Florida Gators

FLORIDA GATORS
2012 overall record: 11-2

2012 overall record: 11-2
2012 conference record: 7-1 (2nd Eastern Division)
Returning starters: Offense: 6; defense: 4; kicker/punter: 1

Top returners

QB Jeff Driskel, C Jonotthan Harrison, RG Jon Halapio, RB/WR Trey Burton, DE/DT Dominique Easley, CB Loucheiz Purifoy, CB Marcus Roberson, S Jaylen Watkins, P Kyle Christy

Key losses

RB Mike Gillislee, TE Jordan Reed, DT Sharrif Floyd, S Matt Elam, S Josh Evans, LB Jon Bostic, LB Jelani Jenkins

2012 statistical leaders (*returners)

Rushing: Mike Gillislee (1,152 yards)
Passing: Jeff Driskel* (1,646 yards)
Receiving: Jordan Reed (559 yards)
Tackles: Josh Evans (83)
Sacks: Dominique Easley* (4.0)
Interceptions: Matt Elam (4)

Spring answers

1. Back in business: Sophomore Matt Jones running back had a fantastic spring and the coaching staff is convinced he’ll be a more than capable replacement for Gillislee. The 6-foot-2, 228-pound Jones is a perfect fit for Will Muschamp’s power-run offense. He’s a straight-ahead, downhill runner, who runs through contact and gets tough yards. The offense will be built around him, especially with the questions surrounding the passing game. Redshirt junior Mack Brown and freshman Kelvin Taylor, the son of former UF standout running back Fred Taylor, give the Gators solid depth at the position.

2. Lined up: UF’s offensive line made strides in 2012 and it will be even better in 2013. The addition of transfers -- Max Garcia (Maryland) and Tyler Moore (Nebraska) -- gives the Gators a pair of former starters to add to an already solid base with Harrison and Halapio. Plus, sophomore D.J. Humphries is an immediate upgrade from Xavier Nixon at left tackle. Garcia will start at left guard and pair with Humphries to give Driskel better blind-side protection than he had a year ago.

3. The middle is settled: With the loss of Bostic and Jenkins, the Gators needed a middle linebacker. The staff moved sophomore Antonio Morrison from weakside linebacker, and Morrison showed pretty quickly he was up to the task. He’s not the biggest middle linebacker the Gators have had (6-foot-1, 230 pounds), but he is certainly one of the most physical. Morrison hits like he weighs 260 pounds -- just ask 245-pound former FSU quarterback EJ Manuel, whom Morrison leveled last season. Morrison proved he could handle making the defensive calls and he should easily step into the role Bostic held for the past two seasons.

Fall questions

1. Receiver issues ... again: The Gators have problems at wide receiver and must get better at the position or the offense will again struggle. That’s been the case since the 2009 season ended. The latest attempted solution is former Kentucky head coach Joker Phillips. He has coached receivers for 18 seasons at Kentucky (1991-96 and 2003-2009), Cincinnati (1997), Minnesota (1999-2000), Notre Dame (2001) and South Carolina (2002). NFL players Steve Johnson (Buffalo) and Randall Cobb (Green Bay) are among the receivers Phillips worked with during his tenure at Kentucky. He also coached Craig Yeast, Keenan Burton, Dicky Lyons Jr. and Derek Abney, all of whom rank in the top five in school history in career receptions or career receiving yardage. Can Phillips get consistent production out of Quinton Dunbar, Andre Debose, Raphael Andrades, Latroy Pittman, Burton or Solomon Patton? Can he turn one of the five freshmen -- notably Demarcus Robinson or Ahmad Fulwood -- into the big-time playmaker the Gators have lacked since Riley Cooper? Zach Azzani, Aubrey Hill and Bush Hamdan have tried and failed.

2. Safety dance: There’s some concern about the Gators’ safeties because some of the younger and less experienced players haven’t developed as the staff had hoped. Cody Riggs and Watkins, who started at corner early last season, will begin August practices as UF’s two starting safeties. They have both played there during their UF careers and there are no concerns about those two players, but there are some about Valdez Showers, Marcus Maye and Jabari Gorman. Realistically, the Gators are better off with Riggs and Watkins starting because that gives UF the chance to get its top four defensive backs on the field at the same time instead of working Watkins, Riggs, Roberson, Purifoy and Brian Poole in a rotation at cornerback. Still, those other three need to earn more trust from the coaching staff.

