Recruiting contributor Zach Abolverdi in his first submission to OGGOA…

Now that football recruiting for the 2010 term is in the books and Florida Gators head coach Urban Meyer has assembled one of the best classes of all-time, OGGOA brings you a look ahead to the Gators’ (in our opinion) top 20 targets for 2011. These are prospects that the coaching staff has already targeted and is pursuing the hardest as of press time. Perhaps even more important, the 20 targets listed below have a mutually high level of interest in Florida. [Preliminary star ratings provided by Scout.com.]

1. DT Tim Jernigan (Lake City, FL) – 6’2” 275 lbs.
Nicknamed “Hercules” for his superior size and strength, Jernigan also runs a remarkable 4.6 in the forty yard dash. He received his very first scholarship offer from Florida as a ninth grader and has visited on several occasions including this past summer when he dominated at the Urban Meyer Football Camp. In an interview with The Gainesville Sun following National Signing Day, Jernigan revealed that if he had to sign his letter of intent now, the Gators would be the recipient of his highly sought after signature.

2. ATH James Wilder, Jr. (Tampa, FL) – 6’2” 223 lbs.
Rivals’ “Junior of the Year,” Wilder, Jr. is the 2011 version of Ronald Powell with the athletic ability to play running back, linebacker and defensive end at the next level. He favors the Miami Hurricanes at the moment because they are recruiting him at running back, the position his father played in the NFL and his position of choice. However, most recruiting analysts project Wilder as an outside linebacker, and Florida is his leader if he chooses to play on defense in college.

Check out 18 more 2011 recruits the Florida Gators are targeting after the jump!
Continue Reading » Twenty recruits the Gators are eyeing for 2011

Tags: Austin Seferian-Jenkins, Bobby Hart, Brandon Fulse, Brian White, Charon Peake, Christian Lemay, Christian Westerman, Curt Maggitt, Dan McCarney, Friday Night Lights, Jack Nicklaus, James Vaughters, James Wilder, Jaylen Watkins, Jeff Driskel, Junior Day, Kelvin Benjamin, LaMichael Fanning, Lonnie Gosha, Mike Bellamy, Nick O'Leary, Nick Waisome, Sammy Watkins, Scot Loeffler, SEC, Stacey Lemay, Teddy Bridgewater, Tim Jernigan, Urban Meyer, Wayne Lyons, Zach Azzanni

Head Coach: Urban Meyer

Interim Head Coach, Offensive Coordinator, Offensive Line: Steve Addazio
Quarterbacks: Scot Loeffler
Wide Receivers: Billy Gonzales (LSU) Zach Azzanni
Running Backs: Kenny Carter (Louisville) Stan Drayton
Tight Ends: Brian White

Defensive Coordinator: Charlie Strong (Louisville) TBD
Assistant Defensive Coordinator, Safeties: Chuck Heater
Associate Head Coach, Defense/Defensive Line: Dan McCarney
Linebackers: Charlie Strong (Louisville) D.J. Durkin
Cornerbacks: Vance Bedford (Louisville) TBD

Special Teams: Urban Meyer D.J. Durkin
Recruiting Coordinator: Billy Gonzales (LSU) TBD
Director of Player and Community Relations: Terry Jackson

Tags: Billy Gonzales, Brian White, Charlie Strong, Chuck Heater, D.J. Durkin, Dan McCarney, Kenny Carter, Scot Loeffler, Stan Drayton, Steve Addazio, Terry Jackson, Urban Meyer, Vance Bedford, Zach Azzanni

With Florida Gators cornerbacks coach Vance Bedford and running backs coach Kenny Carter all but gone to the Louisville Cardinals, speculation is running rampant about who will replace them on the coaching staff. Jeremy Fowler of the Orlando Sentinel reports that UF is looking to hire a coach to either directly replace Bedford or take over those duties while also holding down a co-defensive coordinator role alongside current assistant Chuck Heater. Some names have been thrown around for both positions, and OGGOA has compiled them for our readers in short form.

