In two seasons at the University of Florida, Kaiir Elam has turned himself into a household name. The junior has played in all 25 games during his career with 17 starts. He has 50 tackles, five interceptions, and 20 pass breakups in his career. He's the kind of cornerback that opposing offensive coordinators will scheme around, which means whoever is playing cornerback across from him is a target.
That man right now is fellow junior Jaydon Hill. When the notion that Hill may be targeted simply due to the fact that he isn't named Kaiir Elam, he smiled.
"I want that," Hill said of the challenge. "I like for that to be the case. I want teams to come at me. That’s why I’ve been working."
Hill tore his ACL just days after committing to Florida but the Gators stuck by him, checked in on him frequently, and didn't back off their offer. Hill honored his commitment but still wasn't 100-percent when he arrived on campus but did play in 10 games as a freshman. Even more than not being physically ready, Hill candidly spoke about how much he still needed to learn off the field when he first arrived in Gainesville.
“When I got here, honestly, I couldn’t even draw up a play besides Cover 3. I knew one defense, Cover 3," he said. "But my game has progressed tremendously, my mindset off the field, in meeting rooms. I couldn’t even diagram an offense. Now I can draw up offensive plays, defensive plays and match them. But honestly, I even feel like my game has progressed – not just weight room and strength-wise with my ACL last year – but off the field, in meeting rooms, and being able to take my game from the meeting room and apply on the field. To think faster and to play faster and all that.”
Hill made decent progress from one season to the next. He appeared in all 12 games, making five starts in 2020. He credited former cornerbacks coach Torrian Gray for helping him become a better student of the game and that growth isn't lost on defensive coordinator Todd Grantham.
"The thing about Jaydon is that he’s very coachable," Grantham said. "He improves on the last thing that happened which allows him to be the player he wants to be and helps the defense.”
Hill may be penciled in as the starter but he isn't going to rest on his laurels. Florida has added two defensive back transfers in Jadarrius Perkins — who is already on campus and going through workouts — and Elijah Blades, who has yet to join the team. Hill knows that he has to work every day even for the opportunity to be the player that teams will target simply because he isn't Elam.
“I feel like it’s definitely, no days can be taken off. At our job, the job we have out on the field, you can’t slack off. I always feel like my spot or anybody’s spot can be taken at any time. I always play with that chip on my shoulder,” Hill said. “We know that we have a lot of ground to cover. It wasn’t a good feeling going out and doing what we did last year. But we’re definitely here to change that around and prove a lot of people wrong.”
