Thoughts of the Day: August 16, 2021

A few thoughts to jump start your Monday morning:

LAST WEEK OF CAMP BEGINS, TIME TO GET SERIOUS At the end of the week, August camp ends and Florida’s football players – particularly the freshmen who weren’t here in the spring – will start prepping for adventures in time management when they deal with going to class, football practice, team meetings and study hall. The week ahead is critical because it’s the last one when it’s all football for the players. Class and practice the following week and then it will be game week preparation for the season opener with Florida Atlantic on September 4.

Mullen and his coaching staff will amp up the intensity in the days ahead but when he meets the media, he will almost certainly be as low key as he has the few times he’s dealt with the press so far. That is by design. Nobody knows better than Mullen that this is year four, the roster is made up mostly of players he’s recruited, and after 29 wins in three seasons it’s time to take the next step and that begins with closing out August with increasingly better practices.

The Gators are outside the top ten of all but Sporting News right now, and that’s not a bad place to be, particularly since a little more than a month from now (September 18) Alabama will be coming to The Swamp. Mullen hasn’t been dodging questions in his press briefings, but he’s spoken in almost generic terms, not offering Nick Saban much more than he can read about the Gators in Athlon or Lindy’s. Florida fans, meanwhile, have been clamoring for any news they can get so while we wait for game one against FAU when we can see for ourselves how much progress has been made in August, here are three things to digest:

(1) It will be a run-oriented offense for sure but it will not be ground and pound. Both Emory Jones and Anthony Richardson can throw the football and they will regularly, but instead of last year’s 60-40 pass-run ratio expect this to be something closer to 53-47 run-pass. From what I’ve been told, Emory has improved significantly as a passer since last year but he’s still a better runner than passer. Anthony is the better passer of the two, but he’s a fast, powerful runner although not as elusive and shifty. This is not going to be like last season when Trask ran either by surprise or necessity. This year both quarterbacks will run by design and on the option. Both will throw. Both are going to play. Right now, Emory Jones is the No. 1 guy. We’ll see if that lasts all season but both have the ability to be really, really good.

(2) Although there isn’t one household name among the receivers (yet), they should be highly productive. It’s a contract year for both Jacob Copeland and Justin Shorter, who are draft-eligible and who need big seasons. Copeland’s issue in the past has been the drops, but everything I’ve heard is that he’s worked extremely hard to eliminate that problem. He is a legitimate deep threat. Shorter is huge (6-5, 228) and can turn on the jets. He ran mostly drag routes and underneath stuff last year but now that he has a full year in the Mullen system, a spring practice and an offseason going for him, he could have a monster year. Don’t forget, he was a 5-star recruit when Penn State signed him back in 2018. Trent Whittemore and Xzavier Henderson will be in the rotation outside as will Ja’Quavion Fraziars and Ja’Markis Weston. They all have speed and they’re all very big. I’m not sure there is a secondary in the SEC that can match up well with Florida’s receivers from a purely physical standpoint. I’m of the opinion that freshman tight end Nick Elksnis is going to be a star, maybe sooner than later.

(3) The defense is ahead of the offense right now, which is fairly normal for this time of the year and perhaps a sign that things are getting back to where they should be. After last year’s meltdown, it is refreshing to hear there is proof of life on that side of the ball. Todd Grantham has depth and size in his front seven, which is where good defense begins. The Gators should be better against the run and the three-man inside rotation of Daquan Newkirk, Antonio Valentino and Gervon Dexter should be able to pressure up the gut, which was severely lacking last year. If the Gators get a push in the middle, the pressure on the outside will be really good. There is nothing like pressure on the opposing QB to make the secondary look good. Am I the only one who thinks Trey Dean III might have the season we’ve been expecting for the past couple of years? I expect Mohamoud Diabate to be beastly wherever he lines up in the front seven.

RYAN LEAF GIVES EXCEPTIONAL MOTIVATIONAL SPEECH AT OLE MISS

Ryan Leaf is best remembered as the can’t miss quarterback who missed. Completely. Selected second by the San Diego Chargers behind Peyton Manning in the 1998 NFL Draft, Leaf was out of football by 2002 having thrown 14 touchdown passes and 36 interceptions. He had problems with drugs and spent time in prison for violating his probation when he broke into a home to steal prescription drugs.

That was then. This is now. Leaf is now clean and sober and a motivational speaker with a story that needs to be shared. Over the weekend, Lane Kiffin brough Leaf to Ole Miss to speak to his team and the message was powerful, particularly the part about enjoying the moment because football isn’t going to last forever.

Leaf said, “Football’s going to end, for some much sooner than you think. The average length of a career [in the NFL] is 2.8 years. There have been 336 Hall of Fame football players out of the 24,000 that have ever played. There’s only been 24,000 players who have ever played in the NFL, guys … in 100 years. There are only a thousand who have ever played eight-plus years. Do you know what the odds are that you’ll play in the NFL? They’re about as limited as you can.

