentucky and Mizzou film. These guys blew angles and/or coverages leading to most/all of Kentucky's offensive points and quite a few of Mizzou's points. In my impatient opinion, Ron English is coaching for his job this season.
I think at least one safety emerges in Orlando, then we will see from there. At least we will have several weeks to prepare for our next big test.
Special Teams
I am pairing this here for time and that I have little to say. Last year, first year starters Townsend and McPherson replaced Raiders draft picks Townsend and How to pull a Collins Cooper against LSU while the crowd chants your name because many fans lowered themselves to kicker needing to be our best weapon. Ok, I like Pineiro, but I Won't Back Down from that point (there are multiple layers there). As I've said before, there is nothing I want more than McPherson to break Jeff Chandler's all-time leading scorer record (for the sake of the team, not because I hate Chandler). Also, Townsend was solid and had a big fake against Vandy. The two blocks against Michigan were not on him and something I'm sure has been worked on in the off-season.
Our return game has been lacking with few exceptions. I'd put Copeland or Wright back at returning to get them on the field (ok, Wright may need a redshirt though he's got that Brandon James size/vision from what we've heard about his running style), keep our starters a little safer, and let them show what they can do. I'm hoping to see us go for more blocks. Believe it or not, this will open up more return yards in the punting game as players will have to stay in to block.
Well, there you have it, my thoughts on the different positions going into the 2019 Florida Football season. Let's hope this is a magical year. Since I did pre-season grades last year, I will put them here for all position groups now for 2019. I am putting my preview grades from last year (post linked above when discussing Henderson) to show some hits/misses and where I think we've improved or seem like we could be better/worse based on what this coaching staff showed in year one.
QB: B+ (B- 2018 pre-season) Franks has stepped up, but needs to do it consistently.
RB: A (A+ 2018 pre-season) Can a returning Davis and Pierce fill Scarlett's shoes?
WR: A+ (A 2018 pre-season) Deeper than possibly ever...and somewhere last year I proved it mathematically (recruiting rankings wise).
TE: B+ (B 2018 pre-season) If you learned the name Moral Stephens, you will know Gamble and Krull
OL: C (C 2018 pre-season) New guys can be just as pedestrian as the old ones, might end up better.
DL (Including Buck): A (A 2018 pre-season) Zach Carter, he's my name you will learn this season.
LB : B (B- 2018 pre-season) See OL, but with a multi-year starter leading the defensive unit.
CB: A+ (B+ 2018 pre-season) Henderson showed me, now time for them to get the coverage sacks.
S: B- (C 2018 pre-season), I mean, Better than expected and have to be somewhat better this season...right?
K/P: A+ (NR 2018 pre-season) Consistent, good, seems only officials and players around them can stop them.
Next week I will take a look at the schedule. Then it's time for some football.
DB's
Review:
2018 was definitely a mixed bag for the defensive backs. At times they made made tremendous plays, such as Brad Stewart's picks against Tennessee and LSU or Henderson's hustle plays against Tennessee (in my opinion this is the biggest play of the season) and Carolina. Then there were times like most of Kentucky, McWilliams and company against UGA, and man was the young Trey Dean picked on against Mizzou (literally just found tape of the Mizzou game focusing on Henderson and while skipping around saw at least 2 TD's go towards Dean's man. With that said, Trey Dean did really well for a true freshman starter thrust into action after an injury to Marco Wilson against Kentucky. Remember, that '08 defensive backfield had a rough '07. If there was a weak link to the defense in 2018, it was the safety play. Yes, I did just list some big plays by Brad Stewart, but they gave up plenty of big plays and tackled like Chauncey at safety in 2017. Speaking of CGJ is gone, but definitely had a much better year after a rough 2017 experiment at safety. Henderson also allowed 0 TD's on the year.
CB/Star Preview:
This line up will be better than last years. Once Marco went down, as stated above, Dean was great for a true freshman, but only good judging by CB standards. That's to be expected. However, the season of experience will pay dividends. One, he will not be stepping for his first meaningful action on August 24 and two, what I haven't seen much on, is that he will have better knowledge of the workings of the defense then maybe any other backfield player. What I mean by that is, he knows the assignments of the CB's on a given play so instead of just knowing his position, his knowledge of where others are supposed to be may impact how he drops into coverage, angles he takes, etc.
