Florida vs Tennessee-Martin: Film Review

by | Sep 10, 2019 | Football Game Recaps, Gator Football, The Day After, Uncategorized

Another week, another Gator win, another batch of highlights for Florida, and another batch of not-so-great things that they can work on. Due to the quality of the opponent, this review will not be as detailed as the Miami game was.

Jeawon Taylor was out for this game, which gave Shawn Davis the start at safety next to Stiner. FCS opponent or not, it gives Davis a good chance to earn the starting safety spot over Taylor, or at the very least, to earn more snaps over Taylor. Davis was the only safety vs. Miami who showed a lot of promise in the angles he took to ball carriers and not missing a bunch of tackles. And right away we see the upgrade Davis provides in terms of his tackling ability. Watch how he squares up and doesn’t go for the knockout blow.

This play, combined with some poor judgement on Toney’s part vs Miami, is why I truly believe the comparisons to Percy Harvin should fade away. Toney is very explosive and shares similar lateral quickness as Percy, but the two are not in the same tier in terms of vision and trust in their blocking schemes. I love Toney’s explosiveness, but it’s just not an accurate comparison. The blocks look to be set up quite well to me and there is no need for Toney to reverse course on this play, so just plow forward and get what you can. Yes, UTM probably hits Toney a couple yards after he runs forward, but then with that explosive power we all know he has, Toney also might break a couple of tackles like he did vs Miami. When Toney returns from injury, he really needs to figure out how trust the blocking schemes setup for him.

And here, he has two options IMO, cut straight up the field and hope to beat the DB closest to him with his speed, or take advantage of the double team block and bounce it outside. I don’t see any reason, knowing Toney’s speed, that he can’t quickly get the first down here if he was to bounce this towards the sideline.

This is about the best blocking the starting offensive line provided against UTM, which I’ll dig into more. This is the kind of hole that Florida should be opening on a consistent basis vs. an FCS program.

Again, everybody from Florida is on a body from UTM.

This looks like a play we saw multiple times against Miami. Questionable tackling fundamentals, help defense over running the play and no contain on the backside until late, and in this case the backside help doesn’t really put himself in an ideal position to actually make a play on the RB. This is going to be a big issue against a tailback like D’Andre Swift for Georgia, a guy who has arguably the best jump cut in CFB.

This next play is a simple play I’m pointing out because this is the kind of linebacker play Florida consistently needs to see vs. the rest of their schedule if the defense is going to be better as a whole. David Reese has some issues scrapping through debris and taking on blockers, so it’s nice to see Miller sidestep a potential block, go one on one with a blocker, not lose the battle, and be the first guy to make the tackle as well. This needs to happen a lot more from Reese and Miller needs to continue to build on what he’s done vs Miami and UTM early on.

On the very next play, we see another good play by Miller against the counter QB keeper here, TE wraps up and Miller does a good job staying long and quickly fighting off the block. He doesn’t make the primary tackle, but he does enough to grab the shoe of the QB and make the help defender’s job easier.

I keep trying to skip along to keep this short but Miller continues to stand out, and again, I realize the opponent should be held in mind in terms of context, but I haven’t been a fan of David Reese vs. the run, despite the tackling numbers, so I am really liking what I see from Miller in this game so far. Again, he takes on a lineman head up, doesn’t lose, and is the first defender there to slow the RB down on the screen.

I mentioned during the Miami review that I don’t think Florida’s offensive line is good enough to pull as much as Dan utilizes blocking schemes that involve pulling linemen. But in this case, I’m starting to really notice how much work the tight ends have to do as run blockers. Based on my knowledge of this kind of blocking scheme, Pitts cuts way too far inside and it allows a defender to come in unblocked.

The yellow is what I believe Kyle Pitts is supposed to be doing, he opts for the red. The pulling OL does his job, the defender in red I circled red to let you know he’s the one that Pitts missed the block on by taking the wrong angle on his pull assignment.

Two games into the season, I am of the opinion that the weakest linemen in terms of pass protection is Jean Delance. I pointed him out on several occasions vs Miami and I’ll point him out here. More defensive coordinators are going to notice how poorly he handles stunting linemen, as this is usually the result of linemen who stunt. Franks handles it well and picks up the first down, but the schedule only gets tougher in terms of defensive lines from here, so Delance is going to need to progress faster than I’m convinced he can as a fresh face to the OL.

I believe this is the play that knocked Toney out, and I’m not here to criticize Toney, I’m calling out the suspicious lack of creativity in getting him the ball this season. Every single touch for Toney on the year came behind the line of scrimmage, and it looks to me like UTM was selling out on the run, as at no point this season has the Florida staff given the opposing defense any reason to believe Toney is anything but a gadget RB. At some point the criticism on Toney needs to shift to the play callers, and in this case, Dan Mullen and company need to re-evaluate how they get Toney the ball when he returns. If he is a WR, treat him like one.

Another poor run with a result that’s coming largely off of Chris Bleich not completing his pulling assignment. He’s way too far off line and needs to be closer to the OL. He’s so far off line that he completely has to stop and try and adjust his block. At this point the blocking is thrown off and the RB can’t create any momentum. Pitts also seems to have no idea which defender he wants to block. I don’t know the exact blocking scheme here so I am not sure who messed up here, but I feel strongly that both Bleich and Pitts aren’t supposed to be targeting the same defender. All I know is, one of them definitely got it in the film room for this.

Again, this is what I believe should be the result. Bleich wraps around and heads up field, Pitts blocks the defender who is behind him here.

On the flip side to this, the very next play we get a nice, clean pocket for Franks, and to save from over using GIFs, I’ll just go with a still. UTM used a stunt here, but it wasn’t directed at Delance. Either way, it’s weird to see an OL that is quite bad in their run scheme discipline consistently look like this in pass protection. This isn’t just a “well it’s UTM” scenario, as we had quite a lot of clean pockets like this vs Miami.

Another play that has Bleich pulling. Most of my knowledge on blocking schemes comes from a lot of reading coaches and scouts writing on the subject, so I very well may be wrong here, but I believe in this instant, Pitts is supposed to take the MLB and Bleich takes the OLB and that should spring Franks. Instead, just like just above, we end up with a Bleich and Pitts double team on one defender, freeing up another to come and make contact with Franks.

This is what I believe the blocking scheme should look like.

But this is what it looks like, Pitts and Bleich end up blocking the same defender and the man in the red is unblocked. If this is blocked correctly, this is a first down with the first defender downfield being 6 yards from Franks and it being an undersized safety.

For as questionable as CJ Henderson is vs. the run or in fighting off blocks in the screen game, there are not many, if any, corners in CFB who are better at him at playing the ball in the air cleanly. Let’s not shortsell him here. This isn’t good coverage, or great coverage; this is perfect coverage.

To save some of your browsers from GIF overuse, our pass rushers really seem to get going as the game goes on. This is not exactly what you want your tackles to look like vs any kind of pass rush, reaching and over extending before your QB hits his drop is less than ideal. This ended up in a sack.

This is the 2nd best run of the day up to this point. It is no surprise to me that when our linemen and TEs are not being tasked with pulling and making a decision on who to block, and just line and go forward, the run blocking is good enough to move the ball and potentially win you games vs. better opposition. It’s not perfect blocking; I’d ideally like to see Bleich fire off that double team and head to the next level with more commitment. But it works.

This play very likely goes for a big, big gain if Delance does a better job on his assignment here. I’d like to see us run these stretch plays a little more often but I guess if Delance can’t hold his block properly vs. UTM, the staff won’t be overly confident in his ability against Auburn or LSU.

