GAINESVILLE, Fla. – As we continue our position outlooks leading up to spring ball, we now turn our attention to the offensive side of things. And leading off is the deepest and most battle-tested group on the team in the wide receivers.
The Gators brought in three receivers in the 2019 class on top of returning eight receivers from last season (four incoming seniors) as well as receiver/tight end Kyle Pitts, and this experienced group will look to build off a successful 2018 season that saw the most touchdowns since 2009.
With all starters are returning in Van Jefferson, Trevon Grimes, Kadarius Toney, Tyrie Cleveland and Josh Hammond there won’t be much change to the majority of the production this upcoming season.
However, with how Dan Mullen likes to rotate guys in and out and with a few departures along with Cleveland’s injury, there are reps out there to be had and depth to build.
When you start to look at where the incoming freshmen, Arjei Henderson, Dionte Marks and Ja’Markis Weston, would fit in, it’s tough to picture them finding many reps on the receiving end this season.
Their job is to learn the playbook and the speed of the game, as they prepare to be the next wave after this veteran group is gone.
The receivers don’t have a ton to work on this offseason, but one aspect as a group they could use some improvement on is run after catch and hauling in those deep balls.
The group may have finished with the most touchdowns in a decade, but there was room for improvement in terms of yards as they failed to reach 2016’s total of 2,805.
Obviously that hinges primarily on the quarterback and the style of offense, but catching deep passes is a difficult task and Florida’s group could use some improvement there. It would round out the group nicely and give it really the only thing they are missing.
Cleveland was the primary deep threat along with Jefferson last season. Grimes can also jump with the best of em’ and even Henderson has some deep ball skills as well.
“The great thing is from the second he committed he's been awesome,” Mullen said of his new four-star receiver. “He's been solid as can be in everything. Obviously he's a very, very talented player, got tremendous ball skills as a wide receiver, and big play potential.”
Individually is where this group could make some strides. As a group they are great, but each guy could use a little tooling to round off his game to take that next step.
Toney could use some improvement on his route running, Jefferson would benefit with some added strength, Grimes could be a little more crisp in his route running, Copeland needs to lock down more of the playbook as he enters his second season, Freddie Swain needs to secure punts and Hammond would benefit from a more diverse route tree.
Most of these things are minor details that would help, but the receivers are all solid and have made their major strides already. What this spring is to them is an opportunity to sharpen their game up after being out of it for a couple months.
What needs to be accomplished this spring for this group is the development of the incoming freshmen, finding the backend depth, shaking off the rust, and improving on the downfield game.
This group made major strides last season and really filled out their potential in this offense, leading to those 28 touchdowns. Can they top it this upcoming season though? The process to find out starts this spring.
