Florida Gators sophomore signal caller Jeff Driskel may have missed a couple of days of practice due to a bruised non-throwing shoulder but those absences have not put him behind the eight ball as far as the team’s quarterback competition is concerned, offensive coordinator Brent Pease said in a media availability on Friday.

Though sophomore QB Jacoby Brissett obviously saw more action than Driskel on Monday and Tuesday, the battle remains on between the two for the short term.

“[Brissett] got more reps while Jeff was out. When you get more reps, it’s going to make you better naturally because you’re seeing more things. I don’t know if he gained anything or went ahead, but he got more reps,” Pease said.

“It’s been up and down [for both quarterbacks]. The thing that I’ve seen from both of them is this: They both have gotten better in all aspects of their game. That’s the main thing. If they can get better to where they both can manage and make plays then that’s really what we’re striving for.”

With Brissett and Driskel both playing so well and relatively evenly out on the practice fields, one might assume that Pease would have a difficult time in choosing a starter. He claims that will not be the case whatsoever.

“I don’t think it’s going to be that tough,” he said. “I say that because I think they’re both capable.”

Pease will not make that decision on his own, of course. Head coach Will Muschamp will certainly have his input though Pease said that he expects them to eventually come to a concensus on what is best for the team going forward.

“I’ll give him my feedback on how guys perform,” he said. “I think as a head coach he’s always watching and evaluating really from the defensive standpoint and as a head coach. [There is] communication between us and how things fit, what’s best for the team.

“I think he’s valued my opinion and I give it to him. I think it’s a 50-50 deal, probably a little bit more 51-49 his decision because he’s the head coach.”

Not having any influence on the upcoming decision, however, will be the players, who Pease said have said nothing to him about preferring one quarterback over the other.

“I don’t hear that,” he said. “I think the players are about team. I don’t think they’re trying to…this isn’t a buddy contest here. This is about winning.”

NOTES AND QUOTES
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Tags: Andre Debose, Brent Pease, Jacoby Brissett, Jeff Driskel, Latroy Pittman, Raphael Andrades, Solomon Patton, Tevin Westbrook, Will Muschamp

Redshirt freshman wide receiver Ja’Juan Story, who joined the Florida Gators as part of head coach Will Muschamp’s first recruiting class in 2011, decided on Thursday to leave the program and transfer to another school.

Story committed to the Gators before Muschamp took the helm but stayed solid in his commitment to Florida and followed through with signing his National Letter of Intent that February. After being redshirted his freshman season and far back on the depth chart heading into 2012, Story decided it was time to look for an opportunity elsewhere.

“Ja’Juan Story came to me [Thursday] and just didn’t feel like he was fitting. He did an outstanding job as a student here,” Muschamp said following the announcement on Friday. “He felt like he just needed to transfer and sometimes that happens. You don’t fit; you don’t feel like you’re fitting with what we’re trying to do and as we move forward with this. So we wish him all the luck in the world.”

He will be the 14th player to transfer off the Gators football team since Muschamp was hired to take over the program in Dec. 2010 and second offensive player (tight end A.C. Leonard) to do so in the last three weeks. Muschamp said following the school’s announcement that there will be some restrictions on where Story can transfer.

Despite not having great production at the position, Florida does have talent at receiver including redshirt senior Frankie Hammond, Jr., redshirt junior Andre Debose, redshirt sophomore Quinton Dunbar and freshman Latroy Pittman. Redshirt junior Stephen Alli and junior Solomon Patton could also play a bigger role this season.

Tags: A.C. Leonard, Andre Debose, Frankie Hammond, Ja'Juan Story, Latroy Pittman, Quinton Dunbar, Solomon Patton, Stephen Alli, Will Muschamp

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

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

Florida Gators head coach Will Muschamp spoke at length Friday prior to the team’s second scrimmage of the spring on Saturday. He discussed not only the status of one player in particular but also how the offense is coming along and some individual things he is pleased with following the 10th practice of the spring session.

LEONARD RETURNS TO PRACTICE: AN EXPLANATION

Florida announced Wednesday that sophomore tight end A.C. Leonard had returned to practice following a six-week suspension from team activities that he incurred after being arrested for misdemeanor domestic battery. Though Leonard’s case is still pending, he returned to the team on Monday; however, his status for other activities is up in the air.

“After six weeks of being suspended from our football team, I felt like he’s done the things that I’ve asked him to do from the standpoint of the measures that I took with him to this point. And I’ve allowed him to practice only – only,” Muschamp said. “No decision on the fall has been made. No decision about playing as been made. He still has an awful lot of things to do in order to play for our football team and play for the University of Florida. He’s very remorseful about what happened. He made a mistake. And that’s all I’m going to comment on that at this point. All he has been cleared to do is practice.”

He did wind up commenting further on the situation, however. Muschamp said that Leonard’s status for the 2012 Orange & Blue Debut on April 7 is to be determined and then provided an anecdote to explain why discipline for one player or another is not always cut-and-dry depending on the reason they are being punished.