And if you’re asking yourself what did Delance do wrong?

This.

In my review of the Miami game, I focused much heavier on the little mistakes Franks made, because I completely agreed with PFF’s low grade of him in that game. But against UTM, there really isn’t much to criticize him on. At least, not based off what limited view of the field that I have. Arm talent is arm talent and Franks very likely has the strongest arm in CFB, the issue is reigning in what goes on in his head and scaling back the overthrows when our receivers beat defenses deep (remember the Georgia game last year?). On this play, it’s hard to tell, but it looks like he looks at the safety, looks the safety off to the left, and then goes back right where he goes deep to Van Jefferson. Also of note, again, is how fantastic the offensive line is pass protection. It’s quite odd to see a line as poor as Florida’s is in the running game be so strong in the passing game for a group that has 4 new starters on the OL. Per Phil Steele, this united ranked 127th in returning experience. You don’t normally get this kind of pocket with that level of returning experience unless you recruit like UGA does up front, and we haven’t recruited remotely as well as UGA has on their OL, I know a lot of people, myself included, criticized the John Hevesy hire, anyone that did so looks like a fool.

Anyways, the first play of 2018 that lit up the Swamp:

Jaydon Hill may be really good for a freshman, that will be determined going forward as he gets more playing time with CJ Henderson out, but I like how the true freshman plays the screen. Gets inside leverage on the WR and does enough to slow down the ball carrier and makes it easier for Reese and Davis to clean up. It wouldn’t surprise me if UTM saw Hill out wide and thought they had an advantage in the screen game, but if they did, Hill proved that to be a mistake.

Jaydon Hill, true freshman, once again, perfect coverage, perfect timing, perfect breakup of the pass.

This is on the same drive, at this point I’m convinced that the offensive staff saw Hill on the field and immediately thought they could move the ball at will by targeting a true freshman.

I feel like Perine is a really timid runner behind this OL. I don’t know if he’s grown concerned about what he deals with in practice, but Perine was a much tougher, straight forward runner in the past. Now, the OL has this sealed off quite well, Tyrie Cleveland does a pretty subpar job on the outside, but in the past, Perine hits the corner and the gas and just goes. Here, he hits the corner and immediately starts dancing. Perine a year ago turns this into a first down. Perine this year? I’m not quite sure, since I’m not in Perine’s head and since it’s only been two games, but he’s been a very timid runner so far this season.

This play was setup by earlier looks where Toney was in at WR and went into motion to receive the handoff out of the shotgun. Florida has been very run dominant out of this look and this is a great call, it helps that the entire defense bites on the run, and again, Franks a year or two ago over or under throws this ball.

Time to feature another true freshman, Khris Bogle (#97). He’s matched up here on a TE, so he should win this matchup, and he does. He creates separation with strength and does a good job of forcing the RB back inside to the defense, doesn’t need the help though as he pretty much shuts the RB down on his own.

Bogle wins (circled in black) this time with an inside pass rush. I really like what I’m seeing out of him early on. Zuniga also wins quite easily with speed and a rip, Lacedrick Brunson cleans up with a sack, which makes up for him getting badly beat on a wheel route on the play prior to this.

My favorite thing about Zuniga right now is that he can lineup anywhere and win. If you think a teams weakest linemen is their LG or RG, you can confidently line up Zuniga over the shoulder of that linemen and feel comfortable in Zuniga winning quite a lot of those one on one battles.

If Perine continues to dance and run timid/scared, it won’t surprise me to eventually see Davis take over the RB1 role. Though I’m not sure the difference between RB1 and RB2 will matter that much by years end in terms of carries, but this is the running style I remember from Perine a year ago, both Davis and Pierce did a better job to this point of getting the ball, seeing the hole, and going.

I said this before last season, and I’ll say it again: for all my criticism of Franks, I think he has really solid ball placement on these slant routes. He puts the ball low and almost entirely out of the way of a DB being able to jump the route.

Picture time, this is a stunt. Delance is targeted directly here with the stunt and Franks has to get rid of this throw as Delance has lost the battle.

Delance in picture form, part 2. This is the 2nd play this drive that his pass set has ruined from properly being able to play out how the coaches drew it up. Franks has to break the pocket and run here.

Franks does a really good job here evading the pressure, keeping his eyes downfield, patiently waiting for someone to get open, a nice throw moving left, a little sideways with the release to get through the junk.

This is the kind of run by Perine I like to see, even if it doesn’t gain a lot of yards. Gets the ball, puts one foot in the ground, cuts, and goes.

And now we have two good runs by Perine, again, one cut and go. Curious if someone on the staff got onto him about the timid dancing I noticed in the first half.

I believe this would register as Franks’ worst throw of the day. The pocket isn’t great, but I would prefer him to throw this away or find a better target. Two WRs in the same area (which is a different question on its own) vs. three DBs.

Everyone is obsessed with the deep ball, but this is the play I want to see him make more consistently as it is the higher percentage throw and will open up the deep stuff. It is a good enough pocket (the interior gets muddy at the end and keeps Franks from stepping all the way into the throw), Franks looks right long enough to move LB that way and it opens up the middle for the throw to Trevon Grimes.

At this point in the game I am going to shift gears a little bit and primarily focus on the backups the best I can, with the exception being if I notice something either really great or really awful with a starter.

Here we have another true freshman standing out for fundamentally sound play,  Kaiir Elam with a great open field tackle. Note how he simply squares up and doesn’t miss.

This play may not register as “really awesome”, but it stood out to me enough after the Miami RPO debacle. Without knowing the play call I can never be 100% certain on the play, but I’m confident that this is an RPO, Franks notices he has a numbers advantage with a one on one match-up outside and pulls, and throws.

This is less than sublime tackling here by Quincy Lenton. Frankly, I’m not sure what he is doing here; he doesn’t even attempt to wrap up, he just kind of wildly throws his body into the RB, forcing the true freshman, Jaydon Hill, to clean up. And thank god for Hill, otherwise this may have been a much bigger gain for UTM.

As I’m still getting into the groove with my film reviews, sometimes I overlook guys, so I’m glad TJ Slaton and Zach Carter popped up on the same play here as I haven’t really noticed them up to this point. I expect big things for Slaton, not in terms of his numbers, but I’m hoping he earns more playing time and can be a guy who sucks up two blocks. Carter was highly hyped out of high school and I’d like to see him become a reliable 3rd pass rusher that you can lineup next to Zuniga and Greenard depending on the situation. And for both of them, this is a good start.

Here is Carter again, very next play. Just uses flat out power to push the guard right into the QB. Keeping this GIF short and just focusing on Carters rep here.

Redshirt freshman alert, Andrew Chatfield showing up on this play. This play is pretty much dead for UTM from the get go as multiple guys get beat here, but Chatfield is out of his stance faster than anyone else and has the best set here for me because he’s the only guy of the three in the backfield who actually gets blocked, and he just overpowers the linemen and turns him completely outside. Big win for the freshman.

And here is a still to show you where Chatfield is right at the snap, perfect timing.

Now we get to a redshirt freshman on offense that I’m extremely excited about: Jacob Copeland. This is Copeland’s third touch of the day, the other two were catches, but I posted this one because the play is very similar, if not the exact same as one of Toney’s prior plays in this game that went for a loss. I have no idea what Toney would do in this situation based on his inconsistency in terms of putting his foot down and going or dancing wildly behind the line of scrimmage. But this play is a good example of why I think Copeland is a perfectly suitable replacement for Toney, and in one area, potentially an upgrade. No dancing, he sees the hole, and he goes.

