From 00griff00: Does coach Jim McElwain feel that the indoor practice facility is needed more for uninterrupted practices due to weather or is having privacy for running the playbook equally as important? We've won championships without an IPF, but I've talked to a couple coaches that have said they've caught people taking video from the parking garage multiple times.
Both are factors, but weather is definitely the bigger factor. Before Florida constructed the practice facility, the story was that only two to three practices a year were affected by weather. I can tell you from covering this team the last few years, that there's simply no way that estimate was anywhere close. There were two practices shifted due to weather in the first three outings of fall camp this year.
Naturally, that estimate went up to 30 practices a year once Florida announced the facility was being built.
The bottom line is that it was very necessary. Florida had a practice more or less reduced to a walk-through the week of the Florida State game a year ago. That can't happen at an elite program.
Is it an added bonus that Florida can now go somewhere where there's no view from the outside? Sure. But the Gators have hired personnel to patrol the parking lots during game weeks for years. Speaking from experience, they're pretty good at patrolling for people trying to sneak a peak at practice.
From Duncan1987: Do you feel this is a better coached football team? And how do you feel about this team?
I think it's better coached in certain areas. I think offensively, you don't have to be a rocket surgeon to figure out that whatever Florida did offensively the last four years, nothing seemed to work.
McElwain is smart enough to get the ball out quickly knowing his line isn't a strength. I think eventually he'll have the playmakers that he'll be able to coach around the weaknesses that crop up in a given year. Can he do that this year? I'm not sure. You can protect your quarterback by getting the ball out quickly, but you're still not going to be very productive on offense against top SEC defenses unless you have guys that can make plays in space.
And on defense, whether Florida will be better coached is anyone's guess. Geoff Collins will likely take some more shots blitzing, which should excite fans. Ultimately, though, Will Muschamp was a heck of a defensive coach.
Collins will be able to get away with the aggressive approach in the front seven this year because he's got the best cover in the back end in the country, but what happens if four of the veterans in the secondary bolt for the NFL next year? Reloading on defense and continuing to coach up the talent on the defensive side of the ball is key.
Florida has the coaches to do that, but it has to keep recruiting where it was under Muschamp on that side of the ball, and that's definitely no given. Muschamp is being paid as much as he is at Auburn for a reason. He's one of the best defensive coaches in the game, college or NFL. Florida can thrive on sheer talent for now, but it's hard not to think there will be at least some dropoff in coaching on the defense.
From dshuf04: Overall impressions of how the staff "coaches" on the field, how the changes are being received, and whether you think each coach is a step up or down as a teacher from what we had?
It's too early to get into comparing the coaches on this staff to the last staff, simply because it takes years to evaluate a position coach. Kirk Callahan will look like an all-world coach in 2015 because of the talent he has. What happens when he has a bunch of less experienced guys in 2016? These are questions that are answered over the course of years.
What we can talk about are some initial impressions. Chris Rumph is a heck of a coach. He's a proven technician and recruiter, probably an upgrade over both Brad Lawing (from the recruiting side) and Terrell Williams (maybe both). That's a slam dunk hire, and that Florida was able to pull him away from Texas speaks volumes for McElwain.
Randy Shannon is one of the best linebacker coaches in the country. Doug Nussmeier probably can't be judged on his Michigan stint, and he's proven to be an effective developer of quarterbacks.
There are also the unproven guys: Tim Skipper, Kerry Dixon and Callahan. The bottom line? All of them have a lot of potential. This staff has a very good mix of experience and recruiting chops, and the fact that McElwain understands that balance is a necessity is a very encouraging sign. He'll likely tweak as needed to perfect that balance going forward.
From robbers: What are some of the signs you look for that the team has "bought into" the head coach's vision?
Frankly, if they start winning and winning big. It's impossible to put any stock into any public comments about how the team chemistry is better or these coaches communicate better and teach better. Every team in the country says that kind of thing in fall camp.
The proof is in the pudding. Does a team that has some obvious holes show the ability to work around them? Do players increase in confidence as the season goes on and start playing better, or do they unravel, as was typically the case under Muschamp?
This question is almost 100 percent to be determined.
From Dakidd1987: Shoot it to me straight, with you looking over the product for the first six practices, how many wins should we expect?
Truthfully, my opinion was never likely to shift based on what we've heard of the first handful of practices or even what we've seen in the limited open portions of practice. This team is more or less what we think it is from a personnel standpoint.
And not having much experience covering McElwain or any of his coaches, the real X-factor here is an unknown. If they're good and Florida's luck holds at key spots in terms of depth, this team can probably get to nine wins in the regular season. If not? Florida could be a six-win team.
I'll say this: I think the baseline for Florida is seven wins. That's the line where you'd say the Gators and their staff held serve. Anything less will start to build some concern moving forward, while anything better is probably indicative of a pretty good coaching job.
From dshuf04: 1 player on offense and 1 on defense who: A) are performing better than you expected they would; B) are performing worse than you expected they would; C) is playing at a level (first team, second, third) that surprises you.
Since this is a six-part question, I'll try to keep it short.
