Participating in his first game week press conference of the season, Florida Gators head coach Will Muschamp met with the media on Monday to discuss the team’s first official depth chart and preparations heading into Saturday’s season-opener against Bowling Green on Sept. 1 at 3:30 p.m. live on ESPN.

OGGOA RELATED: QB Driskel cleared, Gators will split first-half snaps by quarter between him and Brissett

INJURY UPDATES

Redshirt junior tackle Matt Patchan – strained his pectoral on Saturday, will miss the season opener

Sophomore defensive back De’Ante Saunders – “pulled a hamstring” on Thursday and will miss multiple games – “He has a hamstring at this time. He’ll sit the first two games for right now. But he’s got a hamstring problem, so he wouldn’t be able to go the first game at least anyways,” Muschamp said.

Redshirt junior DB Jeremy Brown – set to have his wrist reevaluated on Tuesday to see if he can return to practice, will miss the season opener

Freshman OT D.J. Humphries – outside shot he will play if doctors clear him to return to practice from an injured MCL

Redshirt freshman guard Tommy Jordan – will miss opener with a shoulder injury

PLENTY OF FRESHMEN WILL PLAY

Though only five true freshmen (two offense, three defense) are listed on the opening week depth chart, Muschamp said Monday that as many as 10 are in line to see time on the field throughout the course of the game.

Wide receiver Latroy Pittman (X), guard Jessamen Dunker (right), linebacker Dante Fowler, Jr. (Buck), LB Antonio Morrison (Will) and defensive back Brian Poole (dime cornerback) are all listed on the depth chart and will assuredly see plenty of action.

Joining them will be Humphries (if healthy enough to compete), defensive end Jonathan Bullard (“a guy that is definitely going to play Saturday, probably very early in the game”), running back Matt Jones, WR Raphael Andrades and tight end Kent Taylor.

ADJUSTING TO THE NEW KICKOFF RULES

With the kickoff tee moved forward and the ball set to be placed at the 25 yard line for touchbacks, Muschamp and special teams coordinator D.J. Durkin have spent plenty of time working with the team this offseason to help them adjust to the new rules.

Muschamp said Monday that ensuring that redshirt junior wide receiver and starting kickoff returner Andre Debose brings back kicks is of paramount importance.

“We’d like for Andre to bring it out. That’s what we’d like for him to do…depending how deep it is,” he said. “We’ve kind of given him a little bit of a landmark back there of when we want him to take it out. We’ve worked really hard on that and making a good decision for those situations. That’s also affected by the hang time of the kick.”

On the more “defensive” side of the play, Muschamp is confident that redshirt senior kicker Caleb Sturgis will be able to kick the ball out of the end zone. However, he also cautioned that Florida may try to pin teams back on occasion. He is equally confident in the Gators’ coverage teams and their ability to eliminate any potential significant returns.

Read the rest of what Will Muschamp had to say on Monday…after the break!
Continue Reading » 8/27: Muschamp on Gators injuries, playing time

Tags: Andre Debose, Antonio Morrison, Brian Poole, Caleb Sturgis, Chris Johnson, D.J. Durkin, Dante Fowler, Darrin Kitchens, Frankie Hammond, Hunter Joyer, Jeff Dillman, Jessamen Dunker, Jonathan Bullard, Kent Taylor, Latroy Pittman, Mack Brown, Matt Jones, Neiron Ball, Omarius Hines, Raphael Andrades, Trey Burton, Will Muschamp

Though things could still change over the next five days, the Florida Gators on Monday morning released the team’s first official depth chart for the 2012 season. As was noted by head coach Will Muschamp last week, sophomore quarterbacks Jacoby Brissett and Jeff Driskel will both play against the Bowling Green Falcons though who will take the first snap has not yet been determined.

Florida omitted players who are not participating in the season opener, therefore the below depth chart is not the “best case scenario” version. A list of those players can be found at the end along with some additional explanations.

QB: Jeff Driskel OR Jacoby Brissett
RB: Mike Gillislee, Mack Brown
FB: Hunter Joyer, Trey Burton
WR (X): Frankie Hammond, Jr., Latroy Pittman/Andre Debose
WR (Z): Quinton Dunbar, Solomon Patton
F: Trey Burton, Omarius Hines
TE: Jordan Reed, Clay Burton

LT: Xavier Nixon, Kyle Koehne
LG: James Wilson, Ian Silberman
C: Jonotthan Harrison, Sam Robey
RG: Jon Halapio, Jessamen Dunker
RT: Chaz Green, Trip Thurman

Click to expand and check out the rest of the week one depth chart.