Copeland already has more catches past the line of scrimmage in one quarter than Toney did in five and some change quarters. At this point, I’m thoroughly convinced that the staff has some kind of trust or confidence issues in Toney as an actual WR, he’s basically just a gadget RB. This slant route is nothing crazy, but the DB is draped on Copeland, its a good throw by Trask and a good catch by a freshman WR. It’s still way too early to tell if Copeland can be a better version of Toney, or just flat out better than Toney, I’m assuming we’ll find out a lot more vs Kentucky, so I don’t want to jump off the deep end in terms of optimism on two plays vs a FCS team, but what I’m seeing from Copeland already gives me confidence that Florida won’t miss Toney. And a big part of that is that we’re just flat out deep enough at WR that even if Copeland struggles, you have enough experienced guys there to do the variety of things Mullen wants to do.

Anyway, onto the slant, and the touchdown that has social media buzzing about this kid:

Lenton is a guy that I’ve noticed twice now show almost no proper tackling fundamentals. This is another play where he just kind of throws his head and shoulder at the ball carrier and hopes he wins the round, but he just bounces off and he needs help to bring the ball carrier down. If you’re losing one on one vs. every UTM ball carrier, you’re going to lose to every single RB Florida plays. And that’s a statement that includes Towson. I’m convinced that if Lenton plays any snaps vs someone like Georgia, we’re going to have a really hard time winning that game, a la CJ McWilliams last year. Unfortunately, Florida’s depth at safety is thin, so we’re probably going to see a lot more of Lenton. Let’s just hope the staff notices these kind of bad tackling fundamentals and works them out before we have Lenton seeing a one on one situation with someone like D’Andre Swift. Because from what I’m seeing seeing here, my money is on Swift.

This next play is one of those plays I’m confident doesn’t happen with the starters on the field. I’m posting it because again, Chatfields get off. I have no issue with how he played this, partly because I have no idea what the play call is here, but generally you have either linebackers who are supposed to read and stick with the QB while the DE crashes or LBs scrap down onto the RB while the DE pops out to contain the QB. Pretty much everyone but Jaydon and Chatfield play this wrong. Only because of Jaydon’s speed does the shutout remain alive.

Again, I’m loving Chatfield’s motor. Once again he beats everyone off the line of scrimmage with ease.

Elam also grabs his first interception on the next play. Unfortunately, the ESPNU camera work is so awful that I’m not even going to bother breaking it into a GIF. The freshman DBs had quite the great start to their careers in this game.

Home stretch of this film room session. Trask here drops a dime in between the DBs playing zone. When I originally saw the “OR” between him and Emory on the Gators’ depth chart, I thought it was a motivational tactic for Emory, but while Emory is faster and runs Dans read option stuff better, I actually do believe Trask is just flat out the better passer between the two and so the staff is probably split on who is the better backup right now.

This is what I want to routinely see out of Slaton when he is on the field. I assume this is the backup offensive line for UTM, but the double team does nothing, he still moves laterally and makes the tackle. A guy thats 350+ pounds should get this kind of double team treatment on a consistent basis. Just need him to do this against SEC starting offensive lines.

And again, but this one is more impressive. In the last play one of the linemen breaks off his double team on Slaton to move up to block a linebacker. This time, both linemen stay engaged on Slaton the entire time and Slaton moves them both, without issue, and is once again the reason this run goes nowhere. This is the kind of play that is extremely impressive to me, backup FCS OL or not, that is two grown men at 300+ pounds that can not move Slaton away from where Slaton wants to go.

This is the best run of the day, not the best blocked run of the day, it’s not bad, but this is pretty much all freshman Iverson Clement. It’s nice to see this kind of athleticism and vision in terms of finding the cutback lanes, and this could be the start of a great career for him, but it’s hard to get too excited about this kind of run late in the 4th against what I imagine are mostly walk-ons at this point.

I believe this might be an inverted veer. Whether or not I’m correct, Emory shows what he brings to the QB position when he is in, and I’m surprised by how often we had Emory running up the A and B gap in this game. I was always under the impression he would be more of a read option, off tackle runner, but he had a number of runs right up the gut of the defense. Also note here #75, TJ Moore, I feel like he pulls and attacks with a bit more aggression then Bleich has shown so far  from the guard position. Maybe we could see Moore mixed in with the first string OL a little bit more to see if we have more success on those runs that Mullen is asking his guards to pull on.

And that is where we end the film review.

Conclusion

You have to keep the competition in mind when watching this game. The offense got off to a really slow start, and without all-22 film I can’t tell you whether that is the fault of Franks or not. He had a great game and his stat line was solid, no other Florida QB has ever put up those numbers and we know Florida has played many a awful cupcake teams in the programs history. The issue for Franks has always been consistency. He won’t do this vs Kentucky and I think most people realize that, it’s about improving on the Miami game and not being the reason Florida loses to a team they should beat in Lexington.

The biggest issue for me in this game is that offensive line and Pitts primarily at the TE spot, really struggled in the run game. You shouldn’t struggle to open up lanes vs UT-Martin, you just shouldn’t. And the odd part is that I could have included another 10 still pictures of all the clean pockets Franks had in this game, so the offensive line isn’t bad as a whole. This will be an offense where the pass will have to open up the run game, because I see nothing through two games that tells me that Franks will have a lot of success working off the play action (though he did have one big key pass vs Miami that was based off a play action fake to Perine). I didn’t log run yards out of specific formations, but I believe our best runs came out of a standard pro formation with Franks under center and the line just going forward. The moment we start asking guys to pull, things get ugly and more often then not the RB in at the moment is getting hit at or behind the line of scrimmage. Ultimately what an armchair coach thinks means nothing, but I’d like to see Mullen utilize less of the pulling linemen until they show they can do it.

I don’t foresee Florida’s offense missing Toney. This isn’t a knock on Toney, despite some of my criticism of his lack of patience and questionable vision. It has more to do with my faith in depth at WR and that Copeland is a more developed WR, even as a RS Freshman.

On the defensive side, nothing from the defensive line concerns me, it’s still the best and deepest unit on that side of the ball and if Chatfield continues to get his reps, Grantham will have a lot of options to play with in terms of rushing the passer. Slaton is a make or break guy for this line going forward. I want to see him on the field with Greenard and Zuniga more, as the more snaps he played in this game, the better he looked. Think back to how difficult Alabama was to scheme around because of Terrence Cody, I think Slaton has similar potential in terms of forcing you to double team him, and if he can take up an extra blocker, that always helps your linebacker group.

I still believe Miller is the best linebacker on the team right now, I don’t believe Reese played many snaps in this game, which is fine, this teams needs to develop more experience behind Reese and Miller.

I don’t think CJ Henderson can be replaced in pass coverage, but several of the freshman corners, specifically Jaydon Hill, gave me reason to believe there won’t be a drastic drop-off in that area. Thankfully it seems as if CJ will only be out a couple weeks, so Marco Wilson needs to shine now as the guy to shutdown opposing teams #1 WR, thankfully, Florida doesn’t really play anyone with a fearsome WR unit while CJ is out.

 

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Game day: Florida Gators at South Florida Bulls Preview

Game day: Florida Gators at South Florida Bulls Preview

Gameday is once again upon us! This time, the Florida Gators will face the South Florida Bulls in a quasi-road game where the stands promise to feature as much orange and blue as green and gold- if not more. Amidst what some people deem to be a quarterback controversy...

Five takeaways from Florida Gators’ 35-14 win over FAU

Five takeaways from Florida Gators’ 35-14 win over FAU

The Florida Gators knocked off FAU 35-14 to begin the 2021 season, but left much to be desired. So: what stuck out along the way? (Aside: I'll be keeping these "five takeaways" pieces short and sweet throughout the season in order to get more stuff written each week.)...