3. Just for kicks: Kickers Austin Hardin and Brad Phillips struggled throughout the spring. Neither is as reliable or as good from long range as Caleb Sturgis was, but it’s the first part that’s more important. The offense, especially if the receivers don’t get any better, will continue to have a hard time consistently moving the ball. Sturgis was able to bail the Gators out because they needed only to get to the 35-yard line to be in range for a makeable field goal. That mark may have to be the 20 in 2013. Unless Hardin or Phillips makes a major leap this summer, expect the Gators to go with the kicker who practices the best each week.

GAINESVILLE, Fla. -- Florida released a post-spring depth chart on Wednesday. There were no big surprises, although seeing running back Mack Brown behind Matt Jones and ahead of Kelvin Taylor did earn a raised eyebrow.

Here’s the breakdown:

Offense

LT: D.J. Humphries (6-5, 285, So.)/Trenton Brown (6-8, 363, Jr.)

LG: Max Garcia (6-4, 307, RJr.)/Ian Silberman (6-5, 290, RJr.)

C: Jonotthan Harrison (6-3, 303, RSr.) /Kyle Koehne (6-5, 314, RSr.)

RG: Jon Halapio (6-3, 317, RSr.)/Trip Thurman (6-5, 313, RSo.)

RT: Tyler Moore (6-5, 315, RSo.) OR Chaz Green (6-5, 305, RJr.)

TE: Clay Burton (6-4, 247, Jr.)/Tevin Westbrook (6-5, 258, Jr.) OR Colin Thompson (6-4, 250, RFr.) OR Kent Taylor (6-5, 223, So.)

RB: Matt Jones (6-2, 228, So.)/Mack Brown (5-11, 215, RJr.)

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GAINESVILLE, Fla. -- Florida has lost another offensive lineman -- and now the Gators might have to adjust their spring game plans.

Reserve offensive lineman Trip Thurman has suffered what Florida coach Will Muschamp said appears to be a serious shoulder injury, and now the Gators have only five healthy scholarship offensive linemen available. The other five are either limited, out for spring because of previous injuries, or suspended.

Because of that, the Gators’ April 6 spring game might lose some of its excitement.

“Just tough right now on those guys and now it’s even harder to get scrimmage snaps because of the lack of numbers at those positions,” Muschamp said. “We’re adjusting as we go as far as this coming Saturday [in a scrimmage]. Even with the spring game, it may be more of a practice-like atmosphere for what we’re going to do.

“ ... We’ll have scrimmage snaps. I think if we’re incorporating within the scrimmage some 7-on-7, some special teams periods where we just concentrate and let those guys get a break. Last spring, we’d go 120-130 snaps in a scrimmage. You can’t do that with five offensive linemen. That won’t be good.”

Muschamp said he did not know the extent of Thurman’s injury and was waiting for team physician Mike Moser to view the results of an MRI, but that things didn’t look good. The 6-foot-5, 313-pound Thurman wasn’t going to be a starter in 2013, but he was the No. 2 left tackle behind sophomore D.J. Humphries.

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GAINESVILLE, Fla. -- Spring practice is nearly halfway over and the NCAA tournament is finally underway, and that makes it a busy week for Florida sports.

GatorNation kept you up to date, starting with a story about the middle of UF’s defense. Coach Will Muschamp believes you have to be strong up the middle -- meaning at defensive tackle, middle linebacker and safety, and he believes the Gators can do that despite having new starters at each position.

However, the Gators’ depth at linebacker took a bit of a blow with the loss of freshman early enrollee Alex Anzalone to a damaged labrum in his right shoulder. He’ll be out for the rest of the spring but should be cleared to return in August. Anzalone was No. 2 on the depth chart at middle linebacker behind starter Antonio Morrison. Darrin Kitchens, who is listed as the starter at weakside linebacker, is also taking reps at middle linebacker.

Anzalone was one of the players who drew praise from the coaches during the Gators’ two open practices last weekend. Ten observations from those two days can be found here.

