Since Billy Napier was hired on Nov. 28, much of the discussion surrounding the Gators has been about the future. With the splash that Napier made on early national signing day and the seemingly never-ending staff that he’s putting together, fans have reason to believe that brighter days might be on the horizon.
However, it’s almost time to stop dwelling on the future and start thinking about what the 2022 season might entail for the Gators. They’ll begin spring practice in less than one week.
Until then, we’ll break down what to watch for from each position during the spring. In today’s penultimate edition of the series, we’ll break down the safeties.
The Returnees
Corey Collier, Trey Dean, Fenley Graham, Tre’Vez Johnson, Mordecai McDaniel, Donovan McMillon, Dakota Mitchell, Jadarrius Perkins, Rashad Torrence and Kamar Wilcoxson
Because the new staff lists their nickelbacks as safeties on the roster, this position group is the second-largest on the team.
Dean and Torrence are the returning starters at the two safety spots, and they’ll enter spring practice as the favorites to hold onto those jobs.
Dean finally looked comfortable at safety last season after bouncing around at multiple spots during his first three years. He led the team with 92 tackles, which isn’t ideal, as it means that the front-7 didn’t do their jobs often enough, but it shows far Dean has come from when tackling was considered his biggest weakness a couple of years ago. He also broke up a team-high nine passes.
If he takes another step forward this offseason and gets more help around him, he could be in line for an All-SEC type of season.
Torrence was a little more uneven in his first full season as a starter. He finished third on the team with 87 tackles and intercepted a team-high three passes. He became the first Gator in 25 years to intercept two passes and recover a fumble in the same game, a feat he accomplished against No. 1 Georgia of all teams. He also made 13 tackles in the first half against Vanderbilt.
However, Torrence was a bit too streaky last season. He had some blown coverages and poor run fits that cost the Gators as well. If he can become more consistent this spring, he could form one of the SEC’s top safety tandems with Dean.
Collier, McDaniel, McMillon and Mitchell will battle for the right to earn spots in the rotation.
Of those four, McDaniel got the most playing time last season, as he played in all 13 games and intercepted a pass against Samford. However, he’s probably best remembered for his blown coverage against Tennessee that left a receiver wide open for a 75-yard touchdown.
He’s regarded as an extremely fast player who is also more physical than you might think for a 6-foot-1, 194-pound guy. Those traits could make him a better fit at nickel if that’s the direction that co-defensive coordinator Patrick Toney opts to go in.
McMillon also played in every game in 2021 and made 10 tackles. He’s more of a run-stuffing-first type of safety that the Gators can put in the box and essentially use as an extra linebacker. His development in coverage will determine how large of a role he has this fall.
Collier was ranked as a five-star recruit by one website, and he has more of a well-rounded skillset. He only played in two games and redshirted.
Mitchell didn’t play in any games last year and will try to see the field this fall.
The biggest concern with this group comes at nickelback. Johnson and Perkins shared the position last season and had some encouraging moments but also a bunch of disappointing moments as well. When the Gators had trouble slowing down a passing attack, it was often the middle of the field that killed them. Johnson, Perkins and whoever else gets a look here need to cover receivers better and not get plowed over in the running game.
The Newcomer
Kamari Wilson
UF only added one player to the safety room this spring, but he’s a gigantic addition. Wilson was ranked as a five-star prospect throughout most of the recruiting cycle but was dropped down to four stars after he had already enrolled at UF.
Perhaps a good comparison for Wilson is former Gators safety Keanu Neal, who currently plays for the Dallas Cowboys. Wilson is an explosive and physical player who flies downhill with bad intentions. He goes for the bone-jarring blow instead of just wrapping up and gently bringing ballcarriers to the ground.
He’s also athletic enough to cover receivers, tight ends and running backs and blitz. If he learns the defense quickly this spring, it’s hard to imagine him not having a big role this season.
Breakout Watch
Fenley Graham
Graham, who is all of 5-foot-9 and 166 pounds, will probably never play a down at safety other than maybe some mop-up duty, but, if used correctly, he should still have the greatest increase in production of anyone at this position.
He was brought to Florida almost entirely because of his punt-returning skills. He scored a combined six kickoff and punt returning touchdowns during his time at Lakeland High School. Then, for whatever reasons, the previous staff refused to let him do his thing and chose to send some top-of-the-line receivers and defensive backs out there to fair catch the ball.
If this coaching staff values special teams as much as they claim to, Graham will see a ton of action this season. It wouldn’t be a surprise at all to see him return a punt for a touchdown in the spring game.
Three Questions
1. Can Torrence become more consistent?
He’s demonstrated his ability to not just be good but excellent. You don’t make 13 tackles in one half and then cause three turnovers in another game without having a lot of skill.
Now Torrence needs to take those flashes of brilliance and turn them into complete games, which will in turn lead to a complete season.
If he can avoid the major mistakes that hurt him last year, the starting secondary should be very formidable in this new scheme.
2. Which of the second-year players will rise to the top?
Obviously, you’re going to need more than just two safeties that you can count on throughout the season, and relying on a true freshman such as Wilson is always a risky proposition.
So, the Gators need at least two of McMillon, Mitchell and Collier to earn the coaches’ trust this spring.
The front-line talent at safety seems to be fine, but the depth needs to increase for this to become an upper-echelon unit in the SEC.
3. Who will win the starting job at nickel?
Johnson and Perkins didn’t really put any separation between themselves last season, and Wilcoxson missed all of 2021 with a knee injury, so how this position shakes out is anyone’s guess at this point.
There will probably be several players who rotate into this spot depending on the situation, but this spring should give us an idea of how this all-important position stands heading into the fall.