On Tuesday, after the 13th practice of the spring, Florida Gators head coach Jon Sumrall and linebackers coach Greg Gasparato met with the media.
JON SUMRALL
Because of the weather, practice was held in the IPF. Sumrall said that it isn’t like they couldn’t have gone outside, but with just 15 practices in the spring, he didn’t want them wasting a lot of reps slipping and sliding. They worked on situational stuff at the end of practice, such as red zone and two-minute drills.
As for Saturday’s scrimmage, he said he thought it was good. It was back and forth. Some offensive skill position players made some big plays. The defensive line depth showed at times. They are figuring out the depth on the offensive line. Who is in the right seat, who needs to be where, and what is the right mixture of players? He wasn’t happy with some of the offensive procedure coming out of the huddle. Both quarterbacks did okay running. No one is going to confuse them with Michael Vick, but they were able to extend plays with their legs on Saturday. The cornerbacks made some plays on Saturday. He said the secondary made more competitive, contested plays.
He, of course, pointed out that he doesn’t like penalties. Sumrall said that procedural ones drive him nuts. Not enough guys on the line of scrimmage makes him lose his mind. Pass interference can be bang-bang and if it’s a close play, he doesn’t really get really frustrated. Some personal fouls drive him crazy because they’re stupid, but if a player is playing through the echo of the whistle, it’s a little different. You can’t beat anyone until you don’t beat yourself.
He wants the team to be fast and physical. Mistakes will be made, he said; he might make one. He wants the fans to feel like the players enjoy playing the game and are playing with an edge. The quarterbacks won’t be live. They will receive some contact, but not a lot of physicality. There has to be a different vibe when they are in the Swamp.
He said that he is looking for consistency from the cornerbacks. Sumrall said that the corner room has enough talent, but he doesn’t know if they are mature enough or if the competitiveness isn’t consistent enough for his liking. He said Ben Hanks III and Cormani McClain have done some nice things. Dijon Johnson did some nice things during Saturday’s scrimmage. He has seen a lot of guys flash, but you can’t be a one-hit wonder. Flash doesn’t win long-term. You might make a flash play, and then turn around and make a play for the other team.
Sumrall said that they are going to celebrate playing tackle American football in the Orange & Blue Game. It will be offense vs defense. Offense will wear blue, defense will be in white. The quarterbacks will be in non-contact orange. The defense will score points.
He said that he believes there should be binding contracts between programs and players with real buyouts. He said that as a first-year coach, he would love for there to be a second portal window this year. There are still ways to add a player or two, and UF has room for nine walk-ons, but he said that he wouldn’t count on six or seven new signees. He said there might be one.
Sumrall said that he is unhappy with the competitive depth of the team. He admitted that he is a little uneasy with where they are right now in that area. They need to challenge some guys to go play football. He talked about how young they are.
He said he is for the five-for-five concept, players having five years to play five years.
Sumrall said that the offensive line is the most unique position because all five players have to play as one. They are mixing and matching the offensive line pieces.
He said that Phil Trautwein was brought to his attention before he took the UF job. He said his first hire was the coordinator, and then they built around them. Both he and Buster Faulkner had conversations and phone calls with Trautwein. Brought him in for a face-to-face interview. Talked to a lot of people who had been around him and worked with him – including Urban Meyer and Steve Addazio. He said he is really good at his job, but then, when you add in that he was a two-time team captain and played on a UF national championship team, that was the cherry on top.
The staff calls out the good and the bad. The culture and the standards of the program are a combination of what you promote and encourage, and what you tolerate and allow. If you tolerate and allow ‘loafs’ you’re going to be a lazy football team. If you encourage and promote great effort, and call that out, then you have a chance to reinforce that. They show practice clips of what is and isn’t the standard, and regardless of who it is, it gets called out to promote accountability.
Sumrall said that he believes that the defensive line is a position he feels better about. He said they have players with different styles and size. They have good length, good athletic movement, and good size.
The receiver group has four or five that the feels good about.
As a player coming in with his prior offensive coordinator, Sumrall said that he has seen Aaron Philo work with the other quarterbacks to help them with the offense.
GREG GASPARATO
Gasparato said it was good to see Myles Graham out of the orange non-contact jersey. It’s good to see him out there on the grass, running and hitting. He said that he also thought that it was good for Graham’s confidence. It’s good for him to get back into the flow and the real speed and pace. He is training across all the linebacker spots. There is a calming presence when he’s out on the field.
He said Myles Johnson has had one of the best springs of the linebackers as far as growth from day one until now. He is consistent in his effort.
Players at the linebacker position need to be vocal. You have to be loud and willing to talk. He tells them you can’t text each other out on the field. You have to be loud and assertive. You have to be the Alpha.
He singled out Graham and Jaden Robinson for their coverage ability. He said that from the start of camp through now, Aaron Chiles is one of the most improved linebackers in coverage. He then added Myles Johnson.
Gasparato said that Malik Morris is adjusting to the speed of the game. He said that early on, freshmen are just trying to figure it out. He said that Morris has lost 11 pounds of fat since he arrived on campus.
He talked about the spring game concept of offense vs defense being good for the defense because they get awarded for making big plays.
He said that he believes that the reason there are more injuries in football is that teams don’t hit anymore in practices. It used to be that players would become callused because they were hitting over and over, hitting the ground.
Gasparato said that Ty Jackson has made strides. His best practice was the last one. Called him very athletic. On Saturday, he pulled the trigger and was hitting. He said that over the last couple of days, he has shown up in an impressive way. He has a unique skill set. He said he has a very bright future.
He called Aaron Chiles very business-oriented and said he spends a lot of time in the building. Called him a very regimented person. Said he rarely makes the same mistake twice. His body fat percentage has gone down under Rusty Whitt. At 240 pounds, they can use him in a lot of different ways.
Video courtesy GatorVision | Jordyn Banks and Alyssa Britton-Harr contributed to this report
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