Depth chart, 5 things to watch as Florida football kicks off spring practice

Florida football will begin its third season of spring football practice under head coach Billy Napier on Thursday in search of developmental gains.

The Florida Gators went 5-7 in their second year under Napier, a season that ended with a five-game losing streak. That prompted a call out from the Head Ball Coach himself, as Steve Spurrier told Florida Times-Union columnist Gene Frenette that he’s like to see UF’s on-field operation “become a little more tidy.”

Florida returns 13 starters from last year’s squad, including quarterback Graham Mertz, running back Montrell Johnson Jr., linebacker Shemar James and cornerback Jason Marshall Jr.

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There were several offseason changes in the coaching staff, as Florida is bringing in a new linebackers coach (linebacker coach/co-defensive coordinator Ron Roberts), new secondary coach (Will Harris), new defensive line coach (Gerald Chatman), new offensive line coach (Jonathan Decoster), new special teams analyst (Joe Houston) and new strength and conditioning coach (Tyler Miles).

The Gators will hold their first two spring practices this week, then take next week off for spring break before concluding the spring season with 13 more practices leading up the Orange and Blue Game on April 13.

Here are five storylines to watch for the Gators this spring.

Watch the reps for prized five-star freshman QB D.J. Lagway

Lagway represents the future for Florida and will need to develop chemistry with receivers. Mertz is back healthy after suffering a broken collarbone in late November and will try to build off his solid first season as a starting quarterback for UF, in which he passed for 2,903 yards…

Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/depth-chart-5-things-watch-090504978.html

Author : The Gainesville Sun

Publish date : 2024-03-07 09:05:04

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