Breakout Candidates: 5 Antonio Morrison

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Over the month of July, InsidetheGators.com will count down the top

five breakout candidates for 2012. In order to qualify, the player had to start

six or fewer games in his Gators career.

font>No. 5 Antonio Morrison (6-1, 216) Bolingbrook,

Ill.

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Position:

Linebacker

Class this fall:

Freshman

2011

Stats: None (High School)

High School Accolades: Rivals.com rated Morrison the

No. 5 prospect in Illinois and the No. 10 inside linebacker in the nation.

He was a four-star prospect coming out of high school and a member of the

Rivals250. Morrison senior season was shortened when he suffered a broken foot,

but Bolingbrook still went on to win a state championship. He surged onto

the recruiting scene as a junior when he recorded 101 tackles, nine of

them coming for a loss, along with seven sacks, three forced fumbles and

an interception. Was selected to the 2011 Semper Fidelis All-American Bowl but was not

able to participate because of his injury. Morrison was named a second-team high school All-American by the USA

Today.Notable: Morrison's high school coach, John

Ivlow briefly played for the San Francisco 49ers. A practice squad

running back, he regularly went up against Florida defensive line coach

Bryant Young during his time with the team. Anthony Morrison,

Antonio's brother, was an all-state linebacker in high school and went on

to play for Eastern Illinois. He is now an assistant coach at Bolingbrook.

2011 Review: Morrison made

a unique decision for an Illinois prospect when he decided to commit to

Florida on Aug. 3, 2011. Current Gators like Jelani Jenkins have

stressed to him the lack of depth Florida had in 2011 and how big of a

help he could have been. Meanwhile, Morrison was racking up big numbers on

a weekly basis for Bolingbrook before breaking his foot during the

postseason and missing the state championship game.

Spring Review: Both Morrison and his father said

repeatedly that he would be ready to go when spring practice rolled

around. That proved to be the case, as Morrison showed up in shape and was

consistently talked about by UF coaches throughout the spring. With

aforementioned depth concerns in place, Morrison got plenty of reps with

the defense during spring and that carried over to the Orange and Blue

Debut. He had nine tackles (one for loss) in Florida's spring game and

forced his name even further into the minds of the Gators' defensive

coaches.

2012 Depth Chart Outlook:

Barring injury, Morrison will not be a starter in 2012. This is

expected to be a big year for upperclassmen like Jenkins and Jon

Bostic, both players who have taken over as defensive leaders and

cemented starting jobs at linebacker. After coming along nicely as a

redshirt freshman, Michael Taylor will likely lock down the third

linebacker job with the fourth going to whoever is playing Buck in 3-4

schemes. But Morrison gives the Gators a chance to have something they did

not have in 2011 - a legitimate rotation. He worked inside and outside

during spring and will be able to relieve any of the three when need be.

The better he does in those spots, the more he will play. Judging from the

spring game, he has a real opportunity to make an impact.

2012 Breakout Season: UF head coach

Will Muschamp will warn you to be cautious when tossing hype on

freshmen. However, he is most cautious when hype is given to freshmen who

are not early enrollees.

Morrison has a semester of football under his belt at Florida and has

taken full advantage of it. He is stepping into a situation where he can

prosper while also gradually shifting into the fast-paced world of

Southeastern Conference football. I expect Morrison to see the field

regularly as a special teams contributor but that will hardly be the bulk

of his duties.

Jenkins and Bostic often appeared worn down at the end of games last

season because the team couldn't afford to pull them off the field. If

Morrison can continue the current run he is on, Florida fans will not see

too much of a drop-off when it's time to rotate linebackers, and Morrison

will have a prime opportunity to make a name for himself.

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(Deal ends July 20, 2012)

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