It’s Emory Jones’ turn. His time. And his team.

It’s Emory Jones’ turn. His time. And his team.

Photo credit: USA Today Flash back to almost four years ago, December 20, 2017. It's the day that Emory Jones signed with the Florida Gators, which planted a seed for a career that has, for the most part, remained dormant- until now. Not too long before a letter of...

Florida’s Andrew Chatfield enters transfer portal

Florida’s Andrew Chatfield enters transfer portal

Photo credit: Evan Lepak, UAA Communications Florida linebacker/defensive end Andrew Chatfield has decided to enter the transfer portal. In doing so, he becomes the third Gators defender who has logged reps at linebacker to do so this offseason after James Houston IV...

Snapshot: 2021 Florida-FSU chart

Snapshot: 2021 Florida-FSU chart

Happy Chart Day! Yep, it's that time of year again. The annual In All Kinds Of Weather tradition of "The Florida FSU chart" is back in 2021. For those who are not familiar with "The Chart," every year since 2014, I have been laying out all the dizzying array of ways...

OT David Conner commits to Florida

OT David Conner commits to Florida

Photo via David Conner Florida’s offensive line play has been suspect at best these past few years, and the Gators’ 2022 recruiting class has been somewhat stuck in reverse so far. Both of those things got a nice boost today with the commitment of offensive tackle...

LB EJ Lightsey commits to Florida

LB EJ Lightsey commits to Florida

Photo credit: Keith Niebuhr, 247Sports Linebacker EJ Lightsey (Fitzgerald, GA/Fitzgerald) has just become the newest member of the Gators' 2022 recruiting class. He announced the decision on twitter this morning. Though Florida's fan base does have a propensity to...

Florida CB Jaydon Hill tears ACL, will miss 2021 season

Florida CB Jaydon Hill tears ACL, will miss 2021 season

Photo credit: John Raoux, AP A big part of the small amount of depth the Florida Gators had in its secondary is now gone for the season, as cornerback Jaydon Hill has torn his ACL. Hill suffered the injury in practice on Sunday. Rumblings that Hill would miss the...

Four star RB Terrance Gibbs commits to Florida

Four star RB Terrance Gibbs commits to Florida

Photo via Terrance Gibbs The Gators have finally landed a top running back out of high school as opposed to the portal, as Terrance Gibbs (Winter Park, FL/Winter Park HS) has committed to Florida. Though Gibbs is only rated as a four star by both Rivals and 247Sports,...

2023 TE Mac Markway commits to Florida

2023 TE Mac Markway commits to Florida

Photo via Mac Markway Tim Brewster has landed another one for the Florida Gators, raiding the Show Me State for a Mac Markway, tight end that schools across the country wanted. Markway, a consensus four star target from St. Louis, chose Florida over Ohio State and...

ATH Jamarrien Burt commits to Florida

ATH Jamarrien Burt commits to Florida

After laying dormant for quite some time, the Gators' 2022 recruiting class is picking up some steam at last. A mere four days after Florida added a pair of commitments from linebacker Shemar James and wide receiver Chandler Smith, athlete Jamarrien Burt has joined...

Athletic four star LB Shemar James commits to Florida

Athletic four star LB Shemar James commits to Florida

Photo credit: Scott Donaldson, preps@al.com Florida's 2022 recruiting class just gained perhaps its most highly touted piece yet, as consensus four star linebacker Shemar James announced his commitment this afternoon. James- out of Mobile, AL/Faith Academy- was...

Four star DB Julian Humphrey commits to Florida

Four star DB Julian Humphrey commits to Florida

Photo via TexAgs Not even three months after poaching QB Nick Evers from the Lone Star State, Dan Mullen and the Florida Gators rode west to Texas once again and pulled out another stud in Julian Humphrey, a consensus four star prospect from the Houston metropolitan...

Underrated three star WR Isaiah Bond commits to Florida

Underrated three star WR Isaiah Bond commits to Florida

Photo via Isaiah Bond After a lull the past couple months, the Gators are making moves with their 2022 recruiting class again, this time adding wide receiver Isaiah Bond. https://twitter.com/isaiahbond_/status/1391513186566819845?s=20 247Sports credits Billy Gonzales...

Florida Gators 2021 NFL Draft primer

Florida Gators 2021 NFL Draft primer

Photo credit: Kim Klement, USA Today Happy NFL Draft Day, Florida Gators fans! Today is the day where 32 former college football stars take the first step towards making their lifelong dreams of playing in the NFL a reality. That, of course, will include former Gators...

(Unofficial) results from Florida’s NFL Pro Day

(Unofficial) results from Florida’s NFL Pro Day

Photo credit: Florida Gators Due to the cancellation of the Gators' spring football game, the Florida Gators Pro Day was the closest thing to live football we're going to get this offseason. Luckily for the fans- and much more importantly, themselves- several...

Who should replace Mike White at Florida? (2021 version)

Who should replace Mike White at Florida? (2021 version)

Photo credit: John E. Moore, Getty Images A year ago, after Mike White's coaching malpractice pushed me over the edge for good, I wrote about all the laundry list of candidates I would love to see Florida replace Mike White with. After his horrifying late game...

TE CJ Hawkins commits to Florida

TE CJ Hawkins commits to Florida

Image via 247Sports The Gators got off to a slow start with their 2022 recruiting class. But with the addition of CJ Hawkins, it's officially picking up steam. Hawkins, a tight end out of Tampa, FL/Berkeley Prep, committed to Florida over South Carolina. The Gators...

Athletic OT Tony Livingston commits to Florida

Athletic OT Tony Livingston commits to Florida

Image via BuckeyePlanet.com Florida picked up a major boost for its 2022 recruiting class with the addition of Tony Livingston. Livingston, a consensus four star offensive tackle from Tampa, FL/Carrolwood Day announced his decision on twitter this evening. He also had...

2022 QB Nick Evers commits to Florida

2022 QB Nick Evers commits to Florida

Image via TexAgs.com Coaches will tell you that in every recruiting class, signing a quarterback is a need. For the Gators' 2022 class, Dan Mullen just filled that need in the name of Nick Evers, who just committed with an announcement on twitter. Evers is a consensus...

Videos: highlights from Gator football’s 3/2 practice

Videos: highlights from Gator football’s 3/2 practice

Photo credit: Florida Gators/@GatorsFB The Gators held Day 6 of spring practice today, and as has been the case for several of the prior practices, the program decided to open it up (virtually) to the public, and streamed most of the reps live on the team's Instagram...

Videos: highlights from Gator football’s 2/26 practice

Videos: highlights from Gator football’s 2/26 practice

Day five of full pads. (Image via Florida Gators.) For the third time this week, the Florida Gators football team held a virtual open practice, streaming most of the day's work on Instagram live for all to see. Here are all the videos I managed to capture from Friday...

Videos: highlights from Gator football’s 2/24 practice

Videos: highlights from Gator football’s 2/24 practice

Jason Marshall vs. Xzavier Henderson: something we'll be seeing a lot of in practice for a very, very long time. (Photo credit: Florida Gators) For the second time this week, the Gator football program virtually opened its practice to the public on its Instagram page,...

Videos: highlights from Gator football’s 2/22 practice

Screenshot from Florida's practice today (via Florida Gators) Dan Mullen and the Florida Gator football team hit the field for practice today as usual. One thing that made today's practice different from a lot of the Gators' other practices, though, was that today's...

