Gator Football: Saturday Practice Observations

For more than two hours the Gators went through their practice paces at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium Saturday, an open practice attended by a few thousand fans. Practice was fast paced with plenty of on-field teaching moments. It was limited contact so it’s difficult to gauge just how far some of these guys have come, but a couple of things for certain: Anything less than full focus isn’t tolerated and on-field discipline is very, very good.

Photo credit Chris Spears GatorBait Media

1. QUARTERBACK: Graham Mertz may not throw 99 mph laser beams, but the ball gets there on time and with better accuracy than we saw in the spring game. He made a terrific throw to the sideline that freshman Aidan Mizell grabbed with one hand for something like an 18-yard gainer. It was the catch of the day and the throw of the day since Mizell is the only one who had a chance to make the catch. Mertz had a nice throw to Kaliel Jackson and a couple to Caleb Douglas as well, plus touchdown passes to Andy Jean that were impressive. One of the best throws Mertz made was a sideline route to tight end Arlis Boardingham. Mertz was rolling right and could have tried to make a spectacular throw farther down the field, but that would have been a 50-50 pass at best. Instead, he kept rolling, and hit Boardingham with a 12-yard pass that would have moved the chains.

Probably the best thing Mertz showed was a willingness to make the kind of plays that extend drives. He doesn’t shy away from deep passes. He’s not looking to dink and dump and showed Saturday that he knows how to extend drives with good decisions. He made three or four mediocre throws and two bad ones, but overall, he had a good day both in terms of throwing and decision making.

2. RUNNING BACK: Watching Montrell Johnson Jr., Trevor Etienne and Cam Carroll brings back memories of 1984 when the 3-man rotation of future first rounders Neal Anderson, John L. Williams and Lorenzo Hampton used to rip off one big play after another. Montrell and Etienne are known quantities and both look leaner and quicker out of their cuts than they did a year ago. Both have that innate ability to find open space and accelerate. Carroll just runs through people. He’s got the size of a real between the tackles pounder (6-0, 231) but he’s got a burst and he’s got some shiftiness that makes him hard to hit. Freshman Treyaun Webb is physically impressive but he’ll have to fight for carries this year. All the backs are involved in the passing game.

3. O-LINE: Probably the most impressive thing seen all day was the lack of false starts or blown assignments. After a year in which the Gators had four games with double-digit penalties that’s a very good sign of progress. The first unit offensive line was LT Austin Barber, LG Richie Leonard IV with Knijeah Harris also getting reps with the ones, C Kingsley Eguakun with backup Jake Slaughter getting some reps with the ones, RG Micah Mazzccua although in non-contact black jersey, and RT Damieon George Jr. Mazzccua (6-5, 337) will play RG where O’Cyrus Torrence played last year and team with George (6-6, 371) for a monster right side. This figures. It’s a right-handed QB so the bulk of the running carries will probably go right side behind the two big guys. Barber is quicker than Richard Gouraige was at LT last year and Gouraige wasn’t bad at all. Good job today by both Eguakun and Slaughter making all the line calls and adjustments. It’s easy to see that both of them have a real command of the offense. Jalen Farmer has definitely slimmed down. Jordan Herman is a walking eclipse. He is so big he blocks out the sun. Kamryn Waites (still recovering from an Achilles) and freshman Caden Jones (boot) didn’t participate. Lyndell Hudson Jr. (concussion protocol) missed practice.

4. WIDE RECEIVER: Ricky Pearsall missed practice with an undisclosed illness, but that gave Caleb Douglas, Marcus Burke, Kaliel Jackson and freshmen Aiden Mizell, Andy Jean and Eugene Wilson III opportunities. There was noticeable consistency in their route-running that wasn’t there a year ago, largely attributable to the coaching of Billy Gonzales. Billy G is such a technician. Watching him teach route running down to precise steps (“Seven steps, not 6-and-a-half” he yelled out several times during one drill) is like watching a master craftsman. He’s a teacher and he’s got kids who are really paying attention to the coaching. Douglas is very smooth and playing with a lot of confidence right now. Burke is a long strider who’s moving faster than he looks. He will definitely be in the rotation in the fall. Mizell is going to burn a lot of people deep, seriously fast. Jean is explosive coming out of a cut once he plants his foot. Wilson showed off some speed and moves on a jet sweep when he found another gear turning the corner. None of Kaliel Jackson’s genes (he’s the son of Willie Jr., grandson of Willie Sr.) got drowned in the pool. He will be a contributor. He’s very physical. Thai Chaiokhao-Bowman runs a lot of routes from the slot, probably where he will get most of his reps.

