Spring Practice No. 8: Offensive observations

Offensive Observations

  • The player of the day on offense had to be Demarcus Robinson. Robinson continues to impress physically but was targeted more today than he has been in other open practices. He made people miss and was electric throughout practice.
  • In the defensive observations we mentioned Darious Cummings for having a great day. Conversely, the man in front of him — Max Garcia — did not. Garcia has struggled somewhat getting into good position after snapping the ball out of the shotgun. Cummings got the best of him today.
  • Andre Debose was dressed out in full pads today. He will be in a non-contact jersey for the rest of spring but it’s a good sign to see him back, running routes and participating.
  • Mark Herndon earned a lot of carries today — as he has most of the spring, It’s tough to tell how that will translate to the fall, as Herndon was a standout last spring but earned just four carries in the fall.
  • Jeff Driskel continues to take the lion’s share of the reps at quarterback. Driskel hasn’t been overly impressive but he still stand out as the best option that Florida has at quarterback.
  • Will Grier took over the majority of the second team reps at quarterback from what I saw. In past practices, Driskel would take a rep, then Mornhinweg, Driskel, Grier, Driskel, Mornhinweg etc. Today it seemed like Grier was first out during 11-on-11 work. This is a move that shouldn’t be a surprise and it was good to see Grier ascending into the role that most expected him to take over.
  • Valdez Showers had a nice day. Early on in practice, Showers caught a nice pass in the flat and made Brian Poole miss badly with a nice cutback move.
  • Chaz Green is having a nice spring. Green looked good today battling against Jonathan Bullard and Bryan Cox Jr.
  • Gideon Ajagbe continues to look good playing in the “B” back role for Florida. Ajagbe looks like a natural pass catcher out of the backfield and his involvement with the passing game is something to watch moving forward.
Nick de la Torre
A South Florida native, Nick developed a passion for all things sports at a very young age. His love for baseball was solidified when he saw Al Leiter’s no-hitter for the Marlins live in May of 1996. He was able to play baseball in college but quickly realized there isn’t much of a market for short, slow outfielders that hit around the Mendoza line. Wanting to continue with sports in some capacity he studied journalism at the University of Central Florida. Nick got his first start in the business as an intern for a website covering all things related to the NFL draft before spending two seasons covering the Florida football team at Bleacher Report. That job led him to GatorCountry. When he isn’t covering Gator sports, Nick enjoys hitting way too many shots on the golf course, attempting to keep up with his favorite t.v. shows and watching the Heat, Dolphins and Marlins. Follow him on twitter @NickdelatorreGC

2 COMMENTS

  1. Maybe it’s starting to dawn on this writer that it isn’t the scheme that’s the reason for the lack of development of Jeff Driskel as a quarterback. I remember a lot of people saying that the spread is the perfect fit for Driskel. For this writer to say he hasn’t been “overly impressive” but is still the best the Gators have is not a ringing endorsement. Let’s hope that Roper figures out what people like myself have been pretty sure of, namely, that Driskel will never become a good quarterback and let someone else take a shot at being the starter. Let’s face reality, Driskel should be the best player on the field on offense right now, there shouldn’t be any question of him being the leader and being far above any other player on offense. If he isn’t clearly that player now, is he ever going to be/

    • Yawn!!! Snowprint Are you through with your obsessive rants about our QB? We all get it now. You believe driskel has as good of a chance to be successful as you do saying anything remotely positive… at all…ever.
      I wish I knew who pissed in your wheaties. every morning. We can all thank him for having to read/see your incessant drivel you spew every article.
      The day I see something positive come from you is the day I do the 1 legged Irish jig while wearing a Scottish kilt blind folded. It’s a safe bet I won’t be needing my dancing shoes anytime soon.
      You should, just for sh*ts and giggles, try being a fan for once, you know , fan, the person who enthusiastically supports their team and players. Or not. …. cause the truth is, there are few things in life that are more consistent than the sun rising, and you complaining about the same thing every morning is one of them.