Florida football: Nine Gators invited to the NFL Combine

Florida football didn’t have a great season. We all know that. The Gators ended with a 6-7 record after their bowl game loss to Oregon State, and fans were excited to move on to the next season and forget the 2022 campaign.

Despite the team’s struggles, however, there were a lot of players on the team that have elite talent and are looking to make some noise in the NFL as they move on in their careers.

Nine Gators were invited to the NFL Combine to showcase their skills to NFL scouts ahead of draft day, and show teams not just what they can do now, but their potential for the future.

Here are the guys who earned invites:

Florida football at the combine: Anthony Richardson

Anthony Richardson, despite his inconsistent throws and questions about his accuracy, is being projected to go in the first round. Personally, I agree with that evaluation.

You won’t find a QB in the NFL that can do what AR can physically. He’s a freak. A monster.

There were questions about Josh Allen’s accuracy coming out of college, and he was also a big, bruiser type of QB. Now he’s one of the top QBs in the league.

Having a guy like Richardson on your team will require patience. He won’t be ready to be an NFL starter for at least three years in all likelihood. But his upside is just too high to ignore.

He’ll only improve his draft stock in Indianapolis with the crazy numbers he’ll put up, and he will make an NFL front office very happy on draft night.

Florida football at the combine: Ventrell Miller

Miller has been a fan favorite ever since he took over as the alpha dog in the linebacker room. He has had to fight through a multitude of injuries, but you’d never know he ever felt pain when you watched him play.

Ventrell had 34 tackles and two forced fumbles last season, but his impact went beyond the stat sheet. He was the undisputed leader on and off the field for the Gators, and that type of leadership is something that NFL teams want in their locker room.

At the combine, Miller probably won’t blow anybody’s mind. He’ll test adequately for teams to give him a shot. If there is any doubt in their minds, watching his tape will put them at ease.

Miller can be a great addition to the defense of any NFL team.

Florida football at the combine: O’Cyrus Torrence

Torrence only played one year in Gainesville after transferring from Louisiana, but he’s one of the most dominant Gator linemen in recent memory.

He didn’t allow any sacks and was the key guy in driving Florida’s run game.

Torrence is getting some first-round buzz like AR is, with some speculation that he’ll end up in Pittsburgh as the 17th pick.

O’Cyrus will be one of the most impressive linemen at the combine, and he’ll raise his draft stock during his workouts.

Florida football at the combine: Justin Shorter

Shorter, a five-star recruit out of high school who transferred to Florida from Penn State never really took over in the way that fans hoped he would.

He was still a great option for Kyle Trask, Emory Jones, and AR out wide thanks to his size and physicality.

This past season he had 29 catches for 577 yards and two touchdowns. Like Miller, his numbers don’t jump off the page. But I think a team will see his size and be unable to resist.

He’s currently 6’4”-223, with the chance to add a little more mass when he moves to the pros. He’s a great guy to have downfield for a jump ball and is good at blocking downfield as he’s bigger than every DB he’ll face.

Florida football at the combine: Trey Dean III

Not many Gator fans have a lot of good memories of Trey Dean. After a promising freshman season, he never really shined, and he may be best known for getting lit up by John Metchie in the 2020 SEC Championship game.

But there’s no denying his athletics. He has great strength and good instincts in the secondary. He’ll also take your head off if you run a crossing route in front of him.

Dean will have to work on improving his coverage skills if he wants to be an impact player in the NFL. The good news for him is that his size and raw talent may be enough for an NFL team to bite on day two.

Dean will test well in Indy, and likely improve his draft stock a bit.

Florida football at the combine: Gervon Dexter

Gervon Dexter is the definition of a Florida Gator. His first season was in the 2020 COVID year, and he stuck with the Gators through all of their challenges over the past two years.

Despite all the adversity, he has constantly voiced his pride in wearing the Orange and Blue and putting on for UF.

It didn’t always show up in the stat sheet, but Dexter is a game-wrecker. You have to double or triple-team him if you want any chance of slowing him down, which frees up your other pass rushers to make the plays.

Dexter’s size and strength will be more than enough for a team to use a pick on him, and he won’t be off the field for very long.

Florida football at the combine: Rashad Torrence

Torrence, like Dean, never really turned into the elite player that fans thought they would get. He struggles in the back end in coverage and has more bad plays than good ones.

All that said, Torrence is another hard hitter with no regard for the safety of the offensive player in front of him. He had 50 tackles last season, and the guy he hit felt each and every one.

He also had a forced fumble, showing his ability to make game-changing plays from back in the secondary. Torrence will be able to turn some heads at the combine and will be a 5th-6th round pick.

Plus, he’s a DB coming out of UF. NFL teams will respect that

Florida football at the combine: Richard Gouriage

He was overshadowed a bit by the performance of O’Cyrus Torrence, but Richard Gouriage was an elite player in the trenches for the Gators.

Part of what makes him so good is his size. He stands at 6’5”-308 and has the strength and the will to push around anybody who’s standing in front of him.

He isn’t necessarily quick, but his strength and power will open some eyes in Indianapolis, and he’ll likely be taken off the board sooner rather than later.

Florida football at the combine: Brenton Cox Jr.

Cox brought plenty of drama to Gainesville and caused as many headaches to his own team as he did to opposing coaches.

Assuming he’s able to get his mind right and mature, however, he can be successful anywhere in the NFL. Cox’s athleticism and strength are undeniable. He can fly off the edge of the o-line and light up running backs before they even have the ball.

Brenton will test off the charts in every category at the Combine, but we’ll see how much it matters. Teams will be more worried about his off-the-field issues than his on-the-field promise.

If Cox is able to sort everything out, he can be a major difference-maker at the next level.

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