Tags: Andre Debose, Antonio Morrison, Bowling Green Falcons, Chaz Green, Clay Burton, Damien Jacobs, Dante Fowler, Darrin Kitchens, Dominique Easley, Drew Ferris, Frankie Hammond, Hunter Joyer, Ian Silberman, Jacoby Brissett, James Wilson, Jaylen Watkins, Jeff Driskel, Jelani Jenkins, Jessamen Dunker, John Crofoot, Jon Bostic, Jon Halapio, Jonotthan Harrison, Jordan Reed, Kyle Christy, Kyle Crofoot, Kyle Koehne, Latroy Pittman, Leon Orr, Lerentee McCray, Louchiez Purifoy, Mack Brown, Michael Taylor, Mike Gillislee, Neiron Ball, Omar Hunter, Omarius Hines, Quinton Dunbar, Sam Robey, Sharrif Floyd, Solomon Patton, Todd Fennell, Trey Burton, Trip Thurman, Tyler Murphy, Xavier Nixon

With the 2011-12 athletic season now in the books and the 2012-13 season about to begin, the focus has shifted to the return of Florida Gators football. For the second-straight year, OGGOA will take a look at every player of substance on the roster, counting down by jersey number, in this series: The Countdown.

49 – Darrin Kitchens (Homestead, FL)
Junior linebacker
6’1” 229 lbs.

Quick Bio: A three-star prospect who committed to Florida late in the process, Kitchens has been productive throughout his young career. He played on the kickoff coverage team in nine of 13 games during his freshman season, registering a pair of tackles.

Career Stats (22 games): 23 tackles (nine solo, 2.5 for loss)

2011 Season: A reserve for most of the season who played on defense and special teams, Kitchens earned his first career start against Furman, a game in which he registered a team- and career-high 12 tackles. He recorded 21 tackles over 13 games including 2.5 for a loss.

2012 Outlook: Kitchens and redshirt sophomore Neiron Ball have been competing all offseason for the starting Sam linebacker job which became available when redshirt senior Lerentee McCray moved over to the Buck position. With Ball being versatile and also repping at Buck, it is possible that Kitchens will win the Sam job by default though both players will see plenty of field time in 2012.

47 – John Crofoot (Windemere, FL)
Redshirt junior kicker
5’11” 156 lbs.

Quick Bio/2011 Season: A walk-on high school kicker whose brother is also on the team, Crofoot spent his freshman year as a long snapper but did not see the field and eventually took a redshirt. He transitioned to being a kicker and holder in 2010 and played in nine games, serving as the starting holder in the final seven games. Crofoot was also Florida’s starting holder last season; the Gators’ kickers combined to go 24-for-29 on field goals and 33-for-33 on extra points.

2012 Outlook: Though redshirt sophomore quarterback Tyler Murphy has also held the ball during fall practice, Crofoot enters the season as the starter once again and should hold down the job for the duration of the year.

Check out five more players in this edition of The Countdown…after the break!
Continue Reading » The Countdown: Florida Gators roster (49-40)

Tags: Darrin Kitchens, Drew Ferris, Hunter Joyer, John Crofoot, Kyle Christy, Kyle Crofoot, Leon Orr, Lerentee McCray, Neiron Ball, Tyler Murphy, Will Muschamp

With the Florida Gators under two weeks away from the beginning of the season and set to compete in their third and final scrimmage of training camp on Tuesday, head coach Will Muschamp met with the media to provide updates on the team.

SOME, BUT NOT ALL ROSTER DECISIONS MADE ON SUNDAY

Muschamp said on Saturday that the entire coaching staff would sit down Sunday and iron out the roster in order to determine who should get the most reps heading into the third and final scrimmage. Though he said that the Gators will not be releasing a depth chart until Aug. 27, Muschamp explained what was accomplished Sunday as far as organizing the roster is concerned.

“We looked at the roster and went through everybody. We did not necessarily set depth charts; I know everybody will be asking for that. We will release that Monday of game week,” he said. “More than anything we narrowed down who is getting reps and then talked in terms of special teams. Who are the guys that we need to be stepping up on special teams for us? Especially some of the younger players, where are they figuring in as far as snaps are concerned.”

Florida has now mostly figured out out which “guys we can count on” and “guys that we need to continue to rep,” an important step before a the final scrimmage on Tuesday that will look in many ways like a game day.

“We’re going to have another situational scrimmage. We’ll treat it like game day,” Muschamp explained. “We’ll have a pre-game at 11:30 [a.m.], and we’re going to kick it off at 3:30 [p.m.]. We’re going to go in for halftime; we’re going to come out. We’ll have to be able to adjust coming out of the locker room and put them in some situations.

