GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Last week, the Gators finally put the pads on. It was an up and down week, though, as coach Jim McElwain was particularly disappointed with one day’s practice and injuries have already ended a couple of players’ seasons.
Here are five takeaways thus far in fall camp:
Walking wounded
Week 2 was particularly rough on the injury front for the Gators. Two players, OG Antonio Riles and CB C.J. McWilliams, were lost for the year and S Quincy Lenton will miss 5-to-8 weeks after having surgery on his foot.
Friday, McElwain said he doesn’t know which area of the team will be impacted most by injuries.
“Here’s what I think, through these two scrimmages we got to see who’s going to fill the voids,” he said. “So I’m not sure I’m prepared to say where we’re going to be hurt the worst, but as much as we need those guys it also opens the door for someone else to have an opportunity to fill in those reps, and then we’ll see how they take it.”
A quarterback battle of brains and brawn
McElwain has yet to name a starting quarterback, though he hopes to see separation between Luke Del Rio and Austin Appleby by Friday (Aug. 19) following the team’s second scrimmage.
One thing that stood out to me in this week’s player interview sessions was that RB Mark Thompson and CB Jalen “Teez” Tabor had the exact same analysis of the quarterbacks, almost word for word. Del Rio’s biggest plus is his knowledge of the offense while Appleby is impressing with his arm strength.
It should come as no surprise that Del Rio, who was on campus – but ineligible – last season has a better grasp of the playbook. Appleby might have the stronger arm, but with 19 interceptions last season, one has to question what kind of accuracy and decision-making accompanies that arm strength.
Tabor speculated that some of Appleby’s interceptions were due to the quarterback trying to make things happen by forcing his throws, as the Boilermakers were frequently trailing opponents.
No coasting through camp
McElwain opened his Friday press conference by recapping what had gone on since he met with the media Monday. He was pleased with Tuesday’s practice and Wednesday’s meetings. Thursday, however, was a different story.
“Then we came back Thursday and I’ll be honest, Thursday morning’s practice was unacceptable,” McElwain said. “We were not firing on all cylinders. It was the first real day that we had sunshine, heat, humidity, all that kind of stuff, which, simply put, you can’t use that as an excuse.”
The coach was later asked if the young players were to blame for the lack of effort.
“No, and that’s what’s disappointing,” McElwain said. “I’m going to be straight up with you. We’ve got some guys, and they know who they are, and we’ll see.”
It’s clear that if the “some guys” don’t get their act together soon, there could be shake-ups on the depth chart.
“I think for the most part, (Thursday) was by far the worst,” McElwain said. “That’s the one that really I saw maybe some guys not coming with the right mind-set to go be successful in that given period of time. It’s something that’s been addressed. We’ve got to see if it’s going to be an issue. If it is, then we’ve got to find the guys that it’s not an issue for.”
Ahmad Fulwood can use his size in practice, will he do so on Saturdays?
When I took videos of Thursday passing drills, I didn’t have many highlights to share. The Gators were sloppy that day, in what McElwain called their worst practice of camp. One catch by Ahmad Fulwood, however, seemed worth sharing.
#Gators WR Ahmad Fulwood hauls one in vs. Teez Tabor pic.twitter.com/cbrqGwZSpb
— Andy Olson (@ByAndrewOlson) August 11, 2016
I was surprised to find how many Gators fans were excited by the video, praising Fulwood for using his size to bring in a pass against a diving Teez Tabor. If Fulwood can be more aggressive and physical this season, his 6-foot-4, 208-pound frame could be a real weapon in the passing game.
The coaches have repeatedly asked for this. Will the senior wideout finally play like he does in the above video against opposing cornerbacks?
Antonio Callaway will have to work his way back to first-team status
In his media opportunities last week, McElwain deflected any questions about discipline for wide receiver Antonio Callaway. He pointed to the case not being resolved by the school, and out of his hands until it was done. Coincidentally, the news of Callaway being found not responsible broke less than two hours after McElwain held an already scheduled press conference.
It is worth noting that in the portion of Thursday’s practice open to the media, Callaway was running with the second team in a passing drill. Even though Callaway is undoubtedly the top wide receiver on the team, the coaches are making him earn his starting spot.
Andrew writes about sports to fund his love of live music and collection of concert posters. He strongly endorses the Hall of Fame campaigns of Fred Taylor and Andruw Jones.
