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The school that proudly boasts the moniker "DBU" certainly didn't look like it in 2020. The Gators were the 8th best passing defense in the conference, allowing 257.5 yards per game. The result ended in the firing of both the safeties and cornerbacks coaches,

It also provided an opportunity for two new coaches to come in and get to work with a very young Florida secondary. Other than senior Trey Dean and junior Kaiir Elam, the Gators' have a lot of youth and inexperienced on the back end of the defense. It's a challenge new safeties coach Wesley McGriff is taking head-on.

"It’s beautiful. When you have an opportunity and the cup is empty, now you have an opportunity to come in now when they’re young and make sure that you teach them good habits and make sure that you develop technique and fundamentals," McGriff said. "Now they’re looking at you in either eye and saying ‘Coach, get me better.' I’ll tell you what. A lot of times coaching a guy that is young as opposed to coaching a guy that knows it all, here’s two different ways you have to coach a young man in that arena. These guys may be young, but they have strong football IQs, unbelievable work ethic, and they come in every day looking at us as a coaching staff, ‘Coach get me better,' and that’s really exciting as a coach, really exciting."

The good part about getting a new coach as a player is getting a clean slate. McGriff quickly looked at some of the film from his new players but, for one, there isn't that much to go off of, and second, he wants to give everyone a fresh start. This spring has been an opportunity for McGriff and the players to make impressions on each other. McGriff noted that most of the secondary haven't had a chance to go through spring before this year, so the learning process is important for everyone.

"It’s one thing to have them on the bus, but you have to get them on the right seat," McGriff said. "So that’s what’s really important when guys are you because they’re getting better every day and you gotta make certain you get the right 11 guys on the field in terms of secondary getting the right guys that coach Grantham wants on the field, so it’s a collective effort. But the biggest thing I’m seeing is those young men are competing, and while they’re competing they’re embracing each other."

New cornerbacks coach Jules Montinar has a young group as well, but there's one player that really stands out — Kaiir Elam. A two-year starter, Elam is the only truly established cornerback in the room, but his work ethic on and off the field has caught Montinar's eye.

"We’ll be in a meeting room and some of our younger guys that haven’t learned this defense and they’re not taking notes. And this is Kaiir’s third or fourth time hearing this stuff and he’s writing down everything us coaches are still saying," the coach said of Elam. "I think he’s a student of the game and I’m really fired up about having him in the room.”

There is a lot of talent, albeit untested and the two newest coaches in Orange and Blue are fired up for the opportunity to teach them.