Kicker Adam Mihalek commits to Florida

Kicker Adam Mihalek commits to Florida

Image via Adam Mihalek The Florida Gators snuck in one last addition to their 2021 recruiting class at the last second: kicker Adam Mihalek. Mihalek, a local from Tampa, has announced his intentions to stay close to home and attend the University of Florida as a...

Four star 2022 DE Francois Nolton commits to Florida

Four star 2022 DE Francois Nolton commits to Florida

With the Gators' 2021 recruiting class all wrapped up, Dan Mullen and his staff have gone to work setting up their 2022 class. https://twitter.com/99_nolton/status/1357739221822418945?s=20 Francois Nolton, a 6'4, 225 lb. four star defensive end from Miami, has...

Gators land former LSU five star TE Arik Gilbert

Gators land former LSU five star TE Arik Gilbert

Dan Mullen remains undefeated in the NCAA transfer portal with the addition of Arik Gilbert. And now, a year after Florida lost unanimous All-American tight end Kyle Pitts to the NFL, the Gators may not miss a beat at that position. Gilbert, a former five star tight...

Florida Gators’ 2021 football schedule revealed

Florida Gators’ 2021 football schedule revealed

When the SEC first pieced together a twelve year football schedule rotation in 2014 that dictated which teams would play who from the other division, the Florida Gators knew that they'd be hosting Alabama as their cross-division opponent in 2021. But now, following...

Gators complete coaching staff with Jules Montinar

Gators complete coaching staff with Jules Montinar

UPDATE: Florida has officially announced Jules Montinar as the newest member of the Gator football staff. https://twitter.com/GatorsFB/status/1353802427313618945?s=20 (Initial story begins below.) With linebackers coach Christian Robinson presumably staying at...

Auburn DL Daquan Newkirk transfers to Florida

Auburn DL Daquan Newkirk transfers to Florida

DaQuan Newkirk is coming home. Daquan Newkirk has decided to return home (or close to it) for his final year of eligibility. And thus, Florida's shaky offseason took a step in the right direction. https://twitter.com/holdthat_2/status/1349757297782829056?s=20 Once a...

Florida LB James Houston to enter transfer portal

Florida LB James Houston to enter transfer portal

Best of luck to James Houston as he searches for a new home. James Houston IV, a junior linebacker from Fort Lauderdale, has told me that he will be entering the transfer portal. Houston was known for making a few of the bigger defensive plays of the last couple of...

Keyontae Johnson placed into medically induced coma

Keyontae Johnson placed into medically induced coma

Keyontae Johnson has been placed into a medically induced coma, according to the USA Today, who spoke with Johnson's grandfather. His grandfather, Larry DeJarnett said in a phone interview that his grandson was transported to Gainesville earlier today after receiving...

Florida vs Tennessee: Film Review – Defense

Florida’s 2020 season has overall been a successful one by most measures. The Gators are 8-1, ranked in the top ten in every major poll and are four wins away from securing the program’s fourth national title. But in order to obtain that national title, there’s a lot...

Several Gators listed as national award semifinalists

Florida's efforts on the field have been rewarded in the sense that the Gators now control their own destiny to SEC and national championships. But for several players, their efforts are being rewarded in more individual manners, too. Four Gators have been listed as...

Five Takeaways from Florida’s 31-19 win over Tennessee

Florida didn't play especially well, but did more than enough to beat Tennessee and wrap up the SEC East for the first time since 2016. What were the major takeaways from the game? Florida simply does not have a running game Tennessee came into the game with a five...

Photo Gallery from Florida’s 34-10 win over Kentucky

As we anticipate tomorrow's road matchup with Tennessee,  let’s take one more look back at last week’s game against Kentucky. Our podcast host, Dustin Smith, happens to also be a fantastic photographer. He was at the game last Saturday, and got some great photos of...

Florida RB Iverson Clement will transfer

Florida's deep stable of running backs has just gotten a little thinner. Iverson Clement, a junior tailback from Mount Holly, NJ, has decided to transfer. He departs from Florida having carried the ball twelve times for 94 yards. He nearly scored a touchdown against...

Gators make belated Thanksgiving feast out of Wildcats

Florida was missing key pieces on both sides of the ball a week ago in a sluggish 38-17 win over Vanderbilt. The Gators got them both back today, and the result was fairly similar: Florida struggled for a half against a historically inferior divisional opponent,...

Five Takeaways from Florida’s 34-10 win over Kentucky

It took awhile for Florida to get itself going, but they eventually did do exactly that and rolled away from Kentucky. What stood out in the victory? A tale of two halves Florida's offense was stuck in reverse for most of the first half, mustering a grand total of...

No. 6 Gators overcome sluggish start to run past Vandy

Florida arrived at Vanderbilt’s small stadium a mere hour and two minutes before kickoff, determined to avoid the cramped quarters in the visitors’ locker room at all costs and intent on spending as little time on the premises as they had to. Then the Gators took the...

Five Takeaways from Florida’s 38-17 win over Vanderbilt

It wasn’t pretty, but Florida fought off a tough challenge from Vanderbilt and got out of Nashville with a 38-17 win. What stuck out in the victory? The defense is still a problem. Yes, Florida played better on defense after a miserable first quarter, and sure,...

Photo Gallery from Florida’s 63-35 win over Arkansas

Before we look ahead to Vanderbilt tomorrow, let's take one more look back at last week's game against Arkansas. Our podcast host, Dustin Smith, happens to also be a fantastic photographer. He was at the game last Saturday night, and got some great photos of various...

Trask, Gators run Hogwild in blowout of Arkansas

Trask, Gators run Hogwild in blowout of Arkansas

Feleipe Franks’ dramatic return to the Swamp was the story of the day when his Arkansas Razorbacks faced off against #6 Florida in the Swamp. But it was his long-time understudy, Kyle Trask, who dominated the night. Trask continued his push for a Heisman Trophy by...

Five Takeaways from Florida’s 63-35 win over Arkansas

Five Takeaways from Florida’s 63-35 win over Arkansas

Florida earned its most lopsided win of the season over Arkansas, and former quarterback Feleipe Franks, 63-35. What stood out most along the way? Kyle Trask is now the Heisman frontrunner After several years of hyping up various quarterbacks as Heisman Trophy...

A Tribute to Feleipe Franks: I Will Remember You

A Tribute to Feleipe Franks: I Will Remember You

Hello again, Feleipe Franks. It's been about fourteen months since your Gator career ended in a particularly gruesome fashion. Tomorrow, we meet again. Only this time, your job will be to ruin Florida's season, not enhance it, and our job will be to make you...

Gators kick Georgia out of Cocktail Party

Gators kick Georgia out of Cocktail Party

Throughout Dan Mullen’s short tenure at Florida, Kirby Smart has had Mullen’s number.  And three minutes into their third meeting in Jacksonville, it looked like that would continue. But then Florida flipped the script and turned the game— and the rivalry— on its...

Five Takeaways from Florida’s 44-28 win over Georgia

Five Takeaways from Florida’s 44-28 win over Georgia

WE DID IT!!! Yes, at long last, Florida has gotten the Georgia monkey off its back and toppled the Bulldogs to take control of the SEC East. What did we learn along the way? Kyle Trask is officially a Heisman Trophy frontrunner He may not win the award, but he has to...

2021 OL Yousef Mugharbil commits to Florida

2021 OL Yousef Mugharbil commits to Florida

A day before the Gators take on Georgia in the Cocktail Party, Yousef Mugharbil kicked off their weekend the right way. Mugharbil, a consensus four star offensive lineman from Murphy, NC/Murphy HS, has committed to Florida. He also had offers from Penn State, Virginia...