1A Offense: TE Jake McGee -- I wasn't sold on McGee being a total stud coming into the 2014 season like many seemed to be. His stats at Virginia were good, but certainly not earth-shattering. I never saw the crazy ability many alluded to. Now it's more evident. He's getting open with regularity against Florida's top-notch secondary. That's something Florida hasn't had in a while.
1A Defense: S Marcus Maye -- Maye was playing very well at the end of the year. He still struggles in man coverage, but when he was pulled from the nickelback spot and moved to a strong safety role, he thrived. He's actually looked this fall like he might be able to handle some man coverage. Florida won't ask him to, but he's really making some plays now.
2B Offense: QB Treon Harris -- Harris had a rough start to fall camp a year ago and then really turned it around impressively. So his rough start to fall camp isn't necessarily anything to worry about. But what looked like it might actually be a legitimate quarterback battle has been anything but so far. He has just been far too inaccurate to open camp.
2B Defense: DE Alex McCalister -- Granted, we haven't seen a whole lot of days in pads yet, but McCalister hasn't had anywhere close to the kind of impact Dante Fowler had in practices. Now, that's not a super fair comparison, but McCalister hasn't even had the kind of impact he himself has had in the past. Add in a nagging "hamstring injury" and he has been a slight disappointment so far.
3C Offense: QB Josh Grady -- I can't recall which Vanderbilt game it was in 2012, but I remember watching one and being impressed with Grady. After that, I can't remember ever hearing about him again until he transferred to Florida. And when I saw his stats, I was expecting him to be an emergency backup comparable to Skyler Mornhinweg. He's actually been very sharp at times and looks pretty competent for a guy who just arrived in the last few months.
3C Defense: LB Daniel McMillian -- He's always had the athletic talent, but it seemed that the scheme would keep him from ever contributing meaningfully. Given that the scheme Florida's using now is pretty similar to the last one, it's a bit surprising to see how much quicker McMillian seems to be playing. Maybe that's part scheme, part coaching and part him being a year older and starting to figure things out.
From Kyle886: How do we look and feel in your honest opinion in practice? Better I hope, but from an onlooker standpoint do you feel this team is sharper and more driven I guess?
Truthfully, there's not really a perceptible difference from a year ago. Florida's real issue is that there's not as much talent on the roster as there was during the Urban Meyer days. When you would watch Urban's team's practice, you'd be on edge on almost every play because on either side of the ball someone was capable of making a huge play on any given snap.
Florida's not there yet. Now, the offensive line struggled a year ago tremendously in fall camp and then played fairly well during the season. That's probably in part a testament to Mike Summers' coaching ability. The line looks fairly similar from what we've seen so far, if not a little better. Fowler was unblockable a year ago, and the defensive line hasn't had anyone that's in that category yet.
That's a double-edged sword. It could mean the perceived weakness of the team (O-line) will be better than expected, or it could mean that the defensive line is having harder time replacing Fowler and linebackers like Neiron Ball than expected.
We can tell you this: The secondary is much better. Beyond that, it's hard to say much definitely until we see Florida line up against an actual opponent.
From JosephMJ33: Any update on performance of kickers/punters?
This is something we still need to ask McElwain about. The special teams really haven't done any work in the portions of practice open to the media.
TG, on defense I've got Vernon Hargreaves III (obvious), Maye, Keanu Neal (based on Maye's recent comments) and Caleb Brantley (based on your recent speculation) all leaving early. On offense I've got Demarcus Robinson and Kelvin Taylor (consensus opinion) leaving after the season.
Am I hallucinating, or is it realistic to expect six early entries from a team that most think will win around seven games?
I would say barring a total shocker, Hargreaves, Robinson and Taylor are likely gone. Taylor is maybe the most questionable of the group, but he's already got a ton of carries on him from high school to college and there's not a ton he can improve by staying in college.
The guys who will test extremely well and have the physical potential to be high picks even with just an average year are Brantley and Neal. I'd say Neal is highly likely to bolt because I think he's going to have a big year, while Brantley is close assuming he puts together a good year (again, something I expect). Maye will have four years under his belt and at least be close to a degree, and while he won't quite draw the NFL interest of the four above (excepting Taylor), a good year puts him in good shape to be drafted.
The other two I could see possibly taking the plunge are Alex McCalister and Bryan Cox Jr. Not sure either do it, but they're worth keeping an eye on.
Florida having six early entries is not at all out of the question.
From GatorFanSeth: I love watching my Gators do well in the pros. Based off an extremely early evaluation of our team, list the draft eligible or seniors that you think will actually play on Sundays, and at what level.
Well, we touched on several in the previous question.
Vernon Hargreaves III: NFL starter, potential Pro-Bowler
Demarcus Robinson: NFL starter, No. 2 receiver
Keanu Neal: NFL Starter, potential Pro-Bowler
Marcus Maye: Possible NFL Starter
Caleb Brantley: Possible NFL Starter, potential Pro-Bowler
Kelvin Taylor: NFL backup
And the seniors:
Jonathan Bullard: Probable NFL Starter, extended career
Antonio Morrison: Possible NFL Starter
Brian Poole: Possible NFL Starter
Jake McGee: Possible NFL Starter
Was it 625 yards? I forget. Good thing Bammer got tired of scoring on us. Imagine if they kept throwing in the late third and fourth quarter.
