When head coach Will Muschamp officially took over the Florida Gators back in 2011, he and then-defensive coordinator Dan Quinn both spoke extensively about “affecting the quarterback,” getting pressure on the opposing signal caller, knocking him to the ground and creating game-changing plays.

Florida has not been able to do much of that in Muschamp’s first two years (or Urban Meyer’s last season in 2010). After dominating opposing quarterbacks in 2009 with 39 sacks, the Gators registered just 21 sacks (-18) in 2010, 28 sacks (-11) in 2011 and 30 sacks (-9) in 2012. Trending back upward, yes, but nowhere near as disruptive as he wants the defense to be on a consistent basis.

Muschamp aims to buck that trend next season by loading up Florida’s starting 11 with as many talented pass rushers as possible.

In a post-spring practice depth chart released on Wednesday, the starting-off point for the Gators in fall practice, Muschamp has sophomore Dante Fowler, Jr. inserted as the starter at BUCK with redshirt junior Ronald Powell, who has been listed at that position the last two seasons, as the starting Sam linebacker.

“We’ll start camp in our three-down look to get our best guys on the field. It’s a lengthy discussion we’ve had as a defensive staff,” he said Wednesday. “Certainly Ronald we feel like is going to be one of those guys.”

Powell’s versatility – as well as that of many of Florida’s defenders – allows Muschamp to make that switch with ease. Not only can Powell play both BUCK and Sam, Fowler can spend time as Buck and defensive end, ensuring that both can be on the field at the same time no matter where they are situated on defense.

Continue Reading » Gators have a plan to affect quarterback more

Tags: Brad Lawing, Dante Fowler, Darrin Kitchens, Dominique Easley, Jonathan Bullard, Neiron Ball, Ronald Powell, Will Muschamp

Below is the 2013 post-spring practice version of the Florida Gators depth chart. Though some fans will be excited to see where the team stacks up below, head coach Will Muschamp cautions each year that feeling that way is not worth the energy.

Muschamp makes it quite clear that he does not put a lot of stock into depth charts, even those that are published after spring practice is over. In fact, back in 2011 and again on Wednesday, he stated it is “not worth the paper it is printed on.” In other words, the depth chart seen here is just a starting-off point for 2013 and plenty can change between now and the start of the season.

Nevertheless, below is the depth chart as it was presented on April 24. Notations marked with (») denote changes from the pre-spring depth chart released March 12. Players marked with (*) were out for all or most of spring practice.

OGGOA will update this post with more from Muschamp shortly.

OFFENSE

QB: 6 Jeff Driskel, 10 Tyler Murphy
» Murphy inches ahead of 17 Skyler Mornhinweg for the No. 2 job.
RB: 24 Matt Jones, 33 Mack Brown
» Brown understandably inches ahead of freshman 21 Kelvin Taylor.~
FB: 43 Hunter Joyer, 25 Gideon Ajagbe
» Ajagbe wins the second-string job over 29 Rhaheim Ledbetter.
WR (X): 1 Quinton Dunbar, 11 Demarcus Robinson
WR (Z): 13 Latroy Pittman, 4 Andre Debose, 83 Solomon Patton
» Debose switches from second X to second Z receiver though the players switch in those positions. Pittman takes over the top spot at Z from 15 Loucheiz Purifoy.
F Position: 8 Trey Burton, 13 Latroy Pittman
TE: 88 Clay Burton, 87 Tevin Westbrook OR 18 Kent Taylor OR 84 Colin Thompson

~ Muschamp on Brown edging past Taylor: “You’re not going to get through the SEC with one back. That’s not going to happen. Certainly Mack has distanced himself as a second-team back at this time, a guy that we’ve got a lot of confidence in, that we expect big things form in the fall to continue to progress. I think he’s done a nice job of running the football, and protections, catching the ball, finishing plays. Kelvin certainly has done some nice things and he needs to continue to progress – more than anything- mentally with the offense. Physically, he’s got some ability.”

LT: 70 D.J. Humphries, 74 Trenton Brown
LG: 76 Max Garcia, 77 Ian Silberman*
C: 72 Jonotthan Harrison, 64 Kyle Koehne
RG: 67 Jon Halapio, 63 Trip Thurman*
RT: 73 Tyler Moore OR 75 Chaz Green*
» Brown (an incoming JUCO transfer) replaces Thurman, who moves from back-up LT to back-up RG. Silberman replaces Koehne at back-up LG.

