GAINESVILLE, Fla. – For the third time in three years, the quarterback competition headlines the Orange and Blue Debut, Florida’s annual spring game. Coach Jim McElwain has hinted that he sees separation between redshirt freshmen Feleipe Franks and Kyle Trask, with the portion of practice open to the media suggesting it’s Franks out in front.

Fans will be excited to see both quarterbacks, as neither played in a regular-season game in 2016. The Gators may not quite have two full teams of scholarship players due to injuries and lack of depth at wide receiver, safety and linebacker, but the scrimmage in The Swamp should still show how much Franks and Trask have progressed in a year with the team.

All eyes are on the quarterbacks, but that’s not all I’ll be looking for on Friday night:

1. Strength vs. strength

A year ago, it looked like the Florida offense was back. Luke Del Rio marched the team up and down the field, completed nearly all of his passes (11-of-12) and threw two touchdowns – against the second-team defense. After a devastating post-Will Grier finish to the 2015 season, McElwain likely felt it was necessary to remind everyone that his offense can actually score points. By purposely mismatching the first and second strings, the coach gave the fans some fireworks.

This time around, it should be first-team against first-team. Fans remember Del Rio’s impressive spring game and shaky regular season. If Friday night has Franks lighting up the second-team defense, it tells us nothing about Florida heading into the 2017 season.

2. Stretch the field

Florida is thin at receiver right now with only four scholarship wideouts taking part in the spring game, but what the group lacks in depth, it makes up for in star-power. Last year, neither Antonio Callaway (suspended) nor Tyrie Cleveland (summer enrollee) were with the team during spring. With Callaway and Cleveland both suiting up Friday, we should be in store for some long passing plays that challenge the defensive backs. Brandon Powell and Josh Hammond, the other two scholarship wideouts who are good to go, also have the speed to get open behind the defense.

From the other perspective, it will also be a test for Florida’s corners. With Teez Tabor and Quincy Wilson departed for the NFL, Chauncey Gardner Jr. and Duke Dawson have taken over the starting corner spots. Both Gardner, a sophomore, and Gardner, a senior, have experience playing in the secondary, but both are more familiar with nickel than lining up on the outside. They have their work cut out for them if they match up against Callaway and Cleveland.

3. Explosive plays out of the backfield

The past two seasons, Florida has lacked in creating explosive plays on offense, particularly involving the running backs. The ground game should have the upper hand on Friday, as the Gators return their top three running backs and all but one starter on the offensive line. The defense, meanwhile, is replacing eight starters.

New running backs coach Ja’Juan Seider and offensive line coach Brad Davis have stressed that the running backs need to be in sync with the linemen, such as paying attention to the footwork of the linemen. Jordan Scarlett, Lamical Perine and Mark Thompson should be able to break off some long runs. Facing a rebuilding UF defense should be a confidence booster for the Florida ball-carriers.

4. Changes to the defense under Shannon

The defense has been led by Randy Shannon since December, when Geoff Collins accepted the Temple head coaching job. While Shannon was the interim defensive coordinator for the Outback Bowl, the spring sessions have been his first practices in the full-time role. As has been mentioned, he’s also reshaping a unit which has lost eight starters from a year ago.

If the Outback Bowl was Shannon calling a Collins’ defense, the Orange and Blue game will finally be Shannon calling his own game. One thing to look for is fewer blitzes, as Shannon wants to see Florida’s defensive line handle more of the pass rush. While Collins frequently put five defensive backs on the field for nickel coverage, Shannon is giving that fifth defensive back spot to the linebackers, asking them to play a hybrid nickel position.

5. Who has made the most of spring?

Spring practice is important to every player, but it’s more important for some players than others. On offense, there are four players who stand to benefit the most from the spring game.

At receiver, Hammond and Powell were mentioned earlier as half of the scholarship wideouts able to go full contact this spring. They have an advantage in reps and chemistry with the quarterbacks over what should be a much deeper receiver corps this fall.

Dre Massey took part in drills, but was non-contact while coming off an ACL injury. Freddie Swain was out for spring, and Rick Wells was injured in the early practices. Those three should all be back in the fall, when freshmen James Robinson and Daquon Green will also be joining the team. For Hammond and Powell, this spring is the time to show the coaches what they can do and establish themselves on the depth chart.

Spring is also an opportunity for early enrollees to get a jump on other freshmen. Two of the more noteworthy early enrollees this spring have been QB Kadarius Toney and TE Kemore Gamble. Toney won’t figure into the starting quarterback competition, but the Florida coaches have liked what they see from him as a wildcat quarterback, something we should get to see Friday. The Gators return their top two tight ends from last season, DeAndre Goolsby and C’yontai Lewis, but that hasn’t stopped Gamble from generating a buzz. A good spring game could boost his chances of seeing the field in the fall.