Florida's defense is losing a few big time playmakers on the defensive side of the ball.
Jonathan Greenard, Adam Shuler and Jabari Zuniga are all gone and will surely be missed.
"I love those guys," said Zach Carter after winning the Orange Bowl. "I'm going to miss them for real. I learned a lot from those boys."
"It hit me that my dogs are leaving," said Campbell told Gators Territory in an exclusive one-on-one interview ahead of the Orange Bowl. "But we got some young guys coming, stepping in... I got Zac [Carter], I got TJ [Slaton], I got Elijah [Conliffe], Marlon [Dunlap], so we straight."
We will be focusing on the BUCK, rush end position in detail in a separate story, so we will touch on Greenard's impact then, however, both Shuler and Zuniga's loss will be felt.
Shuler will be a significant loss. The transfer tallied 29 tackles and 3.5 sacks this season. Shuler and Campbell worked well together and there could be some issues up the middle for Florida's defense with his loss.
The Gators will also miss a veteran leader like Zuniga. Florida was forced to play without the defensive end for a few games due to an ankle injury, which allowed some of the younger Gators to step up.
When healthy, Zuniga had 14 tackles and three sacks for UF.
Although Florida is losing a few men on the defensive front, the younger Gators are ready to step up. They are confident.
"D-block is back," yelled Carter and Campbell during the Orange Bowl celebrations.
"I don't think they are ready," a smiling Carter said, implying that opponents don't know what is about to hit them with the younger Florida defenders. "They will see whats up."
"Don't tell them," added Campbell. "They aren't ready."
One can see why there is confidence in this group.
Due to injuries in 2019, a lot of Florida's returners were given significant experience.
Campbell leads the way for the group. The Virginia native had 39 tackles, including 25 solo this past season and was a disruptive force that used his time wisely in the weight room last off season.
Meanwhile, Carter continues to develop at a good pace. The 6-foot-4, 263-pounder filled in for an injured Zuniga, recording 4.5 sacks for his hard work.
Carter is a versatile weapon for David Turner and Todd Grantham - he is able to move around the D-line, working inside and outside, however, has great potential at strong-side defensive end.
As of Friday, Florida is still waiting on Tedarrell Slaton's decision. Will the South Florida native return next season or will he enter the NFL draft? The 6-foot-5, 358-pounder is a good weapon to have against the run and is a guy UF would like to have back in 2020.
Now for one of Florida's most underrated defensive lineman in 2019, Marlon Dunlap. Although Dunlap has had limited playing time, the North Carolina transfer was a key piece on third-down prior to his injury he suffered against South Carolina (he did not play against Georgia). His stat line may only read three tackles and one sack, however, if third-down numbers were to show anything, is that Dunlap was missed when he was out with injury.
The Gators will also see the return of an injured Elijah Conliffe - he was forced to sit out the entire 2019 season due to an injury, while also seeing Jaelin Humphries healthy as well.
Dan Mullen and his side have also added quite the impressive freshman class to this group. The Gators have signed Gervon Dexter, Johnnie Brown, Jalen Lee and Lamar Goods to the program this winter - each of them providing talented depth to the defensive line.
As we approach spring football, look to see Campbell anchor the defensive line, as Turner rotates a few guys next to the Virginia native.
Yes, the defensive line is seeing several guys leave, however, this is still a very talented group. A group that is finally seeing some class balance.
