4 things to watch in Florida Gators season opener vs. Florida Atlantic Owls from Jon Sumrall’s debut to unleashing a brand new offense
The Florida Gators kick off the Jon Sumrall era Saturday afternoon when they host the Florida Atlantic Owls at the Swamp. Gainesville will be rocking for the 19th consecutive sellout, and anticipation surrounding Sumrall’s debut is sky-high after a fantastic offseason of recruiting and culture-building for a program that desperately needed upheaval. When the Gators […]
The Florida Gators kick off the Jon Sumrall era Saturday afternoon when they host the Florida Atlantic Owls at the Swamp. Gainesville will be rocking for the 19th consecutive sellout, and anticipation surrounding Sumrall’s debut is sky-high after a fantastic offseason of recruiting and culture-building for a program that desperately needed upheaval.
When the Gators finally take the field, there will be plenty of new faces mixed with familiar ones at key spots. Here are the biggest things to watch.
Quarterback Aaron Philo gets the nod
The highly publicized quarterback battle between Aaron Philo and Tramell Jones Jr. ended with Philo getting the Week 1 start. Sumrall was honest about the fact that Philo is the starter for now and that things could change. That’s the right approach, because Philo has multiple years of experience with new offensive coordinator Buster Faulkner at Georgia Tech.
That familiarity is likely the reason he earned the starting job. Faulkner’s offense is a little complicated, and having a quarterback who already understands the system can help elevate the Gators to a different level. Faulkner does a fantastic job of building an offense around the strengths of his players, and Philo is a great point-guard distributor of the football.
He’s not going to have plus arm talent, but he can attack vertically and find ways to hit all areas of the field. There will be some limitations when it comes to arm strength and zip that Jones does not have. How Philo looks in this offense will be fascinating to watch, especially with the weapons on the outside.
Wide receiver splits will tell us a lot
This is a talented wide receiver room with a multitude of options. Dallas Wilson and Vernell Brown III are the biggest returning contributors, and Eric Singleton is likely to be the Z receiver as a transfer from Auburn who also has prior experience with Faulkner.
After that, the rotations get interesting. Micah Mays Jr. has done a fantastic job building hype within Gainesville during camp. T.J. Abrams and Kahleil Jackson are returning players, while Bailey Stockton is another Georgia Tech transfer. All of them should see playing time with the Gators expected to win comfortably as 25-plus-point favorites. How they get split early on will reveal how confident the coaching staff truly is in each of these players.
Defensive line intrigue
There’s been plenty of buzz surrounding this defensive line, and there are intriguing players throughout all four positions. Brendan Bett and Joseph Mbatchou have generated significant hype, and former five-star L.J. McCray is still looking to break out heading into his third season.
A lot of the focus, though, falls on Jayden Woods at the Jack position. He was one of the top priorities to retain going into the offseason, and the Gators managed to keep him even after he entered the transfer portal. The true freshman to monitor is K.J. Ford out of Duncanville, Texas. He has wowed over the course of camp and already has a college-football-ready body. Don’t be surprised if Ford ends up being a rotational Jack throughout the season and finishes his freshman year with around six sacks.
Secondary depth
The secondary looks like a solid group on paper. Ben Hanks III won the starting cornerback job as a redshirt freshman, and former five-star Cormani McClain is likely the starter on the other side. Even so, there are layers to watch. Javari Flowers was listed as an “or” with McClain on the depth chart, and Dijon Johnson is returning from injury but lost out in that battle.
The real intrigue is how strong the starters look and then what happens behind them. Do the Gators have the necessary depth to compete in the SEC this year? These first couple of games against Florida Atlantic and Campbell will provide a lot of that information before Florida heads to Auburn for a road test against the Tigers.
There are real questions about the strength of this unit. If the secondary can prove it is deep and capable Saturday, it could change a lot for the Gators’ future under Sumrall.
