2017 Florida Football Preview

Seth Raborn
Aug 25, 2017 · 6 min read
Photo Courtesy of Icon Sportswire via Getty Images

SEC football is just days away. Before toe meets pigskin on August 31st, The Wheelhouse crew has compiled our preseason SEC power rankings and a preview of each team. As we release our team previews, we’ll release them in the order of which each team is ranked in our preseason rankings to help the days until kickoff go by quicker.

The Florida Gators check in at №. 5 in our preseason SEC power rankings.

Everything started out smoothly for Florida last season, outscoring its opponents 101–14 in the first three weeks. However, a low hit to starting quarterback Luke Del Rio’s knee against North Texas in week three turned the tide for the Gators. Former Purdue quarterback Austin Appleby would assume the starting job going into the infamous week four matchup against Tennessee.

After taking a 21–3 lead into halftime, Florida gave up 38 unanswered points to the Vols in a loss that seemed to be the end of the road for them. The orange-and-blue then bounced back by winning five of their next seven including wins over Georgia, South Carolina and Vanderbilt. Their final thrilling win of the season over LSU landed the Gators right back in first place in the SEC east, earning them a trip to Atlanta.

Jim McElwain has transformed the Florida defense into a dominant force and a top-10 defense in the nation, but the offense has continued to struggle mightily. This was obvious by the 54–16 thumping they took in the SEC Championship game at the hands of Alabama. Florida’s 2016 season ended with a 30–3 win over Iowa in the Outback Bowl.

Offensive Preview:

It is hard to imagine that the Gators’ offense could be much worse than last season. Of course having to start Appleby hurt them a ton, but they were last in the SEC in total offense in 2016. The quarterback battle is alive and well for Florida as redshirt freshman Feleipe Franks is in a head-to-head battle with transfer Malik Zaire from Notre Dame. It is easy to forget that the Gators still have Del Rio who was 5–1 when healthy.

Florida returns running back Jordan Scarlett for his junior season who had nearly 900 rushing yards and six touchdowns last year. They also bring back sophomore Lamical Perine who tallied over 400 yards last season. Having veterans in the backfield will surely play out in the Gators’ favor in 2017. They are surely not short of talent at receiver as proven go-to pass catcher Antonio Callaway is returning along with senior Brandon Powell. Even with Callaway’s suspension for the first game, Florida will still have solid depth at wide receiver. Tyrie Cleveland is also primed for a big 2017 season after tallying nearly 300 yards receiving in his freshman year. DeAndre Goolsby is also returning at tight end after being the third leading player in receiving yards last season.

The Florida offensive line is extremely deep and whoever the starting quarterback is should feel good about his protection. Star Martez Ivey and Jawaan Taylor fill out the tackle positions and TJ McCoy will most likely start at center. Fredrick Johnson, Jordan Tyler and Brett Heggie will all alternate at the guard positions and will make for a solid offensive line unit. This line is quite possibly the deepest core the team has.

Defensive Preview:

Most of the 19 wins that McElwain and the Gators have tallied in the past two years can be attributed to their stout defense. However, a drop-off should be expected with the amount of experience and depth they lost following last season. Florida is only returning three-of-eleven starters from the 2016 season: defensive end Jordan Sherit, safety Nick Washington and cornerback Duke Dawson.

Junior CeCe Jefferson leads the Gators’ defensive line unit along with Sherit and Jabari Zuniga who has just begun to scratch the surface of his talent. Taven Bryan and Khairi Clark both return as redshirt juniors and will have their first shot at getting any decent playing time after just tallying a combined 12 tackles last season.

Florida returns no starters from last season at the linebacker position. However, redshirt sophomore Kylan Johnson has set himself aside as a clear starter for the 2017 season. Vosean Joseph and David Reese should fill out the other two linebacker spots. Johnson finished in the top 10 in tackles (33) on the team last season and has proven to have fantastic lateral quickness. Davis has true talent and has a chance to be a solid replacement for Jarrad Davis (60 tackles) from last year.

The secondary took the biggest hit for the Gators after Teez Tabor and Quincy Wilson both got drafted. Dawson returns as the only starter in the secondary and Chauncey Gardner has proven to be a decent player, but will that be good enough to fill in for Wilson and Tabor? Nick Washington fills out the safety position and Jaewon Taylor will likely see some action. Although they lost a ton of players, the Florida secondary will likely be one of the best in the SEC.

Special Teams Preview:

Florida has one of the strongest special teams squads in the entire nation. Senior punter Johnny Townsend earned All-SEC honors after opting not to declare for the NFL Draft. Kicker Eddy Piniero was 21-for-25 in 2016 and remained one of the most consistent kickers in the SEC. Dangerous redshirt junior Dre Massey will likely return kicks-and-punts after losing his 2016 season to injury.

Newcomers to watch:

Either of the quarterbacks will make the biggest difference on the field for the Gators. Zaire brings a more dynamic dual-threat set to the table and Franks has the better throwing intangibles of the two. Both of the quarterbacks have a chance to jumpstart the Florida offense, especially with the depth they have at offensive line.

Schedule breakdown:

The Gators get right into the thick of things with a neutral site game against Jim Harbaugh and Michigan in week one. Then they get just one cupcake against Northern Colorado before diving right into one of the most important games of the season against Tennessee. Vanderbilt is another game that could be challenging for Florida considering they won just 13–6 last season. The Georgia game will be extremely interesting with Jacob Eason going up against the tough secondary of the Gators. Not to mention that this will likely decide who will be making a trip to Atlanta in December.

Keys to a successful season:

The most important thing that will need to happen for Florida to be successful in 2017 is to have solid play from its new starters. The majority of the defense is being replaced as well as some of the offense. If they manage not to get contributions from the new players they could easily see a steep drop-off from last season. The offensive line is also essential to their success. Especially if they have a new starting quarterback. With a solid offensive line, the Gators could be a legitimate threat offensively.

Final Say:

You cannot ignore the fact that Florida has lost a ton of depth and leadership from last year, but they still have a very real chance to win the East. The offense has to be completely different from last year because the defense will certainly see a drop-off considering who they lost in the offseason. The Gators will likely find their niche on offense with their veteran offensive line, solid running backs and deep receiving core. However, the defense will need to play up to last year’s stature if they want to be great.

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