Grading the Gators: Skill positions appear good, but can the offensive line improve?

The Billy Napier era is approaching its third year in Gainesville, and Florida fans appear to be getting restless. The team faces perhaps the toughest schedule in the country and will need to substantially improve if they want to make a bowl game at the end of the year.

The good news is that the Gators utilized the transfer portal well in order to bolster some of their weakest positions last season. They also added new position coaches to fix last year’s lagging defense. But will that be enough to keep Napier in Gainesville for longer?

The Miami Herald grades the Gators’ roster position-by-position heading into their season opener on Aug. 31 in Gainesville against the Miami Hurricanes.

QUARTERBACKS | B+

Graham Mertz had his best statistical year last season and will certainly be in the top half of SEC quarterbacks coming into this season. Behind Mertz is five-star dual-threat DJ Lagway, who is perhaps the most talented quarterback in the high school class of 2024. The Gators also added experience with the transfer of Colorado State’s Clay Millen, who passed for nearly 2000 yards and possessed a 72.2 percent completion rate in 2022.

Even if Mertz goes down, the Gators should have a serviceable quarterback option that won’t greatly constrict the offense.

RUNNING BACKS | B-

Despite losing Trevor Etienne to rival Georgia through the portal, the Gators bring back leading rusher Montrell Johnson, who should again take the majority of the carries. Tulane transfer Cam Carroll is finally healthy after suffering a season-ending knee injury in fall camp last year, and Treyaun Webb and Kahnen Daniels should be solid options given time. But after Johnson, the lack of recent college experience in the running back room will be an impediment when Johnson needs to rest. Plus, the Gators will miss Etienne’s ability to make receptions out of the back field.

WIDE RECEIVERS | B+

The Gators have a good core of receivers for Mertz to work with this season. Despite the loss of Ricky Pearsall, a 2024 first-round pick, Florida went out and got another Arizona State transfer in Elijhah Badger– who will be the main possession receiver. Eugene Wilson III returns after a solid freshman campaign, where he tallied 61 receptions for 538 yards, making his impact in the short passing game. Wisconsin transfer Chimere Dike will also reunite with Mertz, hoping to revive the connection they had in Madison.

While there’s no star player in the Gators receiving core, the collective strength of the unit should stand out on tape come fall.

TIGHT ENDS | C

Arlis Boardingham and Hayden Hansen return as the starting tight ends from last season. As both were redshirt freshmen last year, it is reasonable to expect improvement from both. However, their Pro Football Focus grades of 58.0 and 52.5 respectively means that both players were below average tight ends last season.

Moreover, the depth behind both Boardingham and Hansen is concerning, as senior tight end Keon Zipperer had ACL surgery last year. Plus true freshman Amir Jackson and sophomore Tony Livingston have had little to no time on the field in college.

OFFENSIVE LINE | B-

The Gators offensive line had an up-and-down season last year. Despite ranking fourth in the country by Pro Football Focus in run blocking, they also allowed 39 sacks, which ranked 115th nationally. Outside of Jake Slaughter, one of the best centers in the nation, the Gators lack game-changing talent up front. It is likely that Austin Barber and Brandon Crenshaw-Dickinson will anchor the tackle positions, while Damieon George and Knijeah Harris will anchor the guard spots. While Florida should improve this season following the return of three starters on the offensive line, it won’t be among the top in the SEC this year.

DEFENSIVE LINE | B-

The interior defensive line rotation of Cam Jackson, Caleb Banks, Joey Slackman and Desmond Watson should do a requisite job at plugging holes. Jackson will be the best player in the unit, and could be a late-round pick in the 2025 NFL draft. However, the defensive end position remains a mystery for the Gators. With the transfer of Princely Umanmielen to Ole Miss, Florida has nobody returning that has tallied more than two sacks in a season. While Justus Boone, Tyreak Sapp, TJ Searcy and Kelby Collins were all highly regarded coming out of high school, none of them have been high-level producers in college. It’s also likely that 5-star freshman LJ McCray will get a lot of time at the EDGE position considering Florida’s relative weakness there. If they can’t apply pressure to the quarterback, the Gators defense will be compromised this upcoming season

LINEBACKERS | B

Shemar James should be the Gator’s starting MIKE linebacker for 2024. Before a season-ending injury against Georgia, James had a very good season as an underclassmen, grading out at 68.9 by Pro Football Focus. Florida added South Carolina’s Grayson Howard through the portal, who will immediately compete for the starting WILL spot. In addition to experienced depth like Derek Wingo, the Gators added talented true freshmen in Myles Graham and Aaron Chiles. With Ron Roberts coming from Auburn to Gainesville to coach up the linebackers, Florida should have substantial improvement at this position.

DEFENSIVE BACKS | A-

Florida has always been known for having great defensive backs, and that trend continues this year. Senior Jason Marshall Jr. will be tasked with guarding the opposing team’s best receiver, and will likely be a top 100 pick in the 2025 NFL draft. Former Washington safety Asa Turner should bring a physical dimension to the safety room and Jordan Castell should improve from his freshman campaign. Devin Moore should be the corner opposite Marshall, and was Florida’s highest rated defender by PFF in 2023. Cormani McClain and Ja’Keem Jackson should bring quality depth to the back end as well.

SPECIAL TEAMS | A-

Jeremy Crenshaw was one of the best punters in the SEC last season, earning second-team All-SEC honors. Trey Smack is also one of the best returning kickers in the nation, as he converted 17-of-21 field goals and made a career-high 54-yard field goal against South Carolina. The Gators will need to replace both kick returner (Etienne) and punt returner (Pearsall). A combination of sophomore receiver Aidan Mizell, sophomore defensive back Sharif Denson and freshman receiver Tank Hawkins appear to be the prime kick and punt returners for Florida. Under Napier, Florida has yet to return a kick or punt for a touchdown, but the strength of Crenshaw and Smack should still have the special teams unit riding high.