“We’ll have some move-the-field. I want to have another [situation of] coming out off the goal line. We weren’t very good in the first scrimmage on that. Some more third-down work, some more red zone work and then some just getting on the field and functioning as an offense, get the coaches in the booth. It will now be our third time [doing that]. That, as much as anything, is what [Sunday] was about.”

SO…WHO IS STARTING?

Though position-by-position starters were not discussed by Muschamp on Monday, he did provide a handful of notes on who has nailed down jobs prior to the third scrimmage.

QUARTERBACK
Sophomores Jacoby Brissett and Jeff Driskel will continue splitting reps down the middle during practice on Monday and the scrimmage on Tuesday. Muschamp said both will be non-contact (the plan was apparently always to return to that) for he duration of practice heading into the game on Sept 1.

Muschamp noted over the weekend that he expects to name a starter on Aug. 27 (along with the release of the entire team’s depth chart) but also said that Driskel’s bruised shoulder will be reevaluated next Monday. That can be looked at one of two ways: Either the health of his shoulder is a deciding factor as to whether or not he gets the start (in which case one would expect that evaluation to occur before the press conference) or it is a non-factor (in which case the time is of no matter).

Either way, Muschamp is pleased with the way both have improved.

“Both guys, I would say, are just commanding the huddle, knowledge of the system, understanding what Brent [Pease] wants,” he said. “What I have seen with both guys is a maturity level now of anticipating some of the situations that come up and what we’re going to go to. When you start getting that then you start maturing as a player and you’ll play better because you have better anticipation of what’s going to happen.”

Read the rest of what Muschamp had to say on Monday…after the break!
Continue Reading » 8/20: Muschamp on roster, starters, injuries, etc.

Tags: Andre Debose, Chris Johnson, Cody Riggs, Colin Thompson, Damien Jacobs, Dan Quinn, Dante Fowler, Darrin Kitchens, Dominique Easley, Earl Okine, Jacoby Brissett, Jaylen Watkins, Jeff Demps, Jeff Driskel, Jelani Jenkins, Jon Bostic, Jonathan Bullard, Jordan Reed, Leon Orr, Lerentee McCray, Louchiez Purifoy, Mack Brown, Marcus Roberson, Matt Jones, Matt Patchan, Mike Gillislee, Neiron Ball, Nick Alajajian, Omar Hunter, Omarius Hines, Ronald Powell, Sharrif Floyd, Trey Burton, Will Muschamp

With the Florida Gators entrenched in their first week of fall practice, a handful of players spoke with the media on Thursday about how things are going as the team prepares for the 2012 season. Due to time constraints, the quotes below have not been formulated into individual segments as is tradition in these posts.

Michael Taylor – redshirt sophomore linebacker

» On if he is playing Mike or Will linebacker: “I’m trying to be versatile and interchangeable so whenever I’m on the field I can do whatever to help the team.”

» On freshman LB Antonio Morrison: “That boy love to hit. That’s my buddy right there. He’s picking up the calls. He picked them up a lot quicker than I did when it was my first year here.”

» On which of his position-mates have taken on a leadership role: “Lerentee [McCray]’s probably the most outspoken one out of the three of them.”

» On if the linebackers are the strength of the defense: “I think the whole defense is the strength of the defense. I don’t feel like we’re weak at one spot.”

Darrin Kitchens – junior linebacker

» On redshirt sophomore LB Neiron Ball: “Neiron Ball look great. He looks great. He’s going to be a force to be reckoned with this year.”

» Kitchens said he, Ball and redshirt sophomore Gideon Ajagbe are working at Sam linebacker while McCray is pretty much solely taking reps at Buck linebacker.

» On if he thinks he has matured now that he is married: “I really do because it puts things in perspective. I have to essentially make things more important than they really were. Although things were important for me before, I know I’m not doing it for myself but I have a family to look after now.”

Click to expand and read the rest of this post.

Tags: Antonio Morrison, Cody Riggs, Darrin Kitchens, Hunter Joyer, Jacoby Brissett, Jaylen Watkins, Jeff Driskel, Latroy Pittman, Lerentee McCray, Louchiez Purifoy, Marcus Roberson, Michael Taylor, Neiron Ball, Quinton Dunbar

Florida Gators head coach Will Muschamp, redshirt senior linebacker Lerentee McCray and seniors LB Jon Bostic and running back Mike Gillislee represented the team on Wednesday by appearing at a number of press gatherings at the 2012 Southeastern Conference Media Days in Birmingham, AL. Below are highlights from Muschamp’s session along with some player comments.

