Chris Lee and Blake Lovell preview Florida Gators for the 2023 season in SEC football.
*OFFENSE*
– Graham Mertz joins from Wisconsin and will look to keep the offense headed in the right direction after Anthony Richardson’s exit to the NFL.
– Montrell Johnson and Trevor Etienne figure to be one of the top running back duos in the SEC.
– The Gators return a top offensive playmaker at wide receiver in Ricky Pearsall.
– Can Florida replace several key players on the offensive line?
*DEFENSE*
– The Gators will need to improve their defensive rankings in multiple areas: 86th in scoring, 99th in rushing, 83rd in passing, and 96th in total yards allowed in 2022.
– Memphis transfer Cam Jackson figures to be an impactful addition to the defensive line after starting all 13 games for the Tigers a season ago.
– Florida could have more depth at linebacker with several key transfers joining the position group.
– How will Michigan transfer RJ Moten factor into the secondary?
*ADVERTISE WITH SOUTHEASTERN 14* 💰
Contact info@southeastern14.com for sponsorship opportunities!
16 Comments
Lifetime Gator fan, have seen & experienced the highs & lows over 70+ years. Enjoy your perspectives & opinions. We’re going to have a clearer understanding of this year’s team after Utah. The Utes will bring 7-8 men in the box & dare the Gators to beat them throwing. Can Mertz hit the check downs & get them in successful plays vs loaded box? Can the oline handle the stunts 😊they’re going to face at Utah? The defense should be improved, again we’ll have a good idea after Utah. One metric I use for Napier is how we do in close games, 3-10 points. Last year was not a great year in that regard, I think we lost 5 of the 7 losses in that context. Improvement in my perspective is can he flip 3-4 of those? Let’s say LSU & UGA are tough, maybe not winnable. That leaves UK, USC, UT, Arkansas, Vandy, Missouri, FSU …. those will be close games, can they “find a way” to win 5-6 close games? I’m thinking Utah will be close, again. Thanks and go Gators!
Dont see any area where UF is taking a step back. While AR waa super talented. He was young and inexperienced. Mertz had a higher qb rating a higher completion %. He also Has the ability to read defenses better.
UF defense will be way better. Oline the same or even better. WR better. TE better. QB more consistent. UF will be a better team.
I think Douglas is going to step up alot. Burk will make some strides.
I'm sure with the young weapons we have, the coaches are going to come up with a offensive scheme that validates players we have. Yes we will run 12 personnel but I think the passing game will change that a bit bcuz of the young weapons we have.
I don't understand the love affair with AR, he is a physical freak but could not read a defence or complete simple passes.
If AR was still here you all would be saying that he is not accurate he's inconsistent he doesnt protect the ball so how can we be any worse? Mertz doesnt have to be great just dont lose the game.
The rhetoric surrounding Florida is wild. You have a combination of
1. Florida has been terrible defensively
2. Inconsistent QB play that didn’t mesh w the system
3. Not much returning depth
4. Opponents improving on paper
5. Crazy schedule
6. Impatient fan base
And yet while retorts to those points get made, and the whole the aforementioned points are also valid, there’s this rhetoric that were in this untenable cycle.
The older players clearly just didn’t cut it and didn’t buy in.
We’ve overhauled most of the roster.
Recruiting has been solid esp at filling needs and quality depth.
We’re talking about South Carolina and Vandy as if they have any consistent body of work. Respect to them they’re certainly improved, and we’ve struggled against them when we had broken teams w mediocre players and bad schemes. This Florida team if Armstrong can cut it schematically and keeping morale high, will be a lot better than 5.5 wins.
It’s not a ten win team w this schedule but wins against
The FBS schools, Vandy, Scar, Kentucky are likely. tenn, ark. FSU being closer yet winnable. That’s 8-9 wins giving Utah, UGA, LSU as auto losses. Yes Florida could only win 5 games, but the notion we can’t win 8-9 is laughable imo.
This team like all Florida teams the last 15 ish years have no margin for error like Blake stated. All of those teams had the capacity to win 8-9 games, the deciding issues were morale crashing after repeat critical injuries. If that happens we’re absolutely a 5 win team.
I’m legitimately scared for our pass offense this year
Florida football is done. I think it is permanent.
Look for Florida to go 5-7 this year. They are a below middle of the league team.
The thing that is most disturbing for Florida fans is that this is a 20 year situation.
How a program like Florida has dropped so much into irrelevance is shocking, but it is reality.
2022 schedule was bad, 2023 schedule is bad, and 2024 is also going to be bad. Napier got hired at the worst possible moment for himself. He's recruiting well, but if he gets smoked this season that won't last long. Additionally with the portal those guys could leave before they make an impact. I think a lot is riding on this season not being humiliating. The only plus here is that I think there is a lot more talent on the roster than they are given credit for, expectations are set to the floor and the opportunity for upside surprise is vast.
South Carolina is heading in the right direction ? The same South Carolina team Florida beat by like 40 last year ? 😂 I wouldn’t put a lot of stock into how Floridas season played out last year in a transition season . Napiers crushing it on the recruiting trail and has brought in already some extremely talented players mullen could never land . I wouldn’t worry about Florida while Napier has them in the top 3 in the nation on the recruiting trail . It’s gonna turn around over the next 1-2 years
UF might win 6 games this year Florida blew it the last 15 years they play in the East which until last couple years was living off the backs of the west Florida should have been running the East all the teams in there have been hot trash for a long time Georgia just started picking it up Tennessee the same Kentucky sucks Vandy sucks South Carolina sucks Missouri sucks
Florida will win ten wins this season. Cause of the defense and better quarterback play . Defense wins championships .
is that LVP on your wall😀😀😀😀
He fired the defensive coordinator and hired a new guy austin Armstrong.