GAINESVILLE, Fla.-- Chauncey Gardner-Johnson had himself a year.

"I'm the best in the country," said the Florida nickel.

Confident? Yes. But Gardner-Johnson has the numbers to back up his claim.

The Gators junior bounced back from an inconsistent sophomore season to become one of the defense's best playmakers. A lot of his success came after his move from safety to nickelback.

According to Pro Football Focus, he led the nation in 19 stops in pass coverage, recording 66 tackles and nine of them for a loss.

"Everything came together for me," said Gardner-Johnson. "I sat down with Coach [Todd] Grantham, Coach [Ron] English. I talk to Coach English in his office every day, about 30 minutes, maybe to an hour. It’s just how I go out there and compete, be calm and just do whatever I have to do and not channel the negative energy into positive energy.”

Florida defensive coordinator Todd Grantham believes that versatility will intrigue NFL scouts.

"Even when I was in the league, you still had value when you could play, say, outside at corner and then you could move inside on the slot,” Grantham said. “Now the value has probably increased even more because you’re playing more downs with those kinds of people in the game because of the multiple wideouts people are putting the game.

“So your ability to play outside and inside as a corner certainly gives you value and is something teams look for.”

Gardner-Johnson decided to skip his senior season in order to enter the draft, and he should be able to improve his stock in the upcoming NFL combine.

“I’ll run a 4.3. Everybody says 4.3, but realistically I’ll probably run a 4.4, just out of the gate," he said. "Who knows? I might run a 4.1. I might jump the clock. Who knows? It’s something that you shoot for, you train for."

His decision to forgo his senior year was a tough one, but Gardner-Johnson knew it was time.

“I felt like I did a lot for this university. Another year they say wouldn’t have hurt me but for me to leave wouldn’t hurt me, so I mean it was just a decision based on me and my family what we was gonna do," said the Gators playmaker. "I felt like it was time for me to go. Not in a bad way but my teammates respected it. They know what I can do. I know what they can do. There’s guys behind me ready to step up and step in. it’s time for them to shine too.

"Even if I didn’t have my son on the way I still would have gone. This is my year. I had to bounce back and make an impact," added Gardner-Johnson. "He’s a big part of my life but I’m not playing the game for my son. I’m playing the game for myself. My son is another part of my life.

"You can’t combine with football because there’s other things in life you can focus on. One thing in life that I’m focusing on is being a good father to my son not a good football player to my son.”

Just like his decision to enter the draft, Gardner-Johnson never wavered on his decision to play with his teammates in a bowl game, any bowl game.

"I came in early and the guys that came in, they're still playing," he said. "Even if it was like a lower-level game, not a New Year's Six bowl, I still was going to play with my team. I started something with them. It's out of respect given to me and all the respect given to them. We worked hard together, so it's something that I value. I'm not going to give up on nobody. I started something, I'm going to finish it."

Gardner-Johnson tries not to peak at mock drafts because for the next eleven days, it's all about the Wolverines.

“Right now I’m focused on beating Michigan in the bowl game and just having fun with my teammates.”