McElwain and Nussmeier have unearthed a star in Gator QB Will Grier

The University of Florida had itself one heck of an offseason with the hiring of head coach Jim McElwain, and the subsequent procurement of offensive coordinator Doug Nussmeier.

From a continuity standpoint, it’s a match made in offensive heaven as both are very similar within their core concepts: set up the vertical game by dictating to the defense out of “12 personnel,” by way of a power-run game, and attack the short-to-intermediate levels with a seemingly endless supply of horizontal approaches.

Wash. Rinse. Repeat.

For the Gator faithful longing for the Fun-and-Gun style of days past, when former head coach Steve Spurrier would make mincemeat out of secondaries with spread-and-fire concepts, you may have to settle for a rapid turnaround by way of balance as both coaches are very even in all facets of their approach.

Whether it’s positioning the quarterback from the Shotgun, Pistol or under center, having receivers line up in spread or reduced splits or having running backs run downhill or laterally from various alignments, we know that offensive weaponry has to be versed in all aspects.

And that’s not accounting for all the things offensive linemen have to know.

Florida players will not only have to be complete players, the scheme, which is balanced to the core, will also force the coaches to be versed in all aspects of technical football.

Both McElwain and Nussmeier are coaches who like to threaten defenses by way of tendency breakers. In doing so, they require a versatile QB who is able to both be a playmaker and a manager of the game.

Requirements also include the ability to navigate the pocket to allow for extended route development and the ability to throw on the run. And since play-action fakes are heavily sprinkled throughout the playbook, many of the back-to-the-defense variety, a signal-caller has to be able to reset and assimilate information at a rapid pace.

The Mac-and-Nuss era may have unearthed its first scheme-specific fit for what they like to do in redshirt freshman Will Grier, and we saw a representation of that in Florida’s annual spring game.

While former Alabama star QB A.J. McCarron is the most known signal-caller the pair has coached, Garrett Grayson, the former Colorado State QB who was coached up by McElwain, may be the best example of what it takes to run the scheme.

The 6’2″, 213-pound Grayson isn’t built like your traditional pocket-passer, unlike the 6’4″, 220-pound McCarron, but his ability to navigate a pocket and throw on the move made him a scheme-specific fit for McElwain’s philosophy.

Coach Mac loves to attack the middle of the field with various route combinations. There’s a great vertical element to his scheme, as well, but threatening the middle of a defense — and the edges via play-action fakes — is his primary forte’.

Here we see what makes McElwain great: his ability to have players implement his detailed teachings of the nuances of quarterbacking.

Grayson displayed excellent technique is his gather phase while looking off a third-level defender and then hitting his primary read in his progression in stride for some good ‘ol yards after the catch.

Too many times QBs are allowed to stare down their primary read as long as a pass is completed, but both Florida offensive coaches are stickler for detail.

It’s no wonder that Grayson is shooting up draft boards behind his polished skill set, and we can already see the fruits of the coaching staff’s labor in the redshirt freshman Grier.

The Gator faithful have been waiting with collective baited breath for the moment the highly-touted QB would make his debut in Orange and Blue. (See what I did there?) It’s been well-documented how Grier threw for an astounding 77 touchdowns in his senior season as a prep in Davidson, NC., while falling just 11 yards short of 5,000 yards, to boot.

The 6’2″, 200-pound Grier came close to breaking records held by former Gator great, and fellow NC native, Chris Leak, who was an intrical part of helping Florida get back on the national scene after a few down seasons in the early part of last decade.

With the offensive coaching combination piloting the skill set of the 20-year old Grier, we will undoubtedly see an offensive resurgence — which will be a departure from the anemic production of the last coaching era.

Here we see the quick game in action with McElwain’s beloved position: the tight end.  On a one-read, schemed-up play, Grier shows off some handy footwork in the spacing of his gather phase, and he transferred his weight in the point-and-shoot portion of his drop back.

From there, his over-the-top, compact delivery allowed for a quick, accurate throw for some serious yards after the catch for the “Y” target, DeAndre Goolsby — which is a combo we may should get used to watching out for.

Here’s another example of the nuances Mac and Nuss drill home. On this simple receiver screen, the duo gets split-flow-like action going with Grier looking toward the back-side flat initially.

In doing so, he got the added advantage of less attention and formed blocking; there’s no substitute for mastering the little things.

The aspect of Grier’s game I know the duo has to be excited about the most is his ability to navigate the pocket while throwing on the run.

A few times we saw true mobility in action with Grier sliding up and out of the pocket while still looking downfield to throw (as seen in the above sequence). Incumbent starter Treon Harris is an excellent athlete, but most of the time his mobility has to do with him bolting the pocket to manufacture first downs.

Grier can do both.

He has really good arm strength to go along with the polish he’s acquiring through his top-notch coaching staff.

But it’s his ability to make quick decisions that will help improve an offensive line that has struggled in pass protection. And when you factor in the frequent use of multi-tight end sets, “12” and “13 personnel,” we may see an immediate return on the Gators’ investment on the offensive side of the ball.

We know the rushing attack should be solid, and receiver DeMarcus Robinson is as talented as it gets, so there’s no telling the strides the Gators make may when the fall hits.

I do know that the Mac-and-Nuss era is going to eventually be something to behold.

Is it game day, yet?

Can’t wait!