GAINESVILLE, Fla. – As far as the academic calendar is concerned, it’s fall in Gainesville.

As classes startup at UF, that means Jim McElwain’s squad is done with two-a-days, something WR Brandon Powell expressed excitement about on his Twitter account.

It’s been an interesting fall camp for the Gators. Despite losing multiple starters on both sides of the ball, there weren’t many big questions to be answered from a personnel standpoint except for one: Who would win the starting quarterback job?

When it came to figuring out the new running backs, defensive linemen or defensive backs, it wasn’t too difficult to identify the players who would fill those spots. The real question is how good they will be in their new roles, something that can really only be answered once they start playing against actual opponents.

Here’s what the Gators have figured out and what they can work on heading into the Sept. 3 opener against UMass.

What’s been solved

1. Luke Del Rio is the starting quarterback: This one was more confirmed than solved. Having been on campus longer than any of the other three quarterbacks, Del Rio was always the clubhouse leader to land the starting job for Week 1.

Considering that McElwain let the Will Grier-Treon Harris quarterback battle of last year carry on into the regular season, it might surprise some people that he made the call before the second scrimmage of camp. One benefit of the early decision is to rally the team, something Del Rio talked about Friday.

“I think it’s helpful,” he said of being named the starter. “They can kind of rally around somebody and I know they were probably getting sick of being asked ‘how’s the quarterback competition going? You guys had a scrimmage, how did it go?’ But it definitely helps the team kind of unify and settle around one guy.

“It’s not just because I got named the starting quarterback that doesn’t mean I’m the guy of the team. I’m the quarterback. There’s still 10 other guys on offense, and there’s a lot of guys on defense. But to be able to have it sorted out I think does help.”

2. Cece Jefferson will play two positions: The five-star 2015 signee was a force off the bench as a pass-rusher in his freshman season, notching 3.5 sacks. With the departure of Jonathan Bullard, however, the Gators’ biggest need on the defensive line became defensive tackle.

The Gators first experimented with moving Jefferson inside during the spring, but that move brought on questions about losing his value as an edge rusher. Some wondered how Jefferson might handle playing the less glamorous tackle position, which often results in fewer highlights (i.e., fewer sacks). When he spoke with reporters Friday, Jefferson said he’ll play both end and tackle this fall to help the team.

“I actually play end and defensive tackle depending on what personnel we are in,” Jefferson said. “But it’s something the team needed and something I didn’t mind doing. You know sometimes you have to make sacrifices and I love these guys enough make that sacrifice.”

3. Freshmen have gotten plenty of reps: If there’s one positive to come from the Gators’ notable departures, suspension and injuries, it’s reps for freshmen.

Between Teez Tabor’s suspension and injuries to Quincy Wilson and Duke Dawson, Florida’s secondary has been hit hard this camp. While Tabor is expected back this week and the injuries to Wilson and Dawson don’t appear to be serious, it has led to better preparation for freshmen Chauncey Gardner, Jeawon Taylor, Joseph Putu and McArthur Burnett.

Matt Rolin’s departure was a blow to an already thin linebacker depth chart. But McElwain has been impressed by freshman linebackers Vosean Joseph, Jeremiah Moon and David Reese in camp.

What are the lingering issues?

1. Replacing Demarcus Robinson: The Gators are certainly happy to have Antonio Callaway back this fall, but there’s still big shoes to fill in the passing game. Despite his off-the-field issues and unceremonious exit, Demarcus Robinson played a valuable part in Florida’s passing attack last season as the reliable wideout who could make a catch in traffic.

While Callaway is the obvious playmaker, it’s unclear who will step into the complementary possession receiver role vacated by Robinson. Various qualities can be found throughout the receiving corps – Ahmad Fulwood has size (6-foot-4, 208 pounds) and slot wideouts Brandon Powell and Dre Massey are noted speedsters – but it’s hard to identify any one pass-catcher who has displayed the total package like Robinson did.

2. Prepping Pineiro: After going 7-of-17 on field goals in 2015, the Gators are excited to have new kicker Eddy Pineiro, who showed off his big leg in the spring game. The one issue with Pineiro, however is that he hasn’t kicked in any football games besides Florida’s spring game. McElwain recognizes the coaches need to address that best they can in camp.

“I’ve been really happy with kind of where Eddy is and what he’s done,” McElwain said. “We still need to put him in as many game-type situations (as possible). I bring all the guys up and harass him as he’s kicking. We’re trying to create as many as we can from that. He’s got a powerful leg, and it’s great to have Jorge (Powell) back, too, at the kicking piece. That’s a good thing.”

3. Keeping the running backs happy: McElwain has frequently stated that he feels the Gators have five capable ball-carriers. While true freshman Lamical Perine could possibly redshirt, it certainly seems that at least four Florida running backs will get carries this season, most notably Mark Thompson, Jordan Cronkrite and Jordan Scarlett.

With only so many touches to go around, how can the coach possibly keep everyone happy? McElwain said he has experience dealing with this type of situation from his days as offensive coordinator at Alabama.

“I think we had one backfield at one of the places I was at where Eddie Lacy was our fourth-teamer and this guy was a pretty good player and we found carries for him,” he recalled. “Here’s the one thing at running back that these guys have got to realize, too: Sometimes they get all these people in their ear, ‘You should be toting it 35 times,’ and we all know the position’s about staying fresh and you only have so many hits in you.

“So your ability to spread it around is something that’s only going to help you in the long run.

“Now it’s hard sometimes for guys to see that and yet the great ones do. When we had a Heisman Trophy winner with a runner-up in behind him and actually another guy there and then Eddie. All of them are playing in the league at some point and yet there was enough to go around. That’s going to be the hard thing there. You’re going to find out about their makeup a little bit too when it comes to that.”

While nobody is calling them Heisman candidates, the Gators do have a pair of former four-star signees in Cronkrite and Scarlett. If one is missing out on carries, he might hear those voices about “toting it 35 times” McElwain references above.