GAINESVILLE, Fla.-- When it comes to fighting the injury bug, Gators offensive lineman Brett Heggie is no stranger to battling through that type of adversity.
Out of high school, the Mount Dora native showed up at Florida with a wrist injury and has fought through knee and ankle injuries, along with wearing a club after sustaining a hand injury in 2018.
Despite an injury riddled tenure in orange and blue, Heggie is in the best shape of his Gators career. The redshirt junior showered praise towards Strenth and Conditioning Director Coach Nick Savage and Coach Tanner [Maher] for being vital keys to his progression on and off the field.
“I would say just keep fighting the fight. Control the controlables," Heggie told reporters about bounding back this year. " I’ve had some things happen to me. That’s football. Things are going to happen. I’ve accepted that and I know leading into this season, I’m not worried about what could happen. I’m just worried about what I can do to improve myself and this team. That’s where I’m at with the whole situation.”
Gators offensive line coach John Hevesy believes that Heggie has done everything expected of him thus far. According to the Gators assistant, Heggie is responsible and accountable, which bodes well for a youthful offensive line going into the regular season.
A unit that possesses 22 starts across the depth chart, Heggie with 7 starts to his name, will be looked upon to help anchor a unit that has potential to be one of the better units in the Southeastern Conference.
There is no question Heggie’s health will play an integral role, but the inside presence physically will be important for the Gators success in the trenches this season. The redshirt junior has shown versatility in the past by filling in at right and left guard along the offensive line giving the Gators options up front.
After calling Heggie “tough”, fellow Gators offensive lineman Jean Delance describes Heggie as someone with leadership qualities and has praised his work ethic.
“He’s one of those guys who shows up and’s that one guy in the room you don’t know what he’s going to do. But when does it, you’re like ‘…, okay he’s doing it,'" said DeLance. "He comes with it every day.”
Heggie is showing to be a natural fit for the responsibility that comes with being a veteran and is embracing the role that needs as much cohesiveness as possible.
“I’m trying to be a leader as much as I can, especially to the younger guys”, expressed Heggie. “Guys that just got here from high school and everything is brand new to them. I remember exactly what that is like. Just trying to really talk to them outside of football and tell them that if they need anything to come talk to me, especially with the playbook or if they’re not used to what camp is. It’s a whole different thing to go through. It’s completely different from high school. I’m just really trying to be there for the younger guys.
“A year ago, I was still going through things. I’m healthy, I feel good, I’m ready to go.”