Continue Reading » Florida Gators 2013 post-spring depth chart

Tags: Andre Debose, Antonio Morrison, Austin Hardin, Brad Phillips, Brian Poole, Bryan Cox, Chaz Green, Clay Burton, Cody Riggs, Colin Thompson, D.J. Humphries, Damien Jacobs, Dante Fowler, Darious Cummings, Darrin Kitchens, Demarcus Robinson, Dominique Easley, Drew Ferris, Gideon Ajagbe, Hunter Joyer, Ian Silberman, Jabari Gorman, Jaylen Watkins, Jeff Driskel, Jon Halapio, Jonathan Bullard, Jonotthan Harrison, Justin Vogel, Kelvin Taylor, Kent Taylor, Kyle Christy, Kyle Crofoot, Kyle Koehne, Latroy Pittman, Leon Orr, Loucheiz Purifoy, Mack Brown, Marcus Maye, Marcus Roberson, Matt Jones, Max Garcia, Michael Taylor, Neiron Ball, Quinton Dunbar, Rhaheim Ledbetter, Ronald Powell, Skyler Mornhinweg, Solomon Patton, Tevin Westbrook, Trenton Brown, Trey Burton, Trip Thurman, Tyler Moore, Tyler Murphy, Valdez Showers

1 » Houston Rockets forward Chandler Parsons concluded the 2012-13 NBA regular season in style, draining an improbable three-pointer at the buzzer to extend his team’s season finale into overtime. Though Houston fell to the Los Angeles Lakers 99-95, Parsons finished with 23 points on 10-for-18 shooting, adding four rebounds and three assists. The Rockets will be the No. 8 seed in the Western Conference.

2 » During a pre-draft press conference on Wednesday, New York Jets general manager John Idzik remained non-committal but nevertheless seemed to foreshadow quarterback Tim Tebow’s future with the team. “I’m not saying he is, I’m not saying he isn’t,” said Idzik after being asked if Tebow would be involved in the Jets’ offseason quarterback competition. “I’m just saying let things play out.” He continued: “I guess I don’t want to put the cart before the horse. … He’s a Jet, and we’ve gone through some change here and that’s what I mean by letting things play out. We have a new coordinator, we have a new quarterback coach, we have a new offensive system, I’m new. We have several new people within football administration. I think you just got to let these things develop and evolve.”

3 » Workouts at this point in the offseason do not include on-field drills, so Tebow has not yet had an opportunity to show these new coaches his ability. If one is to believe veteran quarterback coach Steve Clarkson, who told Newsday on Wednesday that he fixed Tebow’s flawed mechanics in just three days, the player may be able to impress if given a chance. “I would hope wherever he ends up, they give him an opportunity to play, because if they do, they’ll be pleasantly surprised,” he told the paper. “I think he can still play.” Clarkson spent three days working with Tebow in Arizona during the month of February and explained that he fixed the flaw in Tebow’s throwing motion.

“The footwork is essentially what caused a lot of his looping motion,” Clarkson said. “A lot of what was happening with his throwing motion and why it was elongated was because of the way he placed his feet at the end of his drop. Right before he’d make his throw, his hips would stop at mid-motion, and the ball would come off in funny places. So that was one thing that we really honed in on, was trying to tie his feet up.” Clarkson went on to say that though Tebow has a high football IQ, his footwork was slowing him down. He even used Tai Chi to help Tebow “make his body work as one unit.” He added: “The things that he needs to work on are very coachable and actually very minor. … He just needs to have someone not be afraid of the phenomenon.”