UF also is overhauling the left side of its offensive line with new starters D.J. Humphries and Max Garcia.

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GAINESVILLE, Fla. -- Though it had improved considerably from the year before, Florida’s offensive line still struggled last season.

The 2013 line ought to be an altogether different story, especially on the left side, thanks to bulked-up tackle D.J. Humphries and Maryland transfer Max Garcia.

"Well, we'll wait until we get into the season to make those judgments,” UF coach Will Muschamp said. “But I'm excited about both players.”

Especially Humphries, a five-star recruit and the nation’s No. 1 offensive tackle in 2012. He enrolled early and got on the field as an extra tight end in the jumbo package and in spot duty at left tackle despite weighing about 270 pounds. The 6-foot-5 Humphries now weighs more than 280 pounds and has seamlessly taken over for the graduated Xavier Nixon.

Humphries is an upgrade from Nixon, who started five games as a freshman but had an inconsistent career and was benched last season because of his effort. Humphries might have replaced Nixon last season had he been bigger and stronger, but those physical tools kept him from being able to handle some of the SEC’s bigger defensive ends and tackles.

He’s ready now, Muschamp said.

“He's just a really good athlete,” Muschamp said. “He can bend his lower body. He can set the edge against a speed rush. Sometimes, at times, he had a hard time anchoring against the bigger players, some of the bull rushes, but he's a guy now that's building that anchor, building that core.”

Humphries also is much quicker and more agile than Nixon, who struggled with his footwork and pad level, and should be better in protecting quarterback Jeff Driskel’s blind side.

The 6-5, 307-pound Garcia sat out last season after transferring from Maryland, but he practiced every day and was one of the recipients of the Most Valuable Scout Team Award on offense.

Garcia earned a reputation as a gritty player with a bit of a nasty attitude, which is something that has been missing from the line since Maurkice Pouncey and Mike Pouncey left Gainesville.

“Max Garcia has been a real good addition, a tough, physical inside player,” Muschamp said. “Great kid, does everything you ask. He’s a guy I’m excited about.”

Garcia is replacing sixth-year senior James Wilson, who finally managed to put together a full season after a career full of knee and foot injuries. Wilson played solidly in 2012, but Garcia -- who was a tackle at Maryland -- is much more mobile and is an upgrade in pass protection.

UF gave up 39 sacks last season, and while all of those aren’t because of breakdowns on the offensive line, the unit certainly needs to do a better job protecting Driskel. UF’s passing offense ranked 114th nationally, and inconsistent pass protection was one of the main reasons.

“We need to play better around Jeff,” Muschamp said. “It wasn't all just one guy's fault in the throwing game. We need to get better at receiver. We need to improve in protection. Our backs didn't protect as well as maybe we thought at times. It wasn't always on the offensive line. Sometimes we held onto the ball too long. All of those things are being addressed.”

But it starts with the offensive line and a left side that now seems to have been greatly improved.

GAINESVILLE, Fla. -- Florida QB Jeff Driskel had better make some significant improvements during the offseason, because the Gators’ offense will be in a world of trouble if he doesn’t.

Or if he gets hurt.

Jacoby Brissett’s decision to transfer leaves Florida with zero experience behind Driskel. Tyler Murphy, who will be a redshirt junior next season, has appeared in three games in his career in a mop-up role and has never thrown a pass. Skyler Mornhinweg will be a redshirt freshman in 2013.

The other quarterback on the roster is expected to be Max Staver, a 6-foot-6, 238-pound four-star recruit from Brentwood, Tenn./Brentwood Academy who has pledged to sign with Florida next month.

That means the Gators have virtually no options if Driskel doesn’t get better after his first season as a starter. The 6-4, 237-pound junior-to-be was solid in 2012, completing 63.7 percent of his passes for 1,646 yards with 12 touchdowns and five interceptions. But he struggled with holding on to the ball too long, staring down his receivers and making progressions.

Those are things with which nearly every young quarterback struggles, so it shouldn’t be alarming that Driskel did. Plus, he didn’t get a ton of help. The offensive line was inconsistent in pass protection, and the receivers -- other than TE Jordan Reed (team-high 45 catches), who announced he’s leaving early for the NFL -- are below-average.

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