TEAM INJURY UPDATE

» Junior Buck LB Ronald Powell (torn ACL): Cleared for all weight room activities including straight-ahead running but not changing direction or taking blocks. “He’ll play for us this year,” Muschamp said. “When that will be, I don’t know yet. There’s nobody that’s worked harder or has handled the situation better or more mature than Ronald has. He’s really grown up this summer, and I’m very proud of his efforts.”

» Redshirt junior wide receiver Stephen Alli (stress fracture – leg): Underwent successful surgery after spring practice concluded and is expected to be cleared in the “middle of August.”

» Redshirt junior cornerback Jeremy Brown (fractured wrist): Having surgery Wednesday for an injury he suffered over the summer, should be cleared on Sept. 1.

» Freshman safety Marcus Maye (torn meniscus): Should be cleared for training camp after having surgery while still a senior in high school.

* Muschamp said no players are currently slated to be suspended for any games.

STARTING QUARTERBACK REMAINS A QUANDRY

The battle between sophomore quarterbacks Jacoby Brissett and Jeff Driskel lasted all spring and as expected has continued into the summer session, should infiltrate fall training camp and may even extend into the regular season, Muschamp confirmed.

“If you saw our spring game, you saw what I saw for 14 practices – two guys that are very even in their competition. They’re even going into fall camp; they’ll get equal reps,” he said. “I would like to name a starter before the season, but I’m not going to put a timetable on that. If we need to play both of them, that’s what we’re going to do. We’re going to do what we got to do to win football games.

“Both guys have a similar skill set, so it’s not like there’s one offense we run with one and one with another. And there’s a possibility you could see both in the game at the same time. But they’re both guys that can contribute to our football team. Jeff and Jacoby have handled the competition very well. It’s been good for our football team. Their competition has made each other better, has made our offense better, has made our football team better. I’m really pleased with how that has worked and how it will work in fall camp.”

START FAST – START STRONG

Florida has traditionally begun seasons on a roll, but the Gators will be faced with some tough tests early in 2012 with a pair of conference road games against Texas A&M and Tennessee in the second and third weeks. Muschamp has been using those contests as motivation to ensure that he players are ready to go right out of the gate.

“I know that’s been a really good motivating factor for our players to understand that we need to start fast,” he said. “They understand the pride that we have in playing at home. We didn’t play well at home against our rival the last time we were in the stadium. So it’s critical for us, Sept. 1st against Bowling Green, to play well and be prepared well.

“Those other two games, we can get a leg up on the competition in the SEC by playing [well] early. I look at it as a great opportunity for our football team, a great motivating factor for our players this summer to report in shape, which they will be, and ready to go with a great mindset to have an outstanding year.”

Muschamp is pumped to turn things around beginning with fall training on Aug. 3 following a “very frustrating, disappointing first year” under his watch that “didn’t meet the expectation level that we expect at Florida on the field.”

“I do feel like we have built a very solid foundation for where we were headed,” he said. “We did not get the results we wanted on the field [last year]. But I feel like within the locker room, the weight room, the attitude of our football team, the discipline of our team, we’re headed in the right direction. I think we have an outstanding foundation. Every decision I make is for the long term success of our program. As I said plenty of times, we’re building a program, not a team. That’s where we are right now.”

Read the rest of Muschamp’s thoughts on the Gators…after the break!
Continue Reading » 2012 SEC Media Days – Muschamp ready to roll

Tags: Andre Debose, Brent Pease, Caleb Sturgis, Charlie Weis, D.J. Durkin, Darrin Kitchens, Jacoby Brissett, Jeff Driskel, Jeremy Brown, Jon Bostic, Lerentee McCray, Marcus Maye, Mike Gillislee, Neiron Ball, Ronald Powell, SEC, SEC Media Days, Solomon Patton, Stephen Alli, The Swamp, Tim Davis, Will Muschamp

The Florida Gators’ best spring performer may not return to the team until late in the fall as junior Buck linebacker Ronald Powell was diagnosed with a torn anterior cruciate ligament after injuring his left knee in the 2012 Orange & Blue Debut on Saturday.

Head coach Will Muschamp said after the scrimmage that Powell had just sprained his knee and would be fine, but a MRI on the knee obviously revealed more extensive damage. He will be sidelined at least 4-6 months following surgery with his rehabilitation determining his return to the field. Many ACL tears take longer to recover from meaning Powell’s absence could drag on for the majority of the season.

“Ronald is in good spirits and is very eager to do whatever is necessary to have a healthy, speedy recovery,” Muschamp told GatorZone.com‘s Scott Carter on Monday. “He has already started with prehab and once the swelling goes down and he regains his range of motion, he will have the surgery.”