5. TIGHT END: Keon Zipperer (ACL) is out for the year. Jonathan Odom (still in a knee brace and almost recovered from his ACL) was limited in what he could do. Dante Zanders got most of the first team reps. He’s slimmed down from last year and maybe that will help him get open more often. Right now, he’s more of a blocker than anything else. Arlis Boardingham runs that tight end slant to perfection and he does a good job of using his body to shield defenders. Very nice route runner and really good hands. Can he block? Hayden Hansen is physically very impressive but we didn’t see him get the ball thrown his way much. Tony Livingston looks like a real specimen. Will be interesting to watch his development.

6. D-LINE: Despite plenty of attempts by Mertz and the other quarterbacks to get these guys to jump, there were only a couple of instances when the D-line got into the neutral zone. It’s obvious the Gators are much bigger up front than last year. If the big guys can hold their ground, the D-line should do a better job against the run this year. There is no shortage of size. Imagine a goal line front that features Desmond Watson (6-5, 439), Cam Jackson (6-6, 371), Caleb Banks (6-6, 323) and Chris McClellan (6-3, 325). It could happen. Since the contact was limited it’s hard to tell just how quick the big guys will be getting off the ball and into a gap while hand-fighting with the O-line, but size and strength are evident. Banks really had a good practice. Jackson is so physical in the middle. Freshman Kelby Collins played some DE with the first unit and didn’t seem the least bit lost. Freshman Kamran James looks bigger than the 6-6, 272 he’s listed. The 20 pounds of muscle makes Chris McClellan capable of playing both inside and outside.

7. LINEBACKER: Teradja Mitchell is a tree trunk. He looks the part of an SEC middle linebacker. He also hits the part of an SEC middle linebacker even though this was limited contact. The way he squares up and attacks the runner lets you know he brings the juice when he strikes someone. Mannie Nunnery can run and cover. He has to be on the field. Very impressive physical specimen. Scooby Williams spent a lot of time on the outside where his quickness is evident both in coverage and stringing plays out. Freshman Jaden Robinson is very physical and responds well to coaching. Princely Umanmielen is a lean 254, but such a strong upper body. He is 254 but would look skinny at 275. Justus Boone spent a lot of practice in the right place at the right time. The way his body has transformed, he looks like an SEC player now. Quicker than last year. Got the first look at juco transfer Quincy Ivory, who is still learning the ropes. He’s really quick. Shemar James (leg injury) is in a knee brace but the injury is supposedly not significant.

8. SECONDARY: R.J. Moten (6-0, 220) looks like a clone of his dad, former Gator linebacker Ron Moten (6-1, 230). Ron would strike you. R.J. seems to have the headhunter instincts you want of a strong safety. Looked good in coverage but there was constant rotation at all the secondary positions. Kamari Wilson played at 209 last year. He’s listed 220 now and it’s all muscle. Jalen Kimber and Jason Marshall Jr. were the No. 1 corners but they gave way to freshmen Dijon Johnson and Ja’Keem Jackson a lot as there was constant rotation. Miguel Mitchell is a good 15-16 pounds heavier than last year, all of it seemingly upper body. Former wide receiver Ja’Markis Weston is transforming to safety but with his size (6-3, 232) he might end up at linebacker when all is said and done. Devin Moore missed practice with an undisclosed injury.

9. SPECIAL TEAMS: Jeremy Crawshaw unloaded a missile toward the end of practice, more than 70 yards from scrimmage and high enough to bring rain. He was consistent all day. Even his shorter punts seemed at the level or higher than the BHG lights. Trey Smack and Adam Mihalek are fighting for the starting PK job. Smack is so smooth that it’s like a golf swing when his foot hits the ball. He was very accurate. Mihalek hit a rather long bomb from 40-something that would have been good from 55.

10. COACHING: There seems to be good understanding and rapport between Mertz and head coach Billy Napier, who coaches the QBs and calls the plays. You see Napier diagram something with hand in the air, Mertz picks it up in a hurry. Billy Gonzales will be a difference-maker with the wide receivers. If you saw last year when receivers couldn’t separate or get off the line, well, that shouldn’t be a problem this year. It’s easy to see why the O-linemen love playing for Rob Sale. Great teacher of technique and knows which buttons to push with his troops. It seems that Corey Raymond is far more comfortable coaching the entire secondary than he is with just the corners. If he sees something wrong he doesn’t hesitate to correct immediately. Austin Armstrong looks younger than a lot of the guys he coaches but he definitely knows what he’s doing. It’s very impressive watching him work the defensive unit. Always encouraging and always teaching. He seems to be a we’re fine if you don’t make the same mistake twice in a row kind of coach.