What Florida Gators Unit Does Dan Mullen Trust the Most? Which Does He Fear?
Each team is—pardon the cliched pun—like a snowflake. The 2018 Florida Gators were not the 2019 Florida Gators who were not the 2020 Florida Gators. There were strengths and weaknesses on each team and those often didn’t translate to the following year. The same will be true for the 2021 version of the Florida Gators.
For that matter, so much of this team is unknown. Its pundits, experts and fans alike have assumed Florida will take a step back, following its SEC East title last season.
“I don’t even know what type of team we’re gonna have this year and I’m there every day,” joked Head Coach Dan Mullen to reporters during SEC Media Days this past week.
But, as Mullen pointed out, that also means Florida can be a much better team that anyone could imagine. That has largely been the case since Mullen arrived ahead of the 2018 season. Each year, the Gators program has exceeded expectations set forth in the offseason. Last year, that meant a record-setting offense and disappointing defense. But the latter also had ample veteran experience.
"But I mean, if you look at it , there's a lot to replace or there's a lot of excitement that guys get to go replace that and have been waiting for their opportunity to go do that,” said Mullen.
So, being a different team than the 2020 squad could be considered a negative; or, as Mullen and the team see, it could also mean the ceiling is even higher.
“We'll be a different team this year than we were last year,” continued Mullen, “but I think our guys also understand that we can adapt around the strengths of our players and our system and they don't have to fit into the team we were last year. They have to play to their strengths in order to be successful.”
Playing to players strengths is a specialty of Mullen and his staff. So what are the strengths of this 2021 team? And for that matter—and perhaps just as important—what are the weaknesses? Because although Mullen might not know what type of team he’ll have this fall, he has seen enough to know which unit requires little worry, and which keeps him up at night.
While in Hoover for SEC Media Days, GatorBait asked Mullen to break down which unit he’d apply to each category.
“Running backs would be the least worried,” the coach answered, without hesitation. “I mean that's a good, deep room right now with some veteran players.”
Seniors Dameon Pierce and Malik Davis both come to the field with two very different but complimentary styles. Pierce is more of a bowling ball bruiser, while Davis—who isn’t afraid to go north and south—is more of a lithe guy, even capable of playing in the slot if needed.
Lorenzo Lingard, the Miami transfer, and Nay’quan Wright are both younger guys who Mullen commented have taken “big steps forward in the offseason” as well as “big leaps to compete” with Pierce and Davis. Lingard and Wright offer a yin and yang much like Pierce and Davis.
Then to round out the group, there’s the former 5-star, sought-after Clemson transfer, Demarcus Bowman. Mullen confirmed in Hoover that Bowman’s transfer is complete and he is eligible to play.
After losing so much production on the outside, with not as much there to replace the seven receivers put into the NFL the past two years, Florida could understandably go to the ground game more. Or, to put it another way, could go to a game plan that better utilizes the running back room. Mullen has proven he can work an entire game through that one unit, as the Georgia 2020 win would prove, aka the “Wheel Route” game.”
In short, any of the five could be starters. Instead, they’ll look to form a cohesive group that is strong top to bottom, and versatile enough to carry an offense. It’s the least of Dan Mullen’s worries with the 2021 Florida Gators and understandably so.
There’s a flip side of that though; a unit that Mullen can’t help but cast in worry. It’s the group that hindered the Gators last season but the coach’s reason for concern this fall is for a vastly different reason.
“It would probably be the youth of our secondary,” admitted Mullen.
He’s quick to follow that up with an explanation that it’s, “not as much depth or talent, as it is youth.”
At corner, the Gators are led by a star; First Team preseason All-SEC corner Kaiir Elam. Opposite him was a revolving door last fall, but this year Mullen anticipates a healthy Jaydon Hill taking full control outside.
“I expect [Hill] to jump into being a starter, being an every down player for us this season. So really excited to see that growth throughout his career. You talk about development and you look at the growth throughout their career, people get all excited, I want to see this guy play right away. I'm more excited in seeing consistent growth throughout your career, and Jaydon is a guy that's done that.”
Behind Elam and Hill though stands a safety unit that is full of youth. And while the unknown can be exciting in many areas, there is still an uneasy hangover from last season, and Mullen isn’t ready to trust what he doesn’t know just yet.
“I look and I say hey here's a talented group of guys; I think they do understand the sense of urgency of their growth and development and they got an opportunity late in the year last year, to kind of, ‘I’m gonna put you in a situation’ and they walked off the field and said ‘hey in recruiting I thought I was ready, now I realize I'm really not.’”
That young group includes Rashad Torrence II, Donovan McMillion and Kamar Wilcoxson to name a few. The potential wildcard could be Trey Dean III. The senior was a corner his freshman season, the nickel for most of his sophomore season before being benched for Marco Wilson, then was put into a reserve role his junior season. It was a humbling experience that forced Dean to reevaluate what he meant to and could bring to his team. Even if that meant going back to safety, a position he last played in high school, where he’s the most natural, and now with a better understanding.
“The overall adversity, it’s gonna help me,” Dean told GatorBait after the 2019 season. “Cause playing STAR allowed me to really understand the defense so now I know corner and STAR so if I were to move to safety, I already know what the STAR’s doing, I know what the corner’s doing so I kinda know where I need—ok I know what the quarterback’s seeing cause I know these spots gonna be covered if I jump this route.”
With Dean back at safety and Elam at corner, they could provide the anchor to a unit that would otherwise be floating in the wind. If the young DB’s around them can match their talent to the speed of the game quickly, Dan Mullen will get a lot more sleep at night.
Said Mullen, “I think that group now has the opportunity to go show what they can do and if they, if they mature quickly we can have a really good secondary.”
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