Florida DL Jabari Zuniga teases new looks from Gators defense
By Andrew Olson
Published:
When Dan Mullen filled out his Florida coaching staff, he looked to his trusted Mississippi State assistants to fill many positions, including defensive coordinator. Todd Grantham’s famously aggressive scheme (arguably infamously aggressive on third down) meshed well with the Gators roster, carrying UF to a 10-3 season capped off by a dominant Peach Bowl win over Michigan. One of the key returning defenders for Grantham’s second season in Gainesville told reporters at SEC Media Days that there are going to be some new looks.
“Definitely [going to be] aggressive. Coach Grantham emphasizes pressure on the quarterback,” DL Jabari Zuniga said. “Y’all are going to see, there were a lot of play calls that coach Grantham didn’t call [last year] that he’s going to call this year.”
Not to put words in Zuniga’s mouth, but Grantham’s ability to open up the playbook is presumably because core contributors like Zuniga are more familiar with the Xs and Os in Year 2. Gators fans will certainly be excited to see some new looks from the defense, starting with the Aug. 24 showdown against Miami in Orlando.
#Gators DE Jabari Zuniga on defense’s mentality: “Definitely [going to be] aggressive. Coach Grantham emphasizes pressure on the quarterback. Y’all are going to see, there were a lot of play calls that coach Grantham didn’t call [last year] that he’s going to call this year.”
— Zach Goodall (@zach_goodall) July 15, 2019
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.
