Sophomore linebacker Shemar James suffered a knee dislocation in week nine that will sideline him for the remainder of the 2023 season, as announced by Head Coach Billy Napier during Florida’s Wednesday press conference.
“He’s done. He had surgery today and he’s out,” Napier said on James’ injury. “He’ll be back for spring practice. This will be about a four-month deal. Ultimately, it’s just, it’s much like a shoulder dislocation. It’s a kneecap dislocation. Happened to him in high school, it was an injury he had before. Much like a shoulder comes out, if it comes out again you’ve got to get it fixed. So, everything went well with the surgery. It won’t be a major factor long-term for him.”
Serving as one of the Gators’ starting linebackers, James totaled a team high 55 tackles while recording one sack across eight games.
“I think Shemar has been outstanding. He’s our leading tackler,” Napier said on James. “More than that, Shemar, he’s a great example. His practice habits, his character. He’s developed a voice. You know, that’s something that I think, in particular as of late, he really was getting comfortable from a leadership standpoint of being vocal. So that’s the unfortunate part.”
Florida listed redshirt junior Mannie Nunnery as James’ replacement on their week ten depth chart. Nunnery has appeared in seven games this season, totaling 12 tackles and one QB hurry across 106 snaps.
“How athletic he is. He’s like a freak of nature,” LB Scooby Williams said on what stands out about Nunnery.
The Gators are comfortable moving Nunnery around the defense as he’s played 41 snaps in the box, 49 snaps outside of the tackle, and 16 snaps in the slot. Florida will also utilize Nunnery as the SAM linebacker, otherwise known as the strongside linebacker.
“Mannie is one of those guys who can cover, drop back rush the passer, just do what the defensive coordinator tells you to do, so I feel like he’s a really valuable piece to the defense,” Williams said on Nunnery’s versatility.
Linebackers Derek Wingo and Teradja Mitchell will also see an increased role following James’ absence.
“I think it presents great opportunity for those other three guys, and they’ve all had good weeks. Certainly we’ll lean on Scooby and Teradja to go along that leadership, communication component. And then those three guys, you know, Wingo has some experience here, and certainly Mannie has played a lot of football for us, and Jaden has shown a lot of promise,” Napier said on who needs to step up at linebacker.
Mitchell and Wingo have exceled in run defense at times this season as Mitchell grades second on the Gators in run defense while Wingo grades 8th. Missed tackles has been an issue for these two as their missed tackle percentages rank inside the bottom three on the Gators’ defense amongst players with 50+ snaps.
The good news is that Shemar James missed time during fall camp, which allowed for these linebackers to gain valuable reps before the season. Nunnery, Wingo, and Mitchell have combined for 305 snaps this season with a fairly even distribution of snaps off the bench.
“That’s a room that has depth. It’s been very competitive in that room to see who we play,” Napier said. “And if you think back, Shemar missed a pretty significant amount of time, so these guys were able to gain a ton of reps.”
I expect the trio of Mannie Nunnery, Derek Wingo, and Teradja Mitchell to see the majority of snaps alongside Scooby Williams.