Check out three more BITS of Florida Gators football news…after the break!
Continue Reading » SIX BITS: Parsons’s buzzer-beater, Tebow’s fixed footwork, Powell’s excitement to return

Tags: Chandler Parsons, Cleveland Browns, Dante Fowler, Fred Taylor, Houston Rockets, Jevon Kearse, Joe Haden, Jonathan Bullard, NBA, New York Jets, NFL, Playoffs, Ronald Powell, Tim Tebow

Location: Ben Hill Griffin Stadium – Gainesville, FL [Capacity: 88,548]
Time: 1:00 p.m. (EDT)

TV: Sun Sports (Larry Vettel, Nat Moore, Brady Ackerman)
SiriusXM: None | Radio: Gator Radio Network [Affiliates]
Online Video: FOXSportsFlorida.com (nationally) | Mobile Video: None
Live Updates: @OnlyGators on Twitter

Reference: Roster | Schedule

EVENT INFORMATION

Schedule:
9:00 a.m. – Gator Locker Room Yard Sale (outside Gate 9)
10:00 a.m. – Verizon Fan Fest in North End Zone Lawn
10:30 a.m. – Gator Walk
11:30 a.m. – Gates Open to Ben Hill Griffin Stadium
11:30 a.m. – Warm-ups begin on the field
12:30 p.m. – Alumni Flag Football Game
1:00 p.m. – Orange & Blue Debut

Parking: Stephen C. O’Connell Center parking garage (first-come, first serve), Gale Lemerand Drive commuter lot (with shuttle)

Tickets: Free for alumni, students and the general public.

EVENT FORMAT

Instead of a full scrimmage, Saturday’s event will be an open practice that also includes limited scrimmage snaps. Florida will mix in approximately 40 scrimmage snaps with football drills. The format adjustment was made because the Gators currently only have six healthy offensive linemen and head coach Will Muschamp feels that it would be right to ask them to participate in 60-100 snaps over the course of a single afternoon. “It’s not fair to go into a spring game situation and ask these guys to take 60-70 snaps in a row,” he explained. “That’s not healthy. That’s not good, it’s not good for our team.”

Muschamp also detailed what will occur during the practice/scrimmage (in order): (1) Field goal/point after touchdown drills, (2) punting and individual drills, (3) one-on-one work with the secondary and receivers going head-to-head while the quarterbacks throw the ball, (4) one-on-one work with block reaction for the offensive line, (5) linebackers and running backs picking up blitz protection and coverage responsibilities, (6) two series of scrimmage with the ball on the 35-yard line, a total of 8-12 plays, (7) red zone one-on-one, (8) offensive and defensive line two-on-ones, (9) two series of scrimmage with the ball at the 35 yard line, a total of 8-12 plays, (10) two full cover punts and a punt/punt block drill, (11), two series of scrimmage from midfield, (12) two full cover kickoffs and a kickoff/kickoff return drill, (13) two series of scrimmage from midfield, (14) red zone 7-on-7s with the ball at the 18-yard line, (15) additional drills including pass rushing, (16) backed up punt drill, (17) one-minute scrimmage drill.

“It’s about getting good-on-good work. It’s about getting your best players going against your best players. … You get better when you’re going good-on-good,” Muschamp said. “This is good work. It’s good special teams work. This is a normal scrimmage-type situation for us as far as our football team is concerned. It’s good-on-good and that’s all I’m concerned with.”

MORE: Injury report, offensive and defensive notes, list of commitments and recruits in attendance…all available after the break!
Continue Reading » 2013 Florida Gators Orange & Blue Debut Preview

Tags: Alex Anzalone, Antonio Morrison, Ben Hill Griffin Stadium, Brad Lawing, Chaz Green, Cody Riggs, Damien Jacobs, Daniel McMillian, Dante Fowler, Darious Cummings, Darrin Kitchens, Demarcus Robinson, Gideon Ajagbe, Ian Silberman, Jabari Gorman, Jaylen Watkins, Jeremy Brown, Jessamen Dunker, Joker Phillips, Jon Halapio, Jonathan Bullard, Kelvin Taylor, Leon Orr, Loucheiz Purifoy, Mack Brown, Marcus Maye, Matt Jones, Matt Rolin, Michael Taylor, Neiron Ball, Orange & Blue Debut, Quinteze Williams, Rhaheim Ledbetter, Ronald Powell, Skyler Mornhinweg, Solomon Patton, Trip Thurman, Tyler Murphy, Will Muschamp

Now two weeks into 2013 spring football practice, Florida Gators defensive coordinator D.J. Durkin met with the media on Thursday to discuss some of the latest developments surrounding the team and provide updates on specific players.