Five takeaways from Florida’s 41-17 win over Missouri

Five takeaways from Florida’s 41-17 win over Missouri

Florida bounced back from a rough loss to Texas A&M three weeks ago with a statement win against Missouri. What stood out in the process? The defense isn't great, but it's getting better. Even without three starters in the secondary (and without Zachary Carter in...

For Gators, a new season begins against Missouri

For Gators, a new season begins against Missouri

Three weeks ago, Florida completed its preseason portion of the 2020 schedule with a good deal of promise, but well aware of what it had to work on. One ugly COVID outbreak and three weeks later, and the Gators begin the meat of their schedule- a seven game stretch...

2022 Safety Sam McCall commits to Florida

2022 Safety Sam McCall commits to Florida

Just as things are getting back into full swing for the Gator football team, things are heating up on the recruiting trail, too. Florida has nabbed a commitment from 2022 athlete Sam McCall, a consensus five star recruit from Lakeland, FL/Lake Gibson HS. He chose...

2021 Edge rusher Jeremiah Williams commits to Florida

2021 Edge rusher Jeremiah Williams commits to Florida

Defensive end Jeremiah Williams, a consensus four star prospect out of Birmingham, AL/Ramsay HS, has committed to Florida, giving the Gators yet another dynamic piece for their 2021 recruiting class. Signs were pointing towards Gainesville for the highly touted edge...

Florida-Missouri game postponed to October 31

Florida-Missouri game postponed to October 31

According to multiple sources close to the team, the Florida-Missouri game scheduled to take place on October 24th will now be pushed back one week, to Halloween on October 31st. In All Kinds of Weather first reported yesterday that the game was extremely likely to be...

Florida-LSU game postponed due to COVID-19 outbreak

Florida-LSU game postponed due to COVID-19 outbreak

Multiple sources have confirmed that the Florida-LSU game scheduled for this Saturday is going to be postponed. An announcement could come as early as Wednesday afternoon. The news comes less than 24 hours after an outbreak of COVID-19 within the Gators' football...

COVID-19 outbreak places Florida-LSU game in jeopardy

After just three games, the novel coronavirus that has wreaked havoc on pretty much everything in 2020 appears to have found its way into the Gator football program. And predictably, the COVID-19 outbreak has thrown up a blockade in front of the season. A few days...

Texas A&M forces Florida to address defensive issues

Texas A&M forces Florida to address defensive issues

Throughout the game on Saturday in College Station, Florida seemed to be one step ahead of Texas A&M. Until they weren't. And then it was too late to do anything about it as the Florida program trudged off the field following a familiar fate- a loss to Jimbo...

Five takeaways from Florida’s 41-38 loss to Texas A&M

Five takeaways from Florida’s 41-38 loss to Texas A&M

Florida suffered its first loss of the season against Texas A&M today, an ugly 41-38 setback that’s far more irritating than damaging— but one that exposed a great deal of Gator shortcomings. What stood out in particular? (Spoiler alert: a lot of them are...

Imperfect Gators outlast South Carolina to start 2-0

Imperfect Gators outlast South Carolina to start 2-0

The various struggles the Florida Gators have endured on defense didn’t matter too much in their first two games against Mississippi and South Carolina. They might in their next game. And they almost certainly will later in the season. Kyle Trask tossed four touchdown...

Clemson RB Demarkcus Bowman to transfer to Florida

Clemson RB Demarkcus Bowman to transfer to Florida

The Lakeland-to-Gainesville pipeline has continued, albeit via a detour. Demarkcus Bowman has chosen to transfer to Florida. Mere days after announcing his decision to enter the transfer portal, Bowman told Gators Territory of his decision. Bowman, a former five star...

Trask’s career day propels Florida past Mississippi

Trask’s career day propels Florida past Mississippi

Dan Mullen returned to the place he once called “The School Up North” in his new set of colors for the first time. And he provided that school up north with a first class education in just how lethal his new offense is. Kyle Trask went wild, completing 30 of his 42...

Five takeaways from Florida’s 51-35 win at Ole Miss

Five takeaways from Florida’s 51-35 win at Ole Miss

The Gators opened their 2020 season with a somewhat convincing 51-35 victory over Ole Miss in Oxford. In doing so, Florida knotted the all time series score against the Rebels at twelve wins apiece. Here are my five initial takeaways from the game: Kyle Trask is...

2020 Gator football position preview: secondary

2020 Gator football position preview: secondary

Our position previews of the 2020 Gator football team conclude today with a look at the defensive backfield. Can the unit colloquially known as "DBU" move forward without CJ Henderson? Previously previewing: quarterbacks | running backs | wide receivers | tight ends |...

2020 Gator football position previews: linebackers

2020 Gator football position previews: linebackers

The penultimate piece of our position preview segment takes us to the Florida linebackers- a unit that was very good in 2019, but will look a bit different in 2020. Let's get right into it. Previously previewing: quarterbacks | running backs | wide receivers | tight...

2020 Gator football position preview: defensive line

2020 Gator football position preview: defensive line

Having completed our offensive position previews, today we move to the defensive side of the ball. And as is the case everywhere in the SEC, it starts up front. Previously previewing: quarterbacks | running backs | wide receivers | tight ends | offensive line The...

2020 Gator football position preview: offensive line

2020 Gator football position preview: offensive line

Fresh off our preview of Florida's tight ends, our 2020 Gator football position preview rolls on with a look at perhaps the key to the entire team: the offensive line. Last year, was so-so a year ago in pass protection, but really let the team down in the ground game....

2020 Gator football position preview: tight ends

2020 Gator football position preview: tight ends

With kickoff just around the corner, our position by position previews of the 2020 Gator football team are about to start hitting the presses rapid-fire. Having already published our previews on Florida's quarterback, running back and wide receiver rooms, the first of...

2020 Gator football position preview: wide receivers

2020 Gator football position preview: wide receivers

Having previously broken down Florida's quarterbacks and running backs, our position preview segment moves along today with a look at Florida's receivers. It's a unit that lost four of its top playmakers from 2019 (Van Jefferson, Freddie Swain, Josh Hammond and Tyrie...

2020 Gator football position preview: running backs

2020 Gator football position preview: running backs

After a bit longer of a gap between position breakdowns than I intended, the series rolls on today with a look at Florida's running backs. What do the Gators have in stock in their RB room this year? The leader: Dameon Pierce The leading returning rusher from 2019 has...

Snapshot: the 2020 Florida-FSU chart

Snapshot: the 2020 Florida-FSU chart

Ladies and gentlemen, it is my distinct honor and privilege to present to you, the 2020 Florida-FSU chart. Many of you already know what I'm referring too. For those who don't, "The Chart" is an annual In All Kinds Of Weather tradition that compares the Florida Gators...

2020 Gator football position preview: quarterbacks

2020 Gator football position preview: quarterbacks

With kickoff at long last in sight, it's time to break down the 2020 Gator football roster, position by position. Who's back, who's going to start, how good are they, and so on. Man, it's great to finally be talking about that again. So with that said, let's start...

Gators learn four of ten kickoff times for 2020 season

Gators learn four of ten kickoff times for 2020 season

Three of Florida's first four games of the 2020 season carry the potential to be broilers. The Gators' season opener against Mississippi in Oxford on September 26th will kick off at noon, and air on ESPN. The following week, Florida will return home and again play in...

#GreatestGatorEver Sweet 16 bracket breakdown

#GreatestGatorEver Sweet 16 bracket breakdown

Having announced the tentative plans for the schedule of the remainder of the #GreatestGatorEver fan voting tournament (update; the tournament resumes tomorrow on twitter and Instagram stories), it's time to refresh our memories regarding the final sixteen contestants...

