Florida’s quarterback race will grab the headlines when fall camp opens Wednesday, but Jon Sumrall’s first Gators team has several other spots that could shape the season just as much.
The biggest one sits along the offensive line, where Sumrall said during SEC Media Day that the job is still open across the board as he and Phil Trautwein sort out the best five. There are already some clear leanings.
Penn State transfer Eagan Boyer looks lined up to handle left tackle, Knijeah Harris returns as a multi-year starter at left guard, and Harrison Moore and TJ Shanahan Jr. drew praise for setting the tone at center and right guard. That leaves right tackle as the spot most worth tracking.
Two names stand out there: Emeka Ugorji and Caden Jones. Ugorji started at right tackle as a true freshman at Stanford, though his time with the Cardinal was rough before he arrived in Gainesville. Trautwein made it clear in spring that Ugorji has been trending the right way.
"I'm excited to have him. He's gonna play for us.
You'll see him on the field," Trautwein said during spring camp. "Don't know when, don't know where, but I know that he will because of his mentality and his mindset.
And he's helping me build the culture. He's every day attacking and doing everything we do to get on the field.”
Jones took over as a starter midway through last season after replacing a struggling Bryce Lovett, and he has been cross-training at both tackle spots. That flexibility could keep him in the mix on either side.
"He's competing. He's getting better.
He's working on it," Trautwein said during spring camp. "The great thing is he's willing.
Some guys and some people in the world don't want to do something they're not good at. So it's kind of cool to see."
Florida also has a handful of names lurking as tackle wildcards, including redshirt freshman TJ Dice Jr. and redshirt sophomore Fletcher Westphal.
Tight end is another room where the picture is still forming. The Gators return only two tight ends from last season in redshirt sophomore Amir Jackson and redshirt freshman Micah Jones. Transfers Luke Harpring, Lacota Dippre and Evan Chieca join the mix, while freshmen Heze Kent and Tripp Brown Jr. and former Jacksonville University basketball player Jaylen Jordon are expected to add depth.
Jackson, Harpring and Dippre look like the top three, with Jackson and Harpring holding the edge after spring camp, according to offensive coordinator Buster Faulkner.
"We got a lot of moving parts really in that room. All different skill sets," he said after the spring game.
"You'll see all those guys on the field. But the two that really stuck out this spring were Amir and Luke as far as what they can do in the passing game."
Jackson didn’t pile up huge numbers last season - three catches for 29 yards and one touchdown - but he played in 11 games and has long been praised for his athletic tools. Position coach Evan McKissack said Jackson made major strides mentally this spring.
"I think Amir's done a great job," he said. "...
I mean that joker’s in here practicing formations, aligning, assignment, execution, and I think that's been a really big focal point for his growth. That way he can play fast, because he is fast.
I mean, heck, he clocked about 20 miles an hour a couple of weeks ago, and everybody's like, ‘Golly this Joker's got it’. And so it's in there.
I'm excited, we got some other pieces around him that's also going to make him compete to be his best.”
Harpring brings a built-in edge because of his time at Georgia Tech, where he played under Faulkner. He caught 13 passes for 158 yards last season, and McKissack said his willingness to be coached has helped him stand out.
"He has some well-roundedness in knowing the offense, but I think its made him stand out a little bit is that he’s coachable. That’s what I told him," he said.
"I made a big ole sheet of paper after our first scrimmage. At the very bottom it was like if you are coachable, guess what, you will play.
That’s what we’re after right now. It’s a race."
Dippre may have the strongest case of the group on production. He started 13 games at James Madison last season and posted 17 catches for 192 yards and three scores. Florida has praised his physicality and how quickly he picked up the offense, which gives him a real shot to push for a bigger role.
Cornerback is the final battle worth watching. Florida left spring with four main contenders in Cormani McClain, Dijon Johnson, Ben Hanks III and J'Vari Flowers, but Johnson could be limited early in fall camp after an offseason knee procedure. That opens the door for the others to separate.
Hanks III looks like the spring winner in that group despite appearing in only three games last season. He had one of the better spring camps on the roster and picked off a pass in one of the scrimmages. At one point, Sumrall said Hanks III was the most consistent corner in pass defense.
"He’s been real good, especially as a young guy," veteran safety DJ Coleman said last spring. "He shows a lot of traits that more veteran guys have.
He knows how to read. He knows how to read the routes.
His play recognition is very good and he doesn’t shrink to the moment. He always rises when the play comes to him.”
McClain started six games in 10 appearances last season, while Flowers played in all 12 games. Both had quieter springs, though Sumrall said they still did some good things. With Hanks III emerging and Johnson limited, the real fight for the other corner spot appears to be between McClain and Flowers.
Florida’s corner depth also includes redshirt freshman Onis Konanbanny, transfer Jordy Lowery and freshmen CJ Hester and CJ Bronaugh.
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