KEY TO THE DEFENSE: BUCK LINEBACKER

Head coach Will Muschamp, above all else, has stressed creating turnovers and affecting the quarterback as two of his main tent poles for a successful defense. The Gators made great strides in the former category in 2012, coming away from the season with a +15 turnover margin (30 total turnovers gained) compared to a -12 margin (14 total turnovers gained) in 2011.

As far as affecting the quarterbacks with sacks is concerned, Florida was not as successful. As a team, the Gators registered 28 sacks in 2011 and finished with just two more for 30 in 2012. Though Florida was able to apply more pressure, it did not always result in getting the quarterback to a ground.

Part of the reason the Gators were unable to make bigger strides in that area was the fact that they were not playing with their ideal personnel at the Buck linebacker position, the key to Muschamp’s defense. Redshirt junior Ronald Powell missed the entire season with a torn ACL, so Lerentee McCray stepped up as the starter and freshman Dante Fowler, Jr. got a look as well. Now with Powell expected to be healthy for the fall, Durkin is confident that Florida will be able to get more production from the position.

“Scheme is one thing but when you got the guys out there that are hard to block, that’s another thing. It adds another dimension to it. With those guys, we really feel good about our one-on-one match-ups. When we get those guys one-on-one, we should be winning more than we’re losing,” he said Thursday.

Powell is not healthy enough yet to practice, but the Gators appear confident that he will be able to suit up when fall practice rolls around.

Continue Reading » 3/28: Durkin talks Gators defense, evaluations

Tags: Antonio Morrison, Brad Lawing, Cody Riggs, D.J. Durkin, Damien Jacobs, Daniel McMillian, Dante Fowler, Darious Cummings, Jabari Gorman, Leon Orr, Loucheiz Purifoy, Marcus Maye, Ronald Powell

While Florida Gators basketball was participating in the 2013 SEC Tournament, the football team held a pair of open spring practices on Friday and Saturday that OGGOA was unable to cover at that time.

Below is a smattering of notes and opinions from the InsidetheGators.com staff, which was in attendance at the practice sessions and delivered six premium reports (as well as two free roundtable discussions) following the proceedings. Each tidbit below has been re-written by OGGOA, but the parts in quotation marks are the specified writer’s own words. Corresponding articles have been linked accordingly.

FREE: Friday Practice Roundtable | Saturday Practice Roundtable

It is important to note that Friday’s gathering was a shirts-and-shorts practice while Saturday’s was the team’s first in full pads this spring.

FRIDAY, MARCH 15

OFFENSE

» Sophomore right tackle Tyler Moore had a rough day overall and was beat off the edge consistently by some of Florida’s most talented rushers like sophomore Buck linebacker Dante Fowler, Jr. and senior defensive end Dominique Easley. [Bryan Holt, InsidetheGators.com]

» In addition to senior wide receiver Solomon Patton, who took nearly all of the Gators’ jet sweeps when he was healthy in 2012, four other pass catchers got a chance to run the ball on that play including sophomore Raphael Andrades, junior Loucheiz Purifoy and freshman Demarcus Robinson. [Bryan Holt, InsidetheGators.com]

» Good news for redshirt senior WR Andre Debose who “showed flashes of the player Florida fans have wanted him to be for four years. Debose is as fast as ever and showed the kind of ball skills that have been missing on a jump-ball catch over Brian Poole.” [Bryan Holt, InsidetheGators.com]

Continue Reading » Gators open spring practice notes and opinions

Tags: Alex Anzalone, Alex McCalister, Andre Debose, Antonio Morrison, Brian Poole, D.J. Humphries, Dante Fowler, Demarcus Robinson, Dominique Easley, Gideon Ajagbe, Hunter Joyer, Jeremy Brown, Joey Ivie, Kent Taylor, Loucheiz Purifoy, Marcus Roberson, Matt Jones, Raphael Andrades, Ronald Powell, Skyler Mornhinweg, Solomon Patton, Tyler Moore, Tyler Murphy, Will Muschamp

Florida Gators football competed its first official day of 2013 spring practice on Tuesday, and head coach Will Muschamp met with the media after its conclusion to discuss some of the highlights from the day’s activities.