#GreatestGatorEver tournament schedule update

#GreatestGatorEver tournament schedule update

For those who have been keeping track of the #GreatestGatorEver tournament, the excitement level has reached yet another all time high, as it does with the completion of each round. For those who haven't, it's not too late to be introduced to the event. Here's (a very...

Gators’ 2020 football schedule unveiled

Gators’ 2020 football schedule unveiled

At long last, the Florida Gators 2020 football schedule has been released. Here it is, in full. Florida Gators 2020 football schedule Week Date Opponent 1 9/26 @ Mississippi 2 10/3 S CAROLINA 3 10/10 @ Texas A&M 4 10/17 LSU 5 10/24 MISSOURI 6 --- BYE 7 11/7...

Four key Gators sit out first fall practice

Four key Gators sit out first fall practice

For the time being, it looks as though the SEC is going to give its college football season a go in 2020. But at least for today's inaugural practice, the Florida Gators football team launched its fall season down four critical pieces. As first reported by Sports...

DT Desmond Watson commits to Florida

DT Desmond Watson commits to Florida

Florida had been suffering through a bit of a lull on the recruiting trail earlier this month, a period that was low lighted by Clinton Burton flipping his commitment from Florida to Boston College. But if the past couple of weeks didn't vault Florida out of that rut,...

Gators flip OL recruit Jake Slaughter from FSU

After a bit of a lull on the recruiting trail, Florida has suddenly picked it up over the course of the last week. Last Saturday, safety Donovan McMillon committed; less than 48 hours later, receiver Marcus Burke followed suit to rev the engine a little bit on a 2021...

Top Jacksonville WR Marcus Burke commits to Florida

Top Jacksonville WR Marcus Burke commits to Florida

The Gators' 2021 recruiting class got a boost Saturday with the addition of Donovan McMillon. Today, Dan Mullen & Co. built on that momentum with the addition of receiver Marcus Burke. https://twitter.com/CERTIFIED_MB4/status/1285296008747003904?s=20 Burke, a...

Safety Donovan McMillon commits to Florida

Safety Donovan McMillon commits to Florida

Clinton Burton out, Donovan McMillon in. McMillon, a borderline three/four star safety from McMurray, PA/Peters Township High School, has committed to the Gators. The move provides Florida fans with a bit of relief following the decommitment of fellow defensive back...

#GreatestGatorEver tournament set to heat up

#GreatestGatorEver tournament set to heat up

Welcome to the part of the #GreatestGatorEver tournament where things really start to get interesting. For those who are just catching wind of the tournament, a quick explanation of how it works. Created with the goal of deciding the greatest Florida Gator athlete of...

Gators announce six new positive COVID tests within football program

UF confirms 11 positive COVID-19 cases since April

The University of Florida has acknowledged that eleven different positive tests for COVID-19 have taken place since April. The news comes a week and a half after the announcement that no returning Gator football player had tested positive. From Florida senior...

2021 CB Jordan Young commits to Florida

2021 CB Jordan Young commits to Florida

It may be one of the slowest times for sports in recent memory, but the inverse has been the case in the world of Gator football recruiting. 2021 cornerback Jordan Young (Tampa, FL/Gaither) has committed to Florida. A consensus three star prospect with offers from...

Kamar Wilcoxson re-commits to Florida for a third time

Kamar Wilcoxson re-commits to Florida for a third time

Kamar Wilcoxson is back on the Gators' commitment list- and he says this time, it's for good. https://twitter.com/KamarWilcoxson4/status/1274100941369806850?s=20 I think at this point, most Gator fans are familiar with who he is, and if you're not, I'll explain why I...

Safety Dakota Mitchell commits to Florida

Safety Dakota Mitchell commits to Florida

It probably got lost in the news of yesterday’s news that the Florida band will stop cueing up the “Gator bait” chant due to the term’s racist history, but while Florida football lost a ritual, it gained a commit. Safety Dakota Mitchell (Winter Park, FL/Winter Park)...

Gator baseball pitcher Tommy Mace to return in 2021

Gator baseball pitcher Tommy Mace to return in 2021

Tommy Mace has just pulled perhaps the biggest offseason surprise in the world of Florida Gator athletics. Mace, the ace of the Gator baseball pitching staff, has decided to return to Gainesville for another season after going undrafted in the MLB Draft. Per...

#GreatestGatorEver bracket breakdown: 15 Regional

#GreatestGatorEver bracket breakdown: 15 Regional

The sixteenth and final Regional of the #GreatestGatorEver tournament gets underway later tonight. Thus, our Regional previews conclude with a look at the 15 Regional: The bracket Regional participants (Players are listed in order they appear on the bracket.) (1)...

Lorenzo Lingard granted immediate eligibility for Florida

Lorenzo Lingard granted immediate eligibility for Florida

Happy birthday, Lorenzo Lingard. Florida's newest running back addition has announced on twitter that his waiver to be able to play in 2020 has been granted: https://twitter.com/d1champ99/status/1266464118950723584?s=20 Florida's running back room wasn't bad to begin...

#GreatestGatorEver tournament set to heat up

#GreatestGatorEver bracket breakdown: Regional 2

The penultimate Regional of the #GreatestGatorEver tournament is just about set to get underway. As is customary by now, let's acquaint ourselves with the sixteen player field a little more first. The bracket Regional participants (Players are listed in...

#GreatestGatorEver bracket breakdown: 10 Regional

#GreatestGatorEver bracket breakdown: 10 Regional

Round one of the #GreatestGatorEver tournament is drawing to a close. Today, we take a look at the third-to-last of the sixteen Regional brackets to be played: the 10 Regional. The bracket Regional participants (Players are listed in order they appear on the bracket.)...

#GreatestGatorEver bracket breakdown: 7 Regional

#GreatestGatorEver bracket breakdown: 7 Regional

We are officially three quarters of the way through of the first round of the #GreatestGatorEver tournament. Tomorrow morning, we begin the first round of the fourth quarter of the bracket- the 7 Regional. The bracket Regional participants (Players are listed in order...

Class of 2021 RB/WR Charles Montgomery commits to Florida

Class of 2021 RB/WR Charles Montgomery commits to Florida

Charles Montgomery will be suiting up in orange and blue on Saturdays. On an instagram live feed, Montgomery announced that he was choosing Florida over Maryland. A consensus four star prospect out of Seffner, FL/Armwood, Montgomery also had offers from Alabama,...

#GreatestGatorEver bracket breakdown: Regional 14

#GreatestGatorEver bracket breakdown: Regional 14

Time to complete the upper right hand corner of the #GreatestGatorEver bracket with the 14 Regional. Y'all know the drill by now; let's get to it. The bracket Regional participants (Players are listed in order they appear on the bracket.) (1) Kelly Barnhill (softball,...

Florida unveils plan to bring athletes back to campus

Florida unveils plan to bring athletes back to campus

Photo credit: University of Florida COVID-19 has pretty much shut down college athletics since it made its way over to the United States a couple of months ago. Now, the first steps are being taken to see their resumption. Earlier today, SEC school presidents have...

#GreatestGatorEver bracket breakdown: Regional 3

#GreatestGatorEver bracket breakdown: Regional 3

Up next in our #GreatestGatorEver tournament is the 3 Regional. Before voting gets underway, let's take a closer look at the field. The bracket Regional participants (Players are listed in order they appear on the bracket.) (1) Al Horford (basketball, C/F-...

