I was caught unsuspecting a few years back when a battle broke out between Florida and LSU partisans over which school got to have the title of DBU. It’s not that I doubted that either of them was good at producing defensive backs, but rather I didn’t get why Gators were staking the program’s reputation on that position.
To be sure, the Urban Meyer and especially Will Muschamp staffs were good at recruiting and developing corners and safeties. I mean, go look at the 2014 or 2015 rosters and sort by position and it’s an astonishing collection of players. That much is not in doubt.
However, and maybe this is me showing my age, I consider wide receiver to be the defining position for UF. In the grand sweep of the program history it’s probably always going to be quarterback because of which Gators have managed to be Heisman finalists or winners. But in the time I came of age with the program, no position was as consistently good on offense as wideout.
I grew up on the 1990s Spurrier teams and went to UF across the Zook and Meyer eras. Quarterback had some undeniable highs, but it also had some lows and missteps. You never had to worry about receiver. Ever. There was basically always quality and depth there.
Then, around the time the program entered its DBU phase, the position dried up. Receiver lost a lot after 2008, leaving them with Riley Cooper, a big drop off to David Nelson and Deonte Thompson, and not a lot else for 2009.
As good as the Muschamp administration was with DBs, it was almost as bad with wide receivers. It didn’t help that his transitional class lost both of its receivers pretty quickly to transfer, but they didn’t do much at their destinations either. The fact that the wide receivers coach position rotated like — choose your generational metaphor — Spin̈al Tap drummers or Defense Against the Dark Arts instructors was a big impediment.
They had to scramble to sign five wideouts in the 2013 class to make up for bad roster management, but of them only Demarcus Robinson did much in Gainesville. Chris Thompson, who mostly was a special teams player, did manage to make it into the pros somehow and has mostly been on practice squads with a brief detour on Spurrier’s Orlando Apollos AAF team.
Only 2015 really saw a receiver unit that could hold up to any degree with those of the 1990s to late 2000s. It featured Robinson, Antonio Callaway, and Brandon Powell as the top three options, but DRob went pro after that season. The road back on receiver fortunately began around that same time with the 2016 recruiting class.
As in 2013, the ’16 class was a scramble to make up for bad Muschamp roster management that featured five receivers. In an inverse of the ’13 class, only one never amounted to much for the Gators. Dre Massey was a JUCO transfer was expected to make an impact but never did after blowing out his knee on the opening kickoff of his first game. Rick Wells has been a career backup with some early off-field issues but finally began producing on offense late last fall. He’ll have one more go at it this year.
The big three from 2016 were Tyrie Cleveland, Freddie Swain, and Josh Hammond. You could see their potential, none more so early than Cleveland with his 98-yard touchdown against LSU that year. However by the end of their second seasons, they were still almost all potential.
I know some of you get frustrated by the persistence of what I call the Mullen Mafia, the longtime assistants with poor recruiting reputations who will always have a place by Dan’s side. Of them, the one you should complain about the least is Billy Gonzales, and it’s not close.
It took him giving those guys some top-notch coaching to get them to realize their potential. In what would become a familiar move, Mullen hit the transfer market to shore up things until they could get there. Van Jefferson was the immediate impact guy, though Trevon Grimes would grow into it over time.
In just two short years, the concern about receiver went from “will they ever get good there again?” to “will there be enough balls to go around?” The 2019 lineup was perhaps the deepest we’ve ever seen, and that’s not even counting the blossoming star at tight end in Kyle Pitts.
Despite losing four seniors, there was zero concern at receiver with Grimes anchoring a group headlined by him, Kadarius Toney, and Jacob Copeland. Toney turned out to be even better than anyone thought, using the 2020 offseason to transform into the complete receiver everyone hoped he could become from the first time he flashed his unreal elusiveness in the 2017 spring game.
With Grimes and Toney out the door, there was some concern this offseason about receiver finally. At least, there was until spring practice began.
I’ve seen beat writers from multiple outlets use the word “uncoverable” to describe Copeland. Xzavier Henderson is reported to be as good if not better. Trent Whittemore keeps making terrific catches on the Instagram streams. Justin Shorter returns as an experienced, big target. Early enrollee Daejon Reynolds, somewhat overlooked because of him missing his high school senior year to injury, has been turning heads. Jaquavion Fraziars from 2020 and Marcus Burke from 2021 have high ceilings. There is plenty there at the position after all.
If there’s ever a year when UF doesn’t need to have 12 top-shelf receivers, it’s this one. The Gators will be going back to a more run-heavy offense with Emory Jones, and they go five-deep in quality at running back. If they don’t have quite as many good options at receiver as in 2018-20, it’ll be okay. They might have more than enough of them anyway.
With Gonzales coaching up the receivers again, there probably shouldn’t ever be too much concern there. He has proven time and time again to be one of the absolute best in the business at the on-field coaching part of his job. It’s early and spring practice reports are what they are, but signs are point to him proving out again.
At last, Florida is solidly WRU again.