Behind the Numbers: Florida Gators TE Coach Larry Scott

Florida Gators tight end Cyontai Lewis celebrates his touchdown-1280x851
Florida Gators tight end Cyontai Lewis celebrates his touchdown- GatorCountry photo taken by David Bowie

When the Florida Gators, “unexpectedly” lost tight end coach Ju’Juan Seider to Penn State, they moved quickly nabbing former University of Tennessee offensive coordinator Larry Scott for the same role. Some might even think too quickly, and hence the quotation marks.

Larry Scott, a former offensive tackle at the University of South Florida, has risen quickly up the ranks since being a Graduate Assistant at his alma mater in 2006. After one year as a graduate assistant, he spent two years coaching tight ends, one year coaching offensive line, two years of coaching tight ends, and one year of coaching the running back position at USF, before heading to Miami for three seasons including serving as the interim head coach when Al Golden was fired, where he went 4-2 and was notoriously out recruiting when he saw on the ESPN bottom line that Mark Richt had been hired. He headed to Tennessee in 2016 as the tight end coach and served 2017 as the offensive coordinator and tight end coach before head coach Butch Jones was fired.

While Scott struggled last season as offensive coordinator, the only black offensive coordinator in the Vols 121-year history, at Tennessee, Butch Jones was a dead man walking and nothing less than an act of God would have saved that offense.

Scott comes to Florida has one of the most respected tight end coaches in the country, let’s look at a few statistics and numbers that have helped him build his career.

  • Larry Scott is a coveted recruiter and considered one of the best in the country. He was responsible for bringing Braxton Berrios and Tyree St. Louis to Miami, along with number-one JUCO tight end Jerome Washington. He also stole Tyler Byrd from the Gators and brought him to Tennessee.
  • In his first season at Tennessee, Scott transitioned fifth-year senior Jason Croom from a wide receiver to tight end, where he subsequently lead his tight end group in yards, average yards per catch, and receptions per game – the second highest yards caught by a tight end in the previous four seasons.
  • In his three seasons as tight end coach at Miami, a tight end ranked in the top-four on the team in receptions (2015 – 4th, 2014 – 2nd, 2013 – 3rd).
    • In 2014, Miami tight end Clive Walford had more yards caught than the Gators have had caught by their tight ends over the previous two years.
      • He was also a 3rd team All-American, a 2nd team All-ACC, and a 3rd round draft pick.
  • In three seasons at Miami, tight ends caught 14 touchdowns. Last season, the Gators only had one.
  • Scott joins Greg Knox, John Hevesey, Brian Johnson, and Billy Gonzalez with coordinator or head coaching experience – yes, every coach on the Gators offensive side of the ball.
  • Scott was largely credited for USFs 21st ranked recruiting class – the highest in their history up to that point.
Daniel Thompson
Dan Thompson is a 2010 graduate of the University Florida, graduating with a degree in Economics and a degree in Political Science. During this time at UF, Dan worked three years for the Florida Gator Football team as a recruiting ambassador. Dan dealt daily with prospects, NCAA guidelines, and coaching staff. Dan was also involved in Florida Blue Key, Student Government and Greek Life. Currently, Dan oversees the IT consulting practice of a Tampa-based company. Dan enjoys golfing, country music, bourbon, travel, oysters, and a medium-rare steak. Dan can be found on Twitter at @DK_Thompson.