The inevitable offseason attrition has begun.
Sources have confirmed to me that offensive guard Travaris Dorsey will transfer out of Florida. In addition, other sources have confirmed the same news to various other media outlets, including Rivals, Scout, etc. We get the point. Dorsey is gone. And this morning, UF confirmed that kicker Austin Hardin was set to transfer as well.
Neither should really come as a complete shock, though. An offensive line that was dangerously thin a year ago has almost magically been replenished with adequate players in the twelve months since we were all complaining (rightfully so) about the terrible position Will Muschamp left us with. Objectively speaking, Dorsey had no chance to beat out Tyler Jordan, Antonio Riles, Andrew Mike, or if he played inside, Martez Ivey for either of the offensive guard spots. He wasn’t just not going to start, he had so many guys to pass on the depth chart that it just didn’t seem realistic.
As for Hardin, he appeared to have an even smaller chance of playing with the arrival of prized JUCO kicker Eddy Pineiro. He came with a big leg and a fair amount of hype, but struggled with accuracy throughout his career at Florida. However, no matter how much of a beating he may take from fans, it’s worth pointing out that he did come through when he was needed most: he nailed the game winner against Tennessee in 2014 and the game winner against Vanderbilt last year, kicks of 49 and 43 yards, respectively- no chip shots. So why did he struggle? We’ll never know, but my guess is it had to be a mental thing, as we know he had the big leg, but, well, kicks just weren’t going through the uprights.
Dorsey originally signed to play for Will Muschamp in February of 2014, and appeared to be in good position to get some playing time last year. But he never played a snap for Florida, a fate that was due in large part to a history of injuries, and so losing him is not a particularly damaging blow.
Obviously, I’ll wish Dorsey and Hardin the best going forward. They appear to be good dudes with bad luck, and gave it their best shot at Florida. So, good luck, Travaris and Austin.