“At the end of the day, I’m not talking about this situation. I’m talking about just discipline in general. I’ll never forget when I was a defensive coordinator – and I’m not going to say where it was or who the head coach that was involved [was as] it was a guy I have tremendous respect for. We had three players late for a team meeting. When the team meeting got done, one of the players was my position players. [The head coach] went up to the three players and he looked at one player and said, ‘This doesn’t need to happen again.’ He looked at the next player and said, ‘You need to do this, this, this and this.’ He looked at the other player and listed 40 things he had to do. He’s the head coach. He’s the boss. ‘Yes sir.’

“We leave the team meeting and the middle guy came to me, he was my position guy, he came to me and said, ‘I don’t understand why one guy had nothing happen to him, I got this and the other guy, he’s going to have a lot of stuff he’s got to accomplish to work his way back.’ I said, ‘There’s only one person that can answer this – that’s the head football coach.’ So we walked down to his office and I said, ‘Tell him what you told me.’ He repeated the question he asked me.

“[The head coach] said, ‘Obviously you and Coach Muschamp don’t have all the information.’ No, I don’t. He said, ‘The first young man has made no poor decisions since he’s been here. He has done nothing wrong. He was late for the team meeting. We locked the doors, he was late, he had poor judgment and he was late for the meeting. It’s the only thing he’s ever done wrong.’ OK, that made a lot of sense to me. Then he said, ‘You’ve had this happen, this happen and this happen. Now you’re late for a team meeting. Obviously your judgment as a member of this football team is not very good. So that’s why I gave you the discipline I gave you. Now the other guy, he’s what we call a ‘list guy;’ he’s on every list in the building. He’s on the academic list. He’s on the training room list. He’s on the weight room list. He’s on every list in the building. So he has a very hard time with choices and decisions in life. So that’s why he’s got a bunch of stuff to come back from.’

“The point being made here is: I was an assistant coach and didn’t have all the information. The players don’t have all the information. And certainly just anything that’s public you don’t have all the information. Does that make sense? So a lot of times when discipline is handled within an organization – whether it’s a team or whatever it is – if you don’t have all the information it’s really hard to comment on why the discipline was handled in a certain way. Does that make sense?”

QUARTERBACKS MAKING PROGRESS

Continue Reading » 3/30: Muschamp on Leonard, spring progress

Tags: A.C. Leonard, Brent Pease, Chris Johnson, Dan Quinn, Ja'Juan Story, Jacoby Brissett, Jeff Driskel, Louchiez Purifoy, Mack Brown, Mike Gillislee, Omarius Hines, Solomon Patton, Stephen Alli, Tim Davis, University of Florida, Will Muschamp

Florida Gators head coach Will Muschamp spoke at length Monday about the first scrimmage of the spring on Saturday, how the team is coming together early into the spring practice session and how some individual players are progressing.

GILLISLEE AND POWELL STAND OUT

Two of the players that the team needs the most out of in 2012 – senior running back Mike Gillislee and junior Buck linebacker Ronald Powell

“You look at the two players of the day – Mike Gillislee and Ronald Powell both had great offseasons,” he said. “They didn’t miss a day. They worked hard. They’ve done a great job in the weight room. They’ve done a great job in our offseason program. And they’ve both, in the first seven days of spring, have had really good springs. They’re in shape and they’re attentive to detail of what they have to do to be successful.”

Gillislee was one of the reasons that Florida was “able to run the ball pretty effectively throughout the scrimmage.” He has also improved his blocking immensely. “Protection he did a nice job,” Muschamp said. “One of the first series there he did a nice job [with] protection, blocking on the edge and then had a nice run for a 20-yard gain, caused two guys to miss. He’s got good vision and a good feel for the running game.”

Being named the official starter seems to be a formality at this point for Gillislee, but it is a goal he will have to continue working towards, according to Muschamp. “If he continues down the same path, there’s no question,” he said. “That’s where competition is your best motivator. I know he’s got guys behind him that are pushing him and doing a good job as well.”

Muschamp also said that Powell was the most productive player on defense; he continues to be impressed with how hard he has worked on a day-to-day basis. “Ronald had a couple good third down stops, a couple good pressures, a sack. He continues to play well. His pad level has improved and his hand placement playing blocks,” he said.

INJURY UPDATES

» Redshirt junior wide receiver Stephen Alli (groin) – day-to-day, missed scrimmage
» Junior WR Solomon Patton (groin) – “week-to-week,” missed scrimmage
» Redshirt freshman WR Ja’Juan Story (ankle) – back this week, missed scrimmage
» Redshirt senior defensive end Earl Okine (back) – out for spring
» Redshirt sophomore defensive tackle Leon Orr (shoulder) – back Monday, missed scrimmage

Sophomore cornerback Marcus Roberson remains in a non-contact jersey but is still participating in one-on-ones and 7-on-7 skeleton drills. The team is trying to work him into some drills so he can continue getting all of the reactions down, but he is “not in the fray” as far as tackling and taking on blocks.

