By now, you’ve probably heard ad nauseum about how the Gators’ offense is going to be much more reliant on the ground game this season.
And there’s merit to those discussions. Obviously, the Gators are replacing the core of last year’s historic passing attack. Plus, running back is possibly the deepest position on the roster.
It doesn’t take a genius to figure out that UF is going to try to run the ball much more this season. Coach Dan Mullen has admitted to wanting to be more balanced this season.
But the Gators’ wide receivers are looking at this increased emphasis on the running game as an opportunity. If they run the ball effectively and frequently, opponents will have to put extra defenders in the box to slow them down. The running threat of quarterbacks Emory Jones and Anthony Richardson will force them to keep a defender in the box as a spy.
If opposing defenses play them the way they expect them to, there will be larger throwing windows for Jones and more one-on-one opportunities for the receivers.
“I actually get excited to hear that we’re going to have a powerful backfield because it’s going to open up the pass game and make our offense whole,” sophomore receiver Xzavier Henderson said. “So, yeah, we’re going to be pretty good. I feel like the receivers, once they start pounding the ball and open up the run game, it’s going to open it up for us on the perimeter and give us some one-on-one shots.”
The receivers plan to take advantage of those opportunities with regularity. So often, in fact, that they’ve given themselves a catchy moniker that you’ll probably see all over the internet throughout the season.
“We call ourselves the ‘End Zone Party Boys,’” Henderson said. “We’re all fast and all deep threats.
“Quick shoutout to Jacob Copeland. He made it up, the ‘End Zone Party Boys.’ We just [were] in the end zone a lot this past camp, and he just made it up one day after practice.”
Copeland has already made T-shirts for the group with the moniker on it.
“I saw pictures of them, but I haven’t gotten one yet,” redshirt junior Justin Shorter said. “Maybe game day he’ll pass them out to us or something. He might make me pay for it. I’m not sure.”
That anecdote should tell you everything you need to know about how confident the receivers are entering the season. You can rest assured that the “End Zone Party Boys” phrase will be turned against them mockingly if they struggle this season. They understand that, but they’re confident enough to call themselves that anyway.
Though they’re without their top-3 receivers from last season, they believe that they have the necessary pieces to be highly productive again this fall.
Copeland pointed out that Mullen and receivers coach Billy Gonzales rotated plenty of guys into games last season even with a pair of first-round draft picks in Kadarius Toney and Kyle Pitts. There were even entire series with the second-string wide receivers out there at times.
So, while Copeland is technically the only returning starter, they have a handful of players who have contributed in big games.
The Gators will be counting on Copeland to ramp up his production as the No. 1 receiver this fall. The former top recruit has caught 45 passes for 724 yards and five touchdowns in three seasons. The Gators might need him to come close to matching those numbers this season.
Copeland is confident that he’ll have that big breakout this year. It happened two years ago with Van Jefferson and Freddie Swain, and it happened last year with Toney. Gonzales, the man who oversaw their development, is still around, so Copeland feels more than prepared for his increased role.
“Coach Billy G [is] going to work us to death,” he said. “He’s going to always make sure everybody’s on the same page. He’s going to push you to your limits. As long as I’ve got him in my corner, I feel like I’m going to be good this year, all the receiving corps at that.”
Shorter, a former five-star recruit who transferred in from Penn State last offseason, is listed as the other starting outside receiver on the unofficial depth chart. He made a few big plays last year but mostly took a backseat.
He has all of the physical tools you can ask for in a receiver. He’s big (6-foot-5, 228 pounds), fast and capable of going up and getting it in the red zone. However, many of his catches last year came on short throws designed to get the ball into his hands.
Mullen said Shorter’s work ethic has positioned him to take on a larger load this season.
“From the minute at the start of practice to the end, he is grinding, giving you everything that he has,” Mullen said. “The great thing of that is you see it in the results. I think he’s playing at a much, much higher level than he did last year, much more consistent level, much bigger playmaker level than he did last year. It’s not a surprise with how hard he works day in and day out. You see that improvement.”
Shorter said his improvement this offseason was the result of a rather unusual offseason training program. He catches 450 passes every day from his mom, who moved with him to Gainesville.
“You guys should see her spiral,” he said. “It’s, like, crazy. She can actually throw hard, too, and it’s accurate every time. She gets up. I’m blessed to have her ever since I was growing up. I grew up playing baseball, and they were always out there with me. We were probably out there for three or four hours every single day, and she’s out there throwing pitches to me.
“With football, I just really needed her to help me out so I could get more consistent with my catching. I feel like her being there helped me out every single morning. I’m going to be able to do that.”
Meanwhile, Trent Whittemore will follow Toney as the new starting slot receiver. He’s extremely quick, and he’s bigger and more physical than what you typically expect from a slot receiver. He used his 6-foot-4 frame to go up and get a contested ball between two defenders against South Carolina last season.
Whittemore has fully recovered from a fractured rib and a punctured lung he suffered last fall, and he’s learned from Toney, Swain and Josh Hammond over the past two years.
“Coach Mullen has an amazing offensive mind, and I enjoy playing slot,” he said. “I can pull things from K.T., Freddie or Josh and, at the same time, put my own spin on it. It’s great to look back and take from what those guys did as well as add my own flavor to it. Coach Mullen allows every guy in the offense to do that.”
The depth behind the starting three is also promising. Henderson figures to be the first one off of the bench. He’s a similar type of player as Shorter. He’s tall (6-foot-3), physical and a huge deep-ball threat. He just needs to refine his route-running skills to create more separation.
Shorter expects him to be a breakout star.
“I’ve seen him make plays [where] I watched the tape back when I got back because I didn’t know even how he made that play,” he said. “I’d say him. He’s going to definitely step up this year and make a lot of great plays.”
Redshirt sophomore Ja’Markis Weston, freshman Marcus Burke and sophomore Ja’Quavion Fraziars have also earned high praise from their coaches and teammates this fall.
Of course, having a boatload of talented playmakers does you no good if you don’t have the right trigger man to get them the ball. Because every receiver on this team except for Copeland practiced with the second- or third-string at some point last season, they’ve gained a ton of experience catching balls from Jones. Many of them probably caught more balls from Jones than they did from Kyle Trask last year.
Shorter said the chemistry between Jones and the receivers is superb.
“Ever since I got to campus, we’ve been throwing every single day,” he said. “Really, almost every single day in the stadium or out in the indoor just getting reps and reps and reps because, when you do something over and over and over, it just gets easier and easier and easier.
“Everyone’s ready in that wideout room. The tight ends and the running backs, we’re all in-sync. We’re just ready to go on Saturday.”
The passing game likely won’t shatter school and conference records like the 2020 team did, but they have enough firepower to keep the end zone party going.