GAINESVILLE, Fla. – The Florida offensive line came into spring practice with more question marks than any unit the Gators have.
Replacing four out of five starters amidst an offense full of veterans puts a lot of pressure on an inexperienced group.
“We take that to heart as a unit, very personally, because this unit is the youngest unit on the offense,” offensive lineman Jean Delance said. “We have those veteran receivers, veteran quarterbacks, veteran running backs like Perine, we have to step up and get it going. Our offense is going to go as far as we want to take it.”
So far the unit has had its fair share of growing pains, as they begin to gel together and create the chemistry needed for a successful line.
On Thursday, offensive line coach John Hevesy held his group after practice for a half an hour. His message was simple, mature and be better.
"We need it though,” T.J. Moore said of Hevesy’s meeting after practice. “We need some development, we need somebody to get on us when we messing up, I feel like.
“So Coach Mullen and Coach Hevesy, they did a really good job of teaching us, not just being students of the game but like men in life, just how we develop and know our stuff cause they really depending on us this year. We kinda have a young O-line so he's trying to get us ready for Miami this year."
It’s hard enough trying to come together as a unit with four new starters, but even more so with the Hurricanes matchup to begin the season on Aug. 24. However, this uphill climb has not wavered the expectations of this group.
“The pressure is on us to perform this year, this season,” Delance said. “We're a young unit but we have a lot of talent, so with that being said we have to step up to the pedestal and live up to it.”
That mentality stems from Hevesy. He is not easily impressed and never satisfied. And while the group has made some progress, particularly with younger guys, they are never satisfied either.
“I can’t say that I’m not happy and I can’t say that I am happy, I just want to get better,” Delance said. “That’s the biggest thing, getting better every day, because you can’t ever be too complacent in life with anything So, I want us to be a better unit and a better offense.”
Last season the line paved the way for the offense. They only gave up a total of 18 sacks and opened up holes for the Gators to gain over 3,000 rushing yards on the season and average 144 per game.
With four starters now departed the pressure is there to fill the void, but the unit doesn’t quite view it that way.
“I take it as opportunity not pressure,” Delance said. “You got to see the positive aspect of it and you know we got to perform. It means opportunity. It's not pressure. If you see it as pressure, I see it as a negative thing. I see it as an opportunity to build.”
This group still has a long ways to go before the season arrives, but they are not backing down from the tall task that lies ahead of them.
“You always gotta work on everything,” Brett Heggie said. “That’s how I approach every day. Just to work on everything, but I got a long way to go. And the older guys do.
“The younger guys have made big strides since they’ve been here cause they’re younger, but we got a lot of work to do. But we’ll do it. We’ll be alright.”
"We just have to grow together, it's gonna take time, it's not gonna come over one night,” TJ Moore added. “Everybody's not just gonna click on one day. We just gotta grind every day, come after and just come together."