Powell is the second Gators defender to tear his ACL in recent months as junior defensive tackle Dominique Easley went down with the same injury in the team’s 2011 regular season finale against Florida State. Powell and Easley were both five-star players who joined the program as part of UF’s top-ranked 2010 recruiting class. Coaches and trainers expect Easley to return to the team for practice this summer.

Replacing Powell at Buck linebacker will be difficult task for Florida. The most important position on Muschamp and defensive coordinator Dan Quinn’s defense, the Buck is expected to be a playmaking linebacker who dominates all over the field. Powell was finally learning what it took to play the position well before being derailed on Saturday.

Redshirt senior Lerentee McCray could move over from Sam linebacker to fill Powell’s shoes. Sophomore Gideon Ajagbe is the only other listed “Buck linebacker” on the roster though incoming freshman Dante Fowler, Jr. will be as well once he enrolls. Junior Darrin Kitchens and perhaps even freshman Antonio Morrison could also get an opportunity at the position.

Tags: Antonio Morrison, Dan Quinn, Dante Fowler, Darrin Kitchens, Gideon Ajagbe, Lerentee McCray, Orange & Blue Debut, Ronald Powell, Will Muschamp

Florida Gators head coach Will Muschamp spoke on Monday about the team’s weekend scrimmage while also previewing the 2012 Orange & Blue Debut set for 1 p.m. on Saturday, April 7 at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium.

QUARTERBACK COMPETITION RAMPING UP BUT STILL EVEN

Though the team has participated in one-and-a-half scrimmages (Saturday’s was cut short at approximately 35 snaps due to lightning), sophomore quarterbacks Jacoby Brissett and Jeff Driskel remain in a dead heat for the starting job.

“Not much separation. Both guys have done some nice things for us. For the few snaps we got in the scrimmage we did a nice job of managing our offense,” Muschamp said on Monday. “They’ve done a really nice job as far as procedural issues, getting in and out of the huddle. We do motions and shifts quite a bit and both of those guys are doing a really nice job of that.”

No matter what happens at the spring game on Saturday, Muschamp does not expect there to be any further clarity in who will start the first game of the season. He said it is “not going to be D-Day” for the players because one good practice will just be intertwined to the other 14 days of competing.

“I don’t know that we will name a starter after spring. We will go into the fall camp [without one]. That to me is becoming more and more evident every day that both guys are guys we can win with. Bottom line. That’s good for us. But both guys are competing at a high level, in my opinion, and they both have done outstanding things throughout spring,” he said. “I’m very pleased with their progress as much as anything in just managing our football team and getting in and out of the huddle and taking a command of the offense. Both of them are working extremely hard off the field. They’re always in the building watching film and doing the things you got to do to be successful. [...]

“The game slows down for older players because they’re able to see and anticipate. Even though we’ve changed some things from a verbiage standpoint, terminology, the game is slowing down for them.”

A MIXED BAG ON SPECIAL TEAMS

Muschamp was quite honest on Monday about the way his special teams unit performed in 2011: “We were really good in all categories, but we were not good in returning punts.” Therefore, Florida is working six players out as punt returners and eight as kick returners in order to get some added production from that unit.

Redshirt junior wide receiver Andre Debose is the team’s best returning threat (showcasing his ability as a kick returner last year) and has improved his hands from a year ago making him a legitimate option on the punting unit as well. He is getting plenty of competition there, however, from sophomore defensive backs Louchiez Purifoy, De’Ante Saunders and Marcus Roberson, redshirt senior WR Frankie Hammond, Jr. and even junior running back Trey Burton. That same group along with redshirt senior tight end Omarius Hines and junior DB Cody Riggs is returning kickoffs as well.

Muschamp is also hoping to see sophomore punter Kyle Christy improve his performance from a year ago. He said Christy “really punted the ball well” on Wednesday and continues to progress though he most show that he can be more consistent. “He’s got the leg. He’s got the tools. He’s got the talent. It’s a matter of doing it all the time,” he said. “As Kyle continued to improve that consistency, that’s’ what enabled him to get the job [in the middle of 2011].”

WORK ETHIC AND MOTIVATION ARE IMPROVING

Continue Reading » 4/2: Muschamp on QBs, special teams, motivation

Tags: Andre Debose, Cody Riggs, Darrin Kitchens, De'Ante Saunders, Frankie Hammond, Graham Stewart, Ja'Juan Story, Jacoby Brissett, Jeff Driskel, Kyle Christy, Latroy Pittman, Lerentee McCray, Louchiez Purifoy, Marcus Roberson, Mike Gillislee, Omarius Hines, Orange & Blue Debut, Solomon Patton, Stephen Alli, Trey Burton, Will Muschamp