“Things just got very real, folks.”

That was how I ended my article when Florida defied conventional thinking and hired one of my all-time favorite coaches in former Colorado State University headman Jim McElwain. In the piece titled Florida’s hiring of McElwain spells trouble for the rest of the SEC, I fawned over the former Alabama offensive coordinator’s ability to scheme it up and develop players to their utmost ability. (Click here to read that article.)

I even compared him to FSU’s Jimbo Fisher, another former Nick Saban (Alabama HC) offensive orchastrator, who combined those coaching traits with a personality a program could rally behind. It was simply a slam-dunk hire in my not-so-humble opinion.

With the Gators (5-0) surging up the charts behind a thorough posterior caning of Mississippi (38-10), and quarterback Will Grier looking like the unearthed star I proclaimed him to be in the spring (don’t you just love my humility?), I wanted to give props to a position I predicted would play an integral part in the Gators’ success: the tight ends.

The first thing I did when McElwain was hired, besides check every source I could to see if another former Saban OC, Doug Nussmeier, would be a candidate for a position on his staff, was hit up the depth chart and see who would be occupying the “Y” and “U” slots for Coach Mac’s Ace-based offensive scheme.

I thought the severely underrated Clay Burton had some eligibility left but was saddened when I realized he didn’t, as he would’ve been a star in Mac’s scheme. But former Virginia TE Jake McGee was granted a sixth-year of eligibility after being injured early as a graduate transfer for last season’s squad.

I immediately became intrigued.

The 6-foot-6, 250-pound McGee was the truth for a Cavaliers team lacking options. He was a traditional, in-line “Y” who could be physical at the point of attack and also be moved around the formation if necessary. The Gators also added a super-athletic “U” prospect from my area in Gwinnett County, Ga., Daniel Imatorbhebhe. Curiously, he transferred in the spring.

Another young player already on the roster, DeAndre Goolsby (6-foot-4, 243 pounds), intrigued me with a similar skill set to Imatorbhebhe. Goolsby and McGee have been everything I thought the would behind two coaches, Mac and Nuss, who like to formation teams to death.

McGee is the perfect chain-mover for a young QB who needs a steady, reliable target to shrink the field on money downs. His ability to block and catch makes him a scheme-specific fit.

GatorTEBlock

Here we see them both doing work in the run game: McGee showed his physicality while Goolsby displayed his stick-to-itiveness. When you can block, it adds that much more value in the passing game.

McGeeTD

Case in point. While the play-action fake certainly created this touchdown for McGee, if he wasn’t a ready, willing and able blocker, the defense would’ve more than likely keyed in on him.

GoolsbyWheel

And Goolsby is just a freak (as seen in the above sequence).

The duo has combined for 25 catches, 281 yards and two touchdowns, which is undoubtedly more than they would have under the previous regime.

This conference just feels right when the Gators are balling out.