1 » Defensive coach / cornerbacks coach
- Willie Martinez: former Georgia Bulldogs defensive coordinator
- Corwin Brown: Notre Dame Fighting Irish associate head coach, co-defensive coordinator, defensive backs coach
*replaced at ND by Grand Valley State head coach Chuck Martin
- Taver Johnson: Ohio State Buckeyes cornerbacks coach

2 » Running backs coach
- Stan Drayton: Syracuse Orange running backs coach, former Florida and Tennessee Volunteers running backs coach
*has previously insulted both head coach Urban Meyer and the program
- Terry Jackson: Florida Director of Player and Community Relations, former Gators RB
- Brian White: Florida tight ends coach, former running backs coach with Wisconsin Badgers and UNLV Rebels

Tags: Brian White, Chuck Heater, Corwin Brown, Florida Gators, Kenny Carter, Louisville Cardinals, Stan Drayton, Taver Johnson, Terry Jackson, Vance Bedford, Willie Martinez

Welcome to the debut of OGGOA Mailbag, a new segment that will be featured every other week (or every week if it gets popular). For each edition, I will pick out the five best questions that have been submitted for publication. The remainder will be answered personally.

In regard to the uniforms, will we ever see the return of orange pants? Have we worn them since Urban Meyer became head coach? (William – Tampa, FL)
It does not look likely. The last time Florida wore the white jerseys/orange pants combination was Oct. 1, 2005, against Alabama. The Gators lost that game 31-3; perhaps that is why they are no longer worn? In fact, Florida wore them back-to-back weeks that season (Sept. 24 vs. Kentucky). That combination was used extensively the previous season in 2004, including back-to-back games vs. FSU on Nov. 20 (Ron Zook’s last game) and Miami on Dec. 31 (Peach Bowl). Meyer has only used four looks since that game in 2005: all blue, all white, blue/white and white/blue. Even more rare is the blue jersey/orange pants combo, not worn since 1999 vs. FSU.

Do you think we will be seeing more of the I-form? It looked really good last week, but that was against Mississippi State. Could it work against Georgia, South Carolina and Alabama? (Kyle – Louisville, KY)
I’m not sure if the Gators have a choice. The red zone struggles are apparent and Florida must make adjustments. Whether that is instituting more of the I-formation (which apparently was worked on all summer) or sticking to the call sheet, I fully expect to see an improvement in that area this week. As far as the I-form working against teams with better defenses – I don’t see why not. It is a standard formation. The better question is: Can the Gators be efficient in a formation that they have seemingly never rarely used since Tim Tebow became the starting quarterback?

Is it really Florida that is struggling each week, or are the SEC teams on our schedule just that good? (Jena – Sumter, SC)
It’s the Gators. Tennessee and LSU have legitimate defenses, don’t get me wrong. But there was absolutely no reason this team should have had the trouble it did with Arkansas or Mississippi State. Any SEC schedule is going to be a difficult one, and Florida plays tougher teams week-in and week-out because of their affiliation than most other programs do. The Gators are lucky they have not played a complete team while they have been struggling or else that 7-0 record would not be there.

Can the Gators actually go all the way? Do you think they can get this offense back on track sooner than later? (Shawn – Willis, TX)
There should be no doubt that this is a team that is capable of winning the National Championship. Whether they will actually get to that point is another story. Returning a two-deep defense was a good start, and the unit has been carrying the team for most of the season. But losing wide receivers Percy Harvin and Louis Murphy seem to have hurt the team more than most expected. Harvin was the key on offense, a player who could score at any time and change the course of the game with one step. The Gators do not have a player like that right now. If they can re-work the passing offense and do a well enough job putting points on the board, a title is certainly within their reach.

Is there a reason Steve Addazio is on the sidelines during games instead of up in the box like most offensive coordinators? (William – Tampa, FL)
There actually is a reason – though I don’t necessarily think you can call it a good one. Addazio is more comfortable coaching from the sideline because he was and still is an offensive line coach. He said it feels more natural for him to call plays from field level. “That’s not my personality type,” Addazio said of going upstairs. “If I’m up in the booth, I really might jump out of the window. Because of the position I coach, I gotta have my guys in between series. I’ve gotta be able to coach ‘em and talk to ‘em. I’ve got to gauge what their mindset’s like, the tempo of the game, the whole atmosphere. That’s a demeanor feel. I got a pretty good perspective on the sideline. I’m used to that. When I go up top, I don’t really feel like I can see the shades in the alignments of the front like I can see from the ground level. A great advantage is, in between series, you’ve got everybody right there. I can pull in the quarterback, the tailback, everybody. That’s a positive.” Instead of Addazio, quarterbacks coach Scot Loeffler and tight ends coach Brain White are up in the booth.

Tags: Brian White, I-formation, Louis Murphy, mailbag, National Championship, Percy Harvin, Ron Zook, Scot Loeffler, SEC, Steve Addazio, Tim Tebow, uniforms, Urban Meyer