GETTING BACK INTO THE GROOVE

“First day in shorts. That’s not how you play football,” Muschamp said after coming in from the practice fields. As Florida looks to replace a number of starters and develop its roster, the coach was pleased with what he saw from the team on Wednesday, especially on the offensive side of the ball now that it is entering year two under offensive coordinator Brent Pease.

“Good to see offensively from a standpoint of guys teaching fundamentals and technique as opposed to scheme,” he said. “Anytime you’re new… Brent and them coming in last year and changing some things and teaching scheme as opposed to honing in on the fundamentals and technique of the positions and what we need to do. That makes us even better than obviously a year ago at this time, which we need to be. That’s refreshing.”

He was also pleased with the Gators’ attitude and top-notch work ethic, which continued from the offseason program. Muschamp added that he is proud of where Florida is at this time but does have a few specific areas of concern.

“Definitely we got to have some question marks inside answered, linebacker depth answered and safety. That’s where we’ve got some serious question marks defensively,” he said.

All-in-all though, the day was a net positive for the Gators. “You only get 15 [spring practices] and you either get better or worse, and I thought we improved,” he said.

ANSWERING THE DEFENSIVE QUESTION MARKS

Florida lost a lot up the middle in the offseason. Gone are both of the Gators’ starting defensive tackles, both of the starting inside linebackers and both of the starting safeties. Though Muschamp is comfortable with his defensive backs and believes that flexibility in the secondary will allow safety play to not be an area of concern, he is less enthused with the defensive front seven.

Continue Reading » 3/13: Muschamp on first day of spring practice, Easley, Purifoy, Powell, Robinson

Tags: Alex Anzalone, Antonio Morrison, Brent Pease, Daniel McMillian, Demarcus Robinson, Dominique Easley, f, Gideon Ajagbe, Joey Ivie, Kelvin Taylor, Loucheiz Purifoy, Max Garcia, Michael Taylor, Rhaheim Ledbetter, Ronald Powell, Tyler Moore, Will Muschamp

With the Florida Gators set to begin 2013 spring practice on Wednesday, head coach Will Muschamp and new defensive coordinator D.J. Durkin met with the media Tuesday to discuss a variety of topics concerning the team’s defense.

RELATED: Spring depth chart released | Muschamp, Pease on offense

A NEW MAN IN CHARGE…

Durkin will be entering his fourth year as a member of the Gators’ coaching staff but will begin the 2013 season with a brand new task – coordinating a defense. After spending his career as a position coach and special teams coordinator, Durkin is now the man in charge of Florida’s defense and realizes he has plenty of work ahead of him.

» Durkin on becoming the defensive coordinator: “I’m very excited, excited because of the guys I get to work with both players and coaches. I think it’s a great opportunity. I’m very excited about it. It’s a new challenge. I’ve been doing special teams for a while, so any time you do something for that long, you kind of get in your routine and get to the normalcies of it and all that. It’s exciting for me to have a new challenge and some different things to work on and do.”

» Durkin on his defensive philosophy: “The number one thing that it comes down to is, and I think you’ve seen the identity of our defense, what we as a staff want to build here. We want to be tough, blue-collar team. We want to play with unbelievable effort and enthusiasm in what we’re doing. That’s the way I coach. That’s my personality. That’s what I hope I’ve carried over to our special teams while I’m here and it will be the same thing with our defense. We got a great system in place. We’re not changing terminology and all that. Coach Muschamp, it’s his system and he’s a great defensive mind. It’s been great for all of us to learn that system. To me, that is what this game is all about, being a blue-collar team, both mentally and physically tough, playing with great enthusiasm and great attitude. “

Continue Reading » Muschamp, Durkin discuss Florida Gators defense

Tags: Alex Anzalone, Alex McCalister, Antonio Morrison, Austin Hardin, Brad Lawing, Brad Phillips, Brian White, Bryan Cox, Bryant Young, D.J. Durkin, Daniel McMillian, Dante Fowler, Darrin Kitchens, Dominique Easley, Jeremi Powell, Joey Ivie, Joker Phillips, Jonathan Bullard, Kyle Christy, Michael Taylor, Neiron Ball, Ronald Powell, Travaris Robinson, Will Muschamp