Before suffering another unfortunate injury to his shoulder against Georgia last year, senior cornerback Devin Moore was playing his best football yet and was well on his way to a great finish in 2024. In his last two games played against Kentucky and Georgia last season, Moore recorded nine total tackles (five solo), two interceptions and two pass breakups.
With spring practice underway, Devin Moore is healthy and primed for a big senior season under new defensive backs coach Deron Wilson.
“Oh yeah that was the number one priority. Anytime I miss football, being out there with my brothers, it lights another fire under me, just takes it to another level,” Moore said on his time off the field. “It was just a big priority making sure I’d be back. My recovery process was pretty smooth, it was just a minor surgery I had to get on my shoulder. Just because I played through it the whole season that kind of made it a little worse, but I’m willing to put my body on the line for the team any time.”
With new defensive backs coach Deron Wilson joining the program just weeks before spring practice, there’s always concerns of how well players are buying into a new position coach. Fortunately, Moore and the rest of the room have adapted well to a new identity that feels familiar.
“I feel like myself and the room as a whole have definitely accepted him,” Moore said. “It’s an easy transition for me because he was here my freshman year, part of my recruitment and I got to develop a little bit of a relationship with him, so, you know, him coming in, still preaching much of the same stuff Coach Harris was preaching, bringing his own swagger, too and you know you can’t go wrong with either guy, and you know he came in with that confidence. All the guys in the room are ready to work.”
Deron Wilson’s coaching style is very similar to former defensive backs coach Will Harris, which has gone over well with the defensive backs room as a whole. Wilson is a player’s coach and is someone who will push you to the limit when it’s time to work.
“Cool dude. Player’s coach,” Moore said on Wilson. “Every day we have, I’m joking with him, in indy (individual drills) he likes to talk about how, I think in his day he had three pick sixes or a couple of pick sixes so he always jokes with me, yeah, Devin, we got to get you in the end zone this year because you know I got stopped at the one last year, Tennessee got stopped, so it’s real great vibes and fun and then when it’s time to work he knows how to bring the best out of you.”
Before Deron Wilson even stepped on campus in late February, the former Arkansas secondary coach knew the ins and outs of Florida’s defense and everything this team went through in 2024.
“Most definitely. He showed up here first day, he hadn’t even moved his stuff over, and he was telling us stuff that we added on last year, like the few last games, he’s telling us new stuff like that, that we didn’t forget about. He already knows that,” Moore said. “He already knows all the language of the playbook and all the motion adjustments and things of that nature. So, him being able to come in here first day just getting off the flight and just knowing the terminology and teaching us and coaching us, it really opened my eyes cause not a lot of coaches can take in our playbook that fast.”
One new player addition that has impressed Moore and many others during his first weeks in the orange and blue is true freshman defensive back Ben Hanks Jr. The former Booker T. Washington standout seems to have a bright future in Gainesville, according to his peers.
“He’s smooth. He’s smooth for sure. He’s got some great ball skills, great feet, and he’s a hard worker ready to learn,” Moore said on Hanks Jr. “I made sure he sat next to me in meetings, trying to take him under my wing, make sure he takes all the right notes, doing all the right things. He’s going to be nice.”
Legacy players at the University of Florida have a different chip on their shoulder. We witnessed it in 2024 with Myles Graham and I think there’s a good chance we see that with Ben Hanks in his first year as a Florida Gator.
“For sure, yeah. They out there doing all the extra stuff. They probably out there catching jugs right now,” Moore said on legacy players having a chip on their shoulder. “They out there doing all the extra stuff. They grew up in a household where it meant a lot to them, and it definitely shows.”
Another player that has made tremendous strides on and off the field going into his second year with the Gators is former five-star cornerback Cormani McClain. After weighing 165 pounds during his time at Colorado, McClain has gained a total of 17 pounds and currently weighs in at 182 pounds heading into spring camp in his third season of college football.
“He’s made huge strides. He’s in the weight room working hard, showing up to meetings early. He’s another guy that I can say definitely took a step as a leader. He’s helped me with the young guys, share with them on the plays he makes, what he did, the process he went through to help the young guys.”
After losing Jason Marshall to the draft and Will Harris to Miami with many more coaching changes on staff, it’s not crazy to have concerns about Florida taking a step back defensively next season. However, the Gators remain in good hands with defensive backs coach Deron Wilson and could potentially even take a step forward in 2025 with a healthy unit heading into spring camp.