PLAYER EVALUATIONS
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Tags: Antonio Morrison, D.J. Humphries, Earl Okine, Frankie Hammond, Ja'Juan Story, James Wilson, Jessamen Dunker, Jon Halapio, Jonotthan Harrison, Latroy Pittman, Leon Orr, Marcus Roberson, Matt Patchan, Mike Gillislee, Ronald Powell, Solomon Patton, Stephen Alli, Tim Tebow, Tyler Murphy, Will Muschamp, Willie Bailey, Xavier Nixon

A handful of Florida Gators football players met with the media on Thursday to discuss how their offseasons have been going, and head coach Will Muschamp did the same on Friday in order to go over how some of the players have been progressing heading into a team scrimmage on Saturday morning.

“[Saturday's] scrimmage obviously should create some separation,” he said. “It’s the first time the defensive coaches will not be on the field at all. Offensively we’re still working through some things so obviously they’ll be involved a little bit as far as getting guys aligned in some situations to make sure the huddle procedures are right, the quarterbacks and managing our huddle and managing our football team.”

INJURY UPDATES

» Redshirt junior wide receiver Stephen Alli (groin) – day-to-day, out for scrimmage
» Junior WR Solomon Patton (groin) – “week-to-week,” out for scrimmage
» Redshirt freshman WR Ja’Juan Story (ankle) – day-to-day, out for scrimmage
» Redshirt sophomore defensive tackle Leon Orr (shoulder) – day-to-day, doubtful for scrimmage

With three pass catchers set to miss the scrimmage on Saturday, Muschamp joked (or at least he seemed to be) that WR coach Aubrey Hill was going to line up on offense. “We’re a little short there,” he said. “With what we’re doing, it will create some opportunities for Trey Burton doing some different things. Omarius Hines is still playing tight end looks and [we will] flex him in some situations.”

Muschamp also said that freshman tight end Kent Taylor, who will not be on campus until the summer, could very well see a lot of action in his first year and that he has been putting on weight as the coaches have asked. “Certainly he’s a guy that obviously athletically does a nice job stretching the field. In our camps this summer he did a great job as far as that is concerned – stretching the field vertically,” he said.

Continue Reading » 3/23: Muschamp, Gators talk spring practice

Tags: Andre Debose, Brent Pease, D.J. Humphries, Damien Jacobs, Frankie Hammond, Ja'Juan Story, Jaylen Watkins, Jessamen Dunker, Josh Evans, Leon Orr, Ronald Powell, Sharrif Floyd, Solomon Patton, Stephen Alli, Will Muschamp

Head coach Will Muschamp met with the media on Monday before the Florida Gators began their third spring practice of the offseason. He touched on a number of issues concerning the team including its youth, injury issues and options at running back.

INJURY UPDATES

» Redshirt junior wide receiver Stephen Alli (groin) – day-to-day
» Redshirt senior defensive end Earl Okine (back) – day-to-day
» Junior WR Solomon Patton (groin) – “week-to-week”
» Sophomore cornerback Louchiez Purifoy (shoulder) – should practice

» Sophomore CB Marcus Roberson (neck) – out for spring

After injuring his neck in a game against South Carolina, Roberson was forced to miss the remainder of the season and was seen sporting a neck brace as recently as a few weeks ago. Asked why Roberson was participating in some shadow-type drills even though he was listed as being a non-contact player, Muschamp got a little snippy.

“He is moving around fine. Again, it’s just a contact issue. We’re not going to have him do any contact,” he said. “That’s what the orange jersey means. I had to explain that last fall – what non-contact means. Do we have to go through that again? Non-contact means ‘no contact.’”

He then got into specifics on Roberson’s injury and why he has been out so long.

“It was a displacement in the neck area. It was a very serious issue. It was all very healable as far as the medical process is concerned. It just takes time,” Muschamp explained. “He was in a neck brace for 6-8 weeks – a stationary brace. Then he was in a less-confining brace for another six weeks. It was a pretty – it was a scary injury.

“He came in on Sunday [after the injury] and told me, and it was scary. It really was. Any time you deal with the head and the neck, football’s over as far as I am concerned. Our medical people do a great job. They put him through every test you can imagine – took all the pictures and did all the stuff you do. They cleared him for non-contact.

“Marcus is a competitor and any time you take that away from someone, it is very frustrating. Marcus was down – bad. I was worried about him just as a human being. He was really depressed about the situation, something he loves and cares about so much maybe being taken away from him. He’s a guy you’re glad to see back out there. Football is important to him. He likes playing the games, as you see out there. It’s very hard for him to be non-contact. He’s a competitive guy and he likes to play the game.”

PLENTY OF RUNNING BACKS COMPETING
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Tags: Chris Johnson, Earl Okine, Jordan Reed, Louchiez Purifoy, Mack Brown, Marcus Roberson, Mike Gillislee, Omarius Hines, Quinton Dunbar, Solomon Patton, Stephen Alli, Will Muschamp