2009 Florida Gator Preview-Offense

2009 Outlook: With the departure of Percy Harvin, the Florida Gators are devoid of a playmaker at wide receiver. They also lost Louis Murphy as well, who sports very fast wheels like Harvin provided. But there is no denying the impact Harvin gave to the Gators since his freshman year in ‘06. Urban Meyer still has a team that returns 7 starters on offense and 11 starters on defense. Tebow is improving his throwing motion with the help of the coaches; he wants to play quarterback at the next level but we will see how all that plays out. After beating Oklahoma in the national title game last season, the Gators are the odds on favorite to reach the title game again. And this is a good estimate looking at their schedule and the fact that they have a veteran team. But Meyer is looking for that wideout to step in and take over games and be the go-to-guy for Tebow. The spring saw Carl Moore, Deonte Thompson, T.J. Lawrence, Frankie Hammond, and David Nelson vying for the starting lineup at wide receiver. But who will it be? Could it be the ultra-talented tight end Aaron Hernandez? Will the defense continue to be stingy? All these questions need to be answered by Meyer and his staff in preparation for the upcoming season. Quarterbacks: Tim Tebow, the two-time national championship-winning quarterback, two-time Maxwell Award winner and, Heisman trophy winner, will be back at the helm to wreak havoc on SEC defenses. The plan for Tebow this spring is to work on his throwing motion and keep him more in the pocket. Throughout the spring, he has shown improvement with his throws. His intermediate throws have more zip and his deep throws do not have so much air underneath them. However, Meyer and his staff can do all they want with tweaking his technique throwing the ball. When game time calls for Tebow to run over defenders, that is what he should do and will do. Redshirt Freshman John Brantley has shown that he can play the quarterback position. He is more of a pocket-passer than Tebow, and the team will not draw up design run plays for him like for Tebow. But do not underestimate his mobility, for when needed he will get those yards. He has a good arm and showed its power on several deep throws throughout the spring. The only area of improvement is his decision-making which is something that all rookies have to deal with and work through. If Tebow were to go down, Brantley can step in and be a good game-manager. Running Backs: Last season Emmanuel Moody was spotty at best, dealing with injury issues and trying to grasp the offense. He has been the star running back coming out of spring practices. He has shown his maturity in being acquainted with the offense and is catching the ball out of the backfield. There has been sporadic attendance by Will Demps who has been attending track practices, but when he has attended spring practice he looked good running the ball. His acceleration will be a great asset as he hits the hole for positive yardage this season. Chris Rainey has not looked that good in spring practice. He has been battling a groin injury which has slowed him down. At the later end of spring practices, he looked better as his groin was healing. Also of note is walk-on Christopher Scott who used to play safety. He is a bigger back than Moody, Rainey and Demps; and he will provide that toughness at the running back position. He has been highly praised by Meyer and his staff for his penchant for running over and through defenders in spring practice. Meyer not only has three running backs that averaged 7.6 yards per carry last season, but now he has Scott to power through tacklers and make the tough yards or kill the clock in crucial games. The rich keep on getting richer. Do not be surprised if you see Rainey and Demps in the slot position where Harvin used to lineup. Wide Receivers: Clearly, Carl Moore has been the star of the spring. The senior has shown good hands and toughness; he clearly puts his all on the field. And he is well adept at shielding his body from the defender. But he has not been the only impact player at wide receiver for Florida. Redshirt Freshman T.J. Lawrence has shown that he will pluck any pass from the sky, and he is not afraid to make those tough catches. Deonte Thompson is the one wide out that the coaching staff is hoping will provide that game-breaking speed needed at the position. However, he is struggling mentally with his progress. He has had several drops throughout spring and sometimes gets too down on himself. He will need to become more mentally tougher to provide an impact to this team. Senior wide receiver David Nelson has become the veteran wide receiver that will help this young group of wide outs. T.J. credits Nelson for giving him guidance and confidence for playing the position. Nelson is not the fastest wide receiver on this team, but his 6’5 frame will provide a good red zone target for Tebow. But his most important role this season might be a mentor to the younger wide outs. Frankie Hammond is another Redshirt freshman that has the fewest drops of any receiver in spring practice. You can see him developing his route running and fighting to get open. He has good balance and will adjust to catches that are underthrown. Freshman Andre Debose is the highly recruited wide receiver that Meyer believes will be a force in Harvin’s old role. But he has not arrived on campus yet and they eager to start working with him and getting him up to speed since he missed spring practice. There is no shortage of doubt that Debose is dynamic and he will provide matchup nightmares for linebackers and safeties in the SEC. Tight Ends: I am speechless when it comes to Aaron Hernandez. He is simply a tough football player with good hands and decent speed. He reminds me of Kellen Winslow Jr. of the “U” fame. Hernandez will threaten defenses by stretching the field this season; it was just a tease seeing his impact last season, watch out. His backup Desmond Parks is turning into a fine tight end. The coaching staff is working on his toughness, and his grasp of the position. He has improved since the first spring practice. There is no doubt in my mind how important this position will be for the Gators this season. They have the underneath threat of Hernandez. Meyer has been heaping praise on him since he joined the team and recently spoke about how he is NFL-ready. Offensive Line: Throughout the spring the offensive line has been much aligned. The most significant injuries have been to Mike Pouncey (RG) and Maurkice Pouncey (C). In spring practices the defense was more successful in disrupting the offensive line because of injuries. Marcus Gilbert has stepped up and showed that he is more suited for the Right Tackle position and you have Carl Johnson at the Left Tackle position. Johnson has become the vocal leader of the offensive line, and he will provide support and guidance to the young players. The star of the spring has been Redshirt Freshman Sam Robey who has been playing the center position because of a shoulder injury to Maurkice Pouncey. The coaches are very happy with his production, and Meyer stated that Robey will find significant time at the Center position this upcoming season; and with Robey playing at Center it gives Meyer the chance to rotate the talented Pouncey twins at other positions in case of injury. With so many injuries hitting the offensive line, there have been many different lineups; and, this works in Florida’s favor because almost every offensive lineman has played every position. This will prove effective for the Gators when injuries arise later in the season; it will not be such an adjustment for the lineman playing other positions than their own. Stay Tuned for the Defensive Preview!