“Take everything that comes to you right now and enjoy every minute of it and understand that everybody wants to see you fail that are outside this room … that are outside these walls. But everybody inside it wants to see you be a success. Your coaches, your support staff, everybody wants to see you be successful. There’s an investment in you. Invest in them.”

OVER, UNDER, AROUND AND THROUGH THE SEC

Alabama: After Saturday’s scrimmage, Nick Saban said, “I think we have to place well around Bryce [Young]. At times today I didn’t think maybe we did as good a job as we need to. It’s all 11 guys. It’s the offensive line. It’s the receivers. It’s all 11 guys so that he’ll have more opportunities to make plays” … Offensive lineman Kendall Randolph, who backed up Alex Leatherwood last year, suffered an ankle sprain in Saturday’s scrimmage. No word yet on the severity.

Arkansas: Athletic director Hunter Yurachek took a cleat to the face while on the sideline of Saturday’s scrimmage. In an obvious dig at former Arkansas coach Bobby Petrino, Yurachek tweeted out a video that he said would “validate that I was indeed at the scrimmage and not on a motorcycle.”

Auburn: After Saturday’s scrimmage, HBC Bryan Harsin described his offensive line as “solid at times” but noted the unit was “a little inconsistent”… The standout wide receiver at the scrimmage was Georgia grad transfer Demetris Robertson.

Georgia: Starting center Warren Ericson is expected back at practice next week. He’s recovering from a hand injury. Wide receiver Kearis Jackson, who had a knee procedure during the offseason, isn’t at 100 percent just yet and is limited to walk-throughs in practice. Wide receiver Jermaine Burton also had a knee procedure during the summer and is still not at 100%. Also held out of the Saturday scrimmage was tight end John FitzPatrick.

Kentucky: Penn State transfer Will Levis has won the starting quarterback job, which prompted Joey Gatewood to enter the NCAA transfer portal. Gatewood transferred to Kentucky from Auburn so this would be a second transfer for him. Unless Gatewood is going to D1AA where he’s eligible immediately, he will have to sit out a year.

LSU: Freshman wide receiver Brian Thomas Jr. has made such an impression that Coach O says, “I think he’s going to be one of the great receivers we’ve had here at LSU.” Thomas is 6-4, 190 and a former 4-star recruit.

Mississippi State: Incumbent starter Will Rogers was 11-20 for 79 yards and a touchdown in Saturday’s scrimmage while South Alabama transfer Chad Lovertich was 19-30 for 152 yards and a TD.

Missouri: Missouri deputy athletic director Ryan Alpert is leaving for a deputy athletic director job at Tennessee. At Mizzou Alpert was in charge of both the men’s and women’s basketball programs.

Ole Miss: Braylon Sanders, who averaged 26.4 yards on 14 catches last season, is expected to be the impact receiver for the Rebels this fall. HBC Lane Kiffin says, “If he has a good year from a height, weight speed, ball skill standpoint, he’s a potential first round draft pick” … Ole Miss reports that all players, coaches and support personnel have been vaccinated.

South Carolina: Quarterback Luke Doty suffered a mid-foot fracture and minor ligament damage during Friday’s practice. With Doty out, the leading candidate to take over as the starter is St. Francis (PA) transfer Jason Brown, who threw for 3,084 yards and 28 touchdowns in 2019. The 2020 season was cancelled at D1AA St. Francis.

Tennessee: Tennessee will add statues of Lester McClain, Jackie Walker, Condredge Holloway and Tee Martin outside Neyland Stadium.

Texas A&M: Two weeks after his arrest for misdemeanor possession of marijuana, cornerback McKinnley Jackson was back at practice over the weekend.

Vanderbilt: Last year’s starting QB Ken Seals is being challenged in preseason practices by Mike Wright. HBC Clark Lea has no plan to declare a starting QB any time soon.

ONE FINAL PITHY THOUGHT: The Big Ten, ACC and Pac-12 are soooo worried about what the Big Bad SEC and Mean Old Greg Sankey did to the Big 12 that they’re considering a scheduling alliance. Isn’t it interesting for all their bluster about how greedy Sankey and the SEC are that they’re busy taking about a scheduling alliance that doesn’t include the eight Big 12 leftovers? It’s a bit hypocritical actually. If Oklahoma and Texas had approached the Big Ten, ACC or Pac-12 about joining, they would have moved as stealthily as Sankey to add them to their leagues without once asking out loud how will the Big 12 survive? They know the Big 12 is on life support and they’re like a flock of vultures circling overhead before they swoop down to pick the bones of whatever is left even while it’s still breathing. If they do pull off this scheduling alliance, do the Big Ten, ACC and Pac-12 really think they’re going to move the TV ratings needle significantly? Other than Ohio State-Michigan or Ohio State-Penn State, the Big Ten is about as interesting as watching paint peel. Miami (5), FSU (3), Clemson (3) and Georgia Tech (1) have all won national championships since the last time Georgia won one, but more people are interested in Georgia than any of those ACC teams and Georgia isn’t even the top draw in the SEC. The Pac-12? Other than Southern Cal, who’s interested? Let them form their alliance and let them expand with the Big 12 leftovers. They still won’t touch the SEC and they know it.