Florida will have plenty of young playmakers competing for playing time.
In 2018 the NCAA implemented a new four-game redshirt rule, which allows a player to play four games and still save a year of eligibility.
Dan Mullen and his staff used this new rule to their advantage with some of their first year players gaining quality college football experience including in the Peach Bowl. However, this spring these redshirt players will be competing for playing time.
Here is a look at who to watch for:
EMORY JONES
Feleipe Franks is the expected starter under center for the Gators, however, Emory Jones will likely see the field a lot more this next season. Mullen is not a fan of playing a quarterback before he is ready, however, he is a fan of creating several packages for his young talented athletes to see the field.
Mullen and company already have done that with Jones in 2018. The former four-star quarterback played in four games including against Georgia and Michigan. Jones finished the year 12-for16 for 125 yards and two touchdowns. He also ran for 41 yards on 16 attempts.
JACOB COPELAND
The talented wide receiver was sidelined in 2018 early due to an injury. The former four-star receiver did play in three games against Idaho, Florida State and Michigan. In those games Copeland caught one pass for 16 yards and returned a kickoff for 26 yards.
Copeland is expected to be a very dynamic player for the Gators this season. At receiver, Van Jefferson, Trevon Grimes, Tyrie Cleveland, Josh Hammond and Freddie Swain have all become significant contributors to the offense. However, Copeland is the one to watch this fall, as he can make a big jump on the depth chart.
IVERSON CLEMENT
Iverson Clement had a different first season at Florida compared to his classmates. The New Jersey native is a versatile athlete that played some defensive back in high school. Due to his versatility, Clement spent some of his time at safety, since the Gators were depleted by injury at the position.
However, he also did some game action at running back. Clement played against Charleston Southern and Idaho, rushing for 17 yards on four carries.
Clement is entering a crowded field at running back. At this time Lamical Perine looks to be the feature back in 2019, with Pierce and Davis coming right behind. Mullen and company are not afraid to change things up when a talented playmaker is in a crowded room (see Kyle Pitts transition to receiver in 2018). Clement is one to watch this spring because although he is labeled as a running back, the redshirt freshman could see himself moved around so he can see the field sooner.
DANTE LANG
Dante Lang played in two games in 2018 and it will be hard to see the tight end see the field in 2019 with such a crowded, talented unit. Lang will need to compete with Kemore Gamble, Kyle Pitts (although he has shifted to receiver at times) Lucas Krull, and Keon Zipperer.
RICHARD GOURAIGE, CHRIS BLEICH, GRIFFIN MCDOWELL
I combined all the redshirt freshmen offensive linemen together. While Richard Gouraige and Griffin McDowell only saw action twice, Chris Bleich saw the field four games. McDowell is expected to miss spring due to injury, but both Gouraige and Bleich are expected to compete for starting jobs in 2019 with Florida losing plenty from their starting line.
MALIK LANGHAM
Moving on to the defense, Malik Langham was behind some of Florida's biggest playmakers on defense and needed one season to work on getting his body right. However, the defensive lineman traveled with the team to many of their road games and played in two games.
Moving into spring, Jabari Zuniga should be the man leading the group with Zachary Carter coming in right behind. However, I can see Langham jumping in front of Antonneous Clayton and competing with Carter by the end of the spring.
ANDREW CHATFIELD
Andrew Chatfield is one of my overall players to watch this spring. The South Florida native redshirted last year but has impressed many with his work ethic and athletic ability. With Jeremiah Moon expected to be out this spring, look for Chatfield to make his name known.
He will be fighting for playing time next year and has worked with both the defensive ends and the linebackers at Florida.
DAVID REESE
David Reese is a versatile athlete that saw the field for two games in 2018. Although Reese was given some reps at defensive backs, he was back with the linebackers soon after. I expect this redshirt freshman to have plenty of reps this spring.
There is no way this staff will keep an athlete like Reese off the field.
In addition to the first year players winning more reps, last season saw two players pick up a redshirt due to injuries.
MALIK DAVIS
The Florida running back was forced to sit out his sophomore season due to breaking his foot after only playing three games. With Jordan Scarlett entering the NFL draft, Davis will look to compete for playing time at running back. Although Lamical Perine is expected to be the feature back this upcoming season, Davis should see playing time at the position as well.
MARCO WILSON
Like Davis, Marco Wilson was forced to sit out 2018 due to an injury. The talented cornerback tore his ACL during the second game of the year and is expected to be limited this spring. With the South Florida native limited, the competition at cornerback should be good with guys like Chris Steele on campus.
