During the beginning weeks of the offseason, Inside the Gators will take an in-depth look at how last season went for Florida's 2016 signees who redshirted with our Redshirt Report series. Today, we focus on how last season went for wide receiver Rick Wells.
As the first commitment of Florida’s 2016 class - one who was recruited heavily by running backs coach Tim Skipper - wide receiver Rick Wells had hopes of potentially contributing in the rotation right way as a summer enrollee.
However, his college career in Gainesville got off to a rocky start.
Last July, Wells and fellow freshman receiver Tyrie Cleveland, his roommate, were both arrested with criminal mischief and property damage of $1,000 or more involving an on-campus incident with BB guns at their residential housing – charges that were eventually reduced from felonies to first-degree misdemeanors.
Then for much of fall training camp, Wells, a four-star signee out of Jacksonville (Fla.) Raines High School, dealt with a hamstring injury and was sidelined for the majority of action in August.
"He has great parents, so his parents were there for him. As his coach, I was definitely there for him as well," Raines High School head coach Deran Wiley said. "As a freshman, you come in and you make a few mistakes but you learn from them. Then, you get better. You don't sit back and go backwards. You look back, learn from it and move forward. He hasn't spent a whole lot of time messing around with things that happened.
------
* Anonymous Florida Football player Q&A (ask anything UF related)
* Florida's furious finish is one for the ages
* Player switches positions ahead of spring ball
* Florida coaches share signee evaluations
* Worton no longer with football team
* McElwain discusses the addition of Robinson
* Video Analysis: Florida adds Robinson
* GET TWO FREE MONTHS OF INSIDE THE GATORS
* Looks like Florida will finish 9th in recruiting rankings
------
"He just learned from it and matured. You play for the Gators - everything you do is put under a microscope, and he learned that, so he's just fine."
Wells’ nagging hamstring injury lingered into the start of the season, and he was unable to play during Florida’s first two games. (Wells was also suspended for the season-opener against UMass due to the July incident.) With him behind compared to some of his fellow freshmen due to the missed time – and Florida’s receiver rotation mostly set – the Gators eventually opted to set Wells on the redshirting path during the 2016 season.
"Rick got some early injuries in camp, so I think that slowed him down a little bit for the most part," Wiley said. "They didn't need to burn a year. ... I'm glad he didn't waste a year so he can come back this year full throttle."
As his first season at Florida went on, Wells found himself getting better acquainted to the college level. The 6-foot, 206-pound Wells arrived at UF last summer with good size, and the Jacksonville native has been hard at work aiming to maintain his physical shape.
"I saw him a few times this year and I talked to him - man, he was glowing," Wiley said. "He can tell you he's been working hard on his physique. He looked very good, very long and lean and well built. You can tell that he's been working and taking good care of his body."
Two areas where Wells has focused on improving this past year, and where he’ll continue to aim to get better at this offseason, are his conditioning and knowledge of the playbook, according to Wiley.
"He understands that knowing the play fast, you can't hesitate. You've got to know the playbook all around," Wiley said. "I can tell Coach Skip and Rick have a great relationship, because when I talk about him Coach Skip smiles. He's been very complimentary of Rick, in the offseason saying how he's been doing. The coaches will give you the inside scoop on the guys and tell you the truth how they're how they're working. I've heard nothing but positive.
"He's very close to Cleveland," Wiley added about Wells. "I'm sure they have a good relationship on and off the field. I think he wants to come in and make a big impact like that."
As a redshirt freshman, Wells will certainly have a shot this offseason at cracking the wide receiver rotation. However, he’ll have plenty of competition for snaps, with Antonio Callaway, Tyrie Cleveland, Dre Massey, Brandon Powell, Joshua Hammond and Freddie Swain among some of Florida’s expected returning contributors. 2017 four-star commits Daquon Green and James Robinson are expected to join the Gators this summer.
Wiley expects Wells to bring some great attributes to the table for the Gators as an option at outside receiver next season.
"First of all, he's a great route-runner. That's what I loved about him in high school," Wiley said. "He has great ball skills, too. The thing that you can't coach and you can't teach are his size with his athletic ability. Those things are going to create problems for the opponent. Those are the things that he brings to the table that are very unique from his standpoint. He's very knowledgeable, has a high football IQ.
"I see him as an outside guy, because of his size and his ability to win 1-on-1 matchups. I think he'll be great in the red zone with a few jump balls here, because I'm sure he'll out-man a few guys - him being so big at that receiver spot. I see him as a move-the-chains guy for Florida in the future. I think the one thing that'll be a little unaccounted for is his ability to stretch the field."
------
Thank you for reading this Inside the Gators article. To discuss it, please visit the Alligator Alley Forum.