#GreatestGatorEver bracket breakdown: Regional 11

#GreatestGatorEver bracket breakdown: Regional 11

Eight Regionals down, one underway, and seven more to go in Round One of our #GreatestGatorEver tournament. Next up is the 11 Regional. The bracket Regional participants (Players are listed in order they appear on the bracket.) (1) Jack Youngblood (football, DE/DT/K-...

#GreatestGatorEver bracket breakdown: Regional 6

#GreatestGatorEver bracket breakdown: Regional 6

We're halfway through the opening round of our summer long #GreatestGatorEver tournament. Now, we shift to the right side of the bracket, and start at the top with the 6 Regional, which gets underway tomorrow morning. The bracket Regional participants (Players are...

#GreatestGatorEver bracket breakdown: Regional 12

#GreatestGatorEver bracket breakdown: Regional 12

The eighth and final Regional on the left half of the 256 player #GreatestGatorEver tournament is set to get started tonight. Another way of putting that: after tonight's 12 Regional voting, we will officially be halfway done with the opening round of this summer long...

#GreatestGatorEver bracket breakdown: Regional 5

#GreatestGatorEver bracket breakdown: Regional 5

Our #GreatestGatorEver tournament rolls on today with Round one of the 5 Regional. As was the case for the previous Regionals and will be for all ensuing Regionals, let's take this opportunity to refresh our memories regarding what, exactly, the sixteen players in...

#GreatestGatorEver bracket breakdown: Regional 13

#GreatestGatorEver bracket breakdown: Regional 13

With the 4 Regional of the #GreatestGatorEver tournament currently winding down, it's time to preview the Regional it's paired with in the Sweet 16: Regional #13. The 13 Regional bracket Regional participants (Players are listed in order they appear on the bracket.)...

#GreatestGatorEver bracket breakdown: Regional 4

#GreatestGatorEver bracket breakdown: Regional 4

Our #GreatestGatorEver bracket is set to continue tomorrow with the opening round of the 4 Regional. Let's get to know that 4 Regional: The bracket Regional participants (Players are listed in order they appear on the bracket.) (1) Emmitt Smith (football, RB-...

#GreatestGatorEver bracket breakdown: Regional 9

#GreatestGatorEver bracket breakdown: Regional 9

Our #GreatestGatorEver bracket is set to continue later today with the opening round of the 9 Regional. With voting in the 8 Regional closing soon, let's familiarize ourselves with said 9 Regional: The bracket Regional participants (Players are listed in order they...

#GreatestGatorEver bracket breakdown: Regional 8

#GreatestGatorEver bracket breakdown: Regional 8

Our #GreatestGatorEver tournament is off and running. Voting for the opening round of the 1 Regional has been completed; the 16 Regional is underway and will wrap up this afternoon. Shortly after its conclusion, the 8 Regional will get underway. So, let's get to know...

#GreatestGatorEver bracket breakdown: Regional 16

#GreatestGatorEver bracket breakdown: Regional 16

Yesterday, voting began in our #GreatestGatorEver bracket in the 1 Regional. Today, voting will continue with the 16 Regional, but before the polls open, let's preview the field and refresh our memories on the players' accomplishments. The bracket Regional...

#GreatestGatorEver bracket breakdown: Regional 1

#GreatestGatorEver bracket breakdown: Regional 1

Voting for the #GreatestGatorEver bracket begins this afternoon. In the name of eliminating potential recentism in the voting, I thought I'd set the stage by previewing each Regional before the voting gets underway. Today, we'll take a look at Regional 1, which of...

2021 guard Kowacie Reeves commits to Florida

2021 guard Kowacie Reeves commits to Florida

Mike White's 2021 recruiting class is off to a great start. Kowacie Reeves (Macon, GA) has committed to Florida. Reeves, a highly sought after four star, also earned offers from North Carolina, Texas, Auburn, Georgia and Seton Hall, among others. This commitment might...

Introducing the Greatest Gator Ever bracket

Introducing the Greatest Gator Ever bracket

Part of what has helped fans make it through a long, frustrating quarantine is the abundance of fan polls on social media. In particular, 64-team, March Madness themed brackets that allow fans to vote on the winner of each matchup in each round have captured a lot of...

Michigan F Colin Castleton transferring to Florida

Michigan F Colin Castleton transferring to Florida

Colin Castleton is coming home, and Florida is adding some more frontcourt depth for the future- potentially even next season. Castleton, who spent the last two seasons at Michigan, will be transferring closer to home and joining Mike White's Gator basketball squad....

Recapping the Gators’ weekend in the 2020 NFL Draft

Recapping the Gators’ weekend in the 2020 NFL Draft

The 2020 NFL Draft has just concluded, and once again, the Florida Gators were very well represented. Below is a list of all the selections from Florida. Click on the player names for further analysis on what they bring to their new teams. Florida Gators in the 2020...

How Dan Mullen fixed a broken Gator football program

How Dan Mullen fixed a broken Gator football program

What was a fractured program less than 30 months ago needed a hero to put it back together. In Dan Mullen, Florida found that hero. This is the story of the toxic culture he walked into, how he went to work taking it apart, and how he's replaced that toxic culture...

Tebow, Spikes, James inducted into UF Hall of Fame

Tebow, Spikes, James inducted into UF Hall of Fame

Three members of the Florida Gators' 2008 football team- universally regarded as one of the best in college football history- are finally getting the ultimate recognition they deserve- spots in the UF Hall of Fame. Explosive kick/return man Brandon James posted a...

Scottie Lewis to return for sophomore year

Scottie Lewis to return for sophomore year

Florida’s basketball team got a sort-of-but-not-really-surprising boost today, as shooting guard Scottie Lewis announced that he will be coming back for his sophomore season. Lewis, a ridiculously athletic kid from southern New Jersey, arrived in Gainesville last fall...

The “Kyle Trask Emory Jones” debate: why not both?

The “Kyle Trask Emory Jones” debate: why not both?

The "Kyle Trask Emory Jones" debate is in full swing. Yes, thanks to the COVID-19 pandemic that has, among other things, lengthened college sports fans' offseason, the fanbase-wide argument regarding who should be the starter at the most important position of...

Coronavirus abruptly ends 2019-20 NCAA athletic season

Coronavirus abruptly ends 2019-20 NCAA athletic season

Photo credit: Jamie Squire/Getty Images UPDATE 5:10pm: although it feels wholly logical to assume that college baseball and softball are over for 2020, the language in the two released statements- from the SEC and NCAA, and which you can read below- left one pair of...

TE Nick Elksnis commits to Florida

TE Nick Elksnis commits to Florida

Tight end Nick Elksnis (Jacksonville, FL/Episcopal) has announced his decision to be a Gator, thus netting Florida its first commitment of its Junior Day weekend. In doing so, Elksnis effectively flips from Penn State, from which he decommitted last week....

2020 Florida Gators’ Junior Day visitors list

2020 Florida Gators’ Junior Day visitors list

The Gators' second Junior Day event in Gainesville is upon us, and it's important to keep an eye on because more often than not, Florida uses it to add members to its list of commits. This time around, the chances of the Gators doing so are increased appreciably-...

Four star TE Gage Wilcox commits to Florida

Four star TE Gage Wilcox commits to Florida

Congratulations to Gage Wilcox. You, sir, have just become the first commit for Tim Brewster. Wilcox, a four star tight end from Tampa's Jefferson High School in the Class of 2021, committed on an Instagram Live video, as captured by twitter user @CurtisK421....

Florida takes step forward by throttling LSU

Florida takes step forward by throttling LSU

Photo credit: Florida Gators Maybe this is another mirage, the latest peak in a dizzying array of sine waves for Mike White’s Gator basketball team. Or maybe, after we all erroneously thought this team had turned the corner several times before, this is the game that...