The 2022 season is a fresh start for Gator football as the Billy Napier era dawns. It is also a fresh start for a number of players who have had problems staying healthy. Perhaps a new strength and conditioning regime, different coaching techniques, or simply a change of fortunes will make things better for guys who’ve struggled to stay available throughout an entire season.
While I’m rooting for all college football players to stay healthy, not just those wearing orange and blue, there are some who are more important than others when it comes to the fortunes of the ’22 squad. Here are the top five players with bad injury track records who the team could really use for the whole year.
1. Anthony Richardson
AR’s tremendous start against FAU and USF last year sparked a lot of optimism, some of it a hair over the top. The fact remains that Richardson has the highest ceiling of anyone in the crowded quarterback room in Gainesville.
Emory Jones is a great teammate but not a great player, and he may transfer out after spring practice. Jack Miller is almost a complete unknown. Falling to third string in a competition with no incumbent starter and transferring out is usually not indicative of a future star, though, even when what he left was a stacked QB situation at Ohio State.
The 2021 quarterback signees may or may not be a match for Napier’s offense. New 2022 signee Max Brown will take years to get ready, and that’s not a pejorative assessment. Napier has explained that Brown has just two years’ experience playing quarterback and has a lot of a baseball pitcher’s delivery in his throwing motion.
That leaves Richardson. He showed his greenness last year as a redshirt freshman, but his physical gifts are evident. He showed flashes of a high-level ability to run a pass attack. If he can put it all together — and stay available to play — his best-case scenario is blossoming into a game-changing quarterback that can elevate an entire team. Maybe he can do that, maybe he can’t, but no one else appears to even have that as a possibility.
2. Ethan White
It’s hard to remember the beginning of last season given how spectacularly the wheels came off down the stretch. During the first half of the slate, the Gators were a monster rushing team. They competed with the triple option teams for the tops of the various rushing categories nationally, and they put up impressive performances like 5.9 yards per carry against Alabama and 7.3 against Tennessee (sacks removed from both).
White was one of the starters on the line that paved the way for those terrific outings. However, he only played in eight games, and that’s after missing half of the 2020 season to injury as well.
Napier’s preference for a power rushing attack makes line play critical. Gator fans can feel confident about the starting lineup with three returning starters, star transfer O’Cyrus Torrence, and an experienced fifth player in either Joshua Braun or Michael Tarquin. After those top six, however, things get dicey. Is the other Louisiana transfer Kam Waites ready to contribute? Can Richie Leonard improve under new coaching after not looking promising in spot duty last year? Will someone who’s yet to play much step up?
Simply put, Florida is in a vastly better place with White on the field than not. Once again, health along the O-line will be a primary factor in determining how far the team can go.
3. Jalen Kimber
Kimber was on track to start for Georgia’s generationally good defense last year before a shoulder injury knocked him out for the year. That fact, on top of his mid 4-star rating as a recruit, should tell you that he has great potential.
A healthy Kimber will definitively answer the question of who will start opposite Jason Marshall. Having those two as lockdown guys with a nice set of backups in Jaydon Hill, Avery Helm, and Jadarrius Perkins would make corner one of the unquestioned strengths of the team.
4. Trent Whittemore
Whittemore has yet to make it through an entire season healthy, missing time in both 2020 and 2021. It’s too bad, since he’s a sure-handed target with a massive catch radius thanks to his lanky, 6’4″ frame.
He might’ve been affected the most among all receivers by UF’s passing struggles a year ago. Jones often locked onto his first reads, and Whittemore’s slot receiver position wasn’t the first option all that often. As a result, a lot of the time he did spend on the field had him running wide open with no passes coming his way.
Napier’s preference for two-tight end sets will limit how often the slot receiver will appear in comparison to the Dan Mullen offense. When there is a slot guy, though, a Whittemore at 100% is easily the team’s best option there.
5. Jaelin Humphries
At this point, I don’t know if Humphries can play at an SEC level. It’s strange to say that considering he was a 2019 signee, but he’s had horrible injury luck. It’s possible that he won’t ever be able to stay healthy, and that’d be a real shame for the young man.
For those of you wondering what exact position Humphries even plays, I get you. Don’t worry, it’s fine. He’s appeared in only two games in three seasons.
The answer is defensive tackle. UF was bad against the run last year in part due to underwhelming defensive tackle play. The Gators will have a great one with Gervon Dexter, and Desmond Watson is a big space eater for the limited snaps he’s able to play. Jalen Lee has shown some flashes when he’s made it on the field from time to time.
You need more than three defensive tackles in the SEC, though. All three transfers from last year exhausted their eligibility, so younger guys need to step up.
I picked Humphries here for that reason as much as any. D-tackle is a major point of concern again, so if he can even just be a solid rotation guy, Florida could really use it. The Gators probably need to find a big body in the portal after spring regardless, but it sure would be great to finally see some production from Humphries — if only because it means that he can finally achieve his dream of playing college football rather than constantly rehabbing injuries.