Marco Wilson returns after missing the season with a leg injury. By all accounts he is moving like normal so far. If he keeps this up he will be dangerous. It should be noted that going into last year many believed him to be the better of the duo of him and Henderson (I literally pre-season graded the CB's B+ instead of A- due to Henderson...also review the comments). Now, we will have a cornerback duo as close to Haden/Jenkins, Tabor/VH3, and Tabor/Wilson as we can hope for. The key is for this group to stay healthy.
Oh and the biggest thing, Henderson and Dean did all of this under Charles Warren. The guy Law likes to point out was the CB's coach at UT for the Heave to Cleve (still need to get the guy in Section 13 on film admitting I said throw it to Cleve before the play, but that's a different story). This year, we have the upgrade of Torrian Gray. If they guys could take those steps last year, how much more can they do this year with more knowledge of the system and better teaching?
Safeties:
Here's what I'm hoping for, Brad Stewart stops getting suspended, Shawn Davis gets his life together, and Huggins returns from his "family situation". Also, maybe Lenton returning will be a factor as he was supposed to be one before injuring himself for the year in the pre-season (though BHG's announcer gave him a tackle against Colorado State while he was on a knee scooter). For you Donovan Stiner fans, maybe he proves me wrong, but I think with his playing time, less is more. Yes, any safety could have taken Fitzgerald on that blitz. This position is the key to the defense. IF they learn to tackle (what THAT Henderson play against Carolina) and IF they can get playing at a B or higher level, this defense could be special. Again, go watch Kentucky and Mizzou film. These guys blew angles and/or coverages leading to most/all of Kentucky's offensive points and quite a few of Mizzou's points. In my impatient opinion, Ron English is coaching for his job this season.
I think at least one safety emerges in Orlando, then we will see from there. At least we will have several weeks to prepare for our next big test.
Special Teams
I am pairing this here for time and that I have little to say. Last year, first year starters Townsend and McPherson replaced Raiders draft picks Townsend and How to pull a Collins Cooper against LSU while the crowd chants your name because many fans lowered themselves to kicker needing to be our best weapon. Ok, I like Pineiro, but I Won't Back Down from that point (there are multiple layers there). As I've said before, there is nothing I want more than McPherson to break Jeff Chandler's all-time leading scorer record (for the sake of the team, not because I hate Chandler). Also, Townsend was solid and had a big fake against Vandy. The two blocks against Michigan were not on him and something I'm sure has been worked on in the off-season.
Our return game has been lacking with few exceptions. I'd put Copeland or Wright back at returning to get them on the field (ok, Wright may need a redshirt though he's got that Brandon James size/vision from what we've heard about his running style), keep our starters a little safer, and let them show what they can do. I'm hoping to see us go for more blocks. Believe it or not, this will open up more return yards in the punting game as players will have to stay in to block.
Well, there you have it, my thoughts on the different positions going into the 2019 Florida Football season. Let's hope this is a magical year. Since I did pre-season grades last year, I will put them here for all position groups now for 2019. I am putting my preview grades from last year (post linked above when discussing Henderson) to show some hits/misses and where I think we've improved or seem like we could be better/worse based on what this coaching staff showed in year one.
QB: B+ (B- 2018 pre-season) Franks has stepped up, but needs to do it consistently.
RB: A (A+ 2018 pre-season) Can a returning Davis and Pierce fill Scarlett's shoes?
WR: A+ (A 2018 pre-season) Deeper than possibly ever...and somewhere last year I proved it mathematically (recruiting rankings wise).
TE: B+ (B 2018 pre-season) If you learned the name Moral Stephens, you will know Gamble and Krull
OL: C (C 2018 pre-season) New guys can be just as pedestrian as the old ones, might end up better.
DL (Including Buck): A (A 2018 pre-season) Zach Carter, he's my name you will learn this season.
LB : B (B- 2018 pre-season) See OL, but with a multi-year starter leading the defensive unit.
CB: A+ (B+ 2018 pre-season) Henderson showed me, now time for them to get the coverage sacks.
S: B- (C 2018 pre-season), I mean, Better than expected and have to be somewhat better this season...right?
K/P: A+ (NR 2018 pre-season) Consistent, good, seems only officials and players around them can stop them.
Next week I will take a look at the schedule. Then it's time for some football.
