Florida football: The Gators are bringing elite speed back to The Swamp
By Will Thomas
Florida football is just a handful of days away from the start of their 2023 campaign out in Salt Lake City against the Utah Utes.
With a lot of new faces around the program, we can also expect a change of pace from the Gators on the field this fall. Literally.
We’ve talked a lot about some of the individual guys on offense, specifically at receiver, who are bringing track speed to the field and will be burners in Florida’s offense.
But the whole team is going to be significantly faster this season, with more than half the team hitting personal bests in velocity this summer.
Florida football: Speed kills
Swamp Kings reminded all of us how much of a difference-maker guys like Percy Harvin and Brandon James were thanks to their speed and ability to outrun a defense.
It seems that this year’s Gators’ team is preaching a similar philosophy as they try to turn around an offense without a lot of hype around it.
55 Gators set personal records in speed this summer. That’s almost unheard of. It also speaks to Napier’s constant reassurance that they’re constantly evaluating the team and making changes that need to be addressed.
Florida didn’t have breakaway speed last fall that could have helped them grab another score in a couple of close games. Now, they will.
All summer we’ve heard about the speed that the freshman wideouts, Andy Jean, Aidan Mizell, and Eugene Wilson are bringing in. But having increased speed defensively will have a bigger impact on UF than offensively.
Closing speed in the front seven to make tackles, as well as track-down speed in the secondary, will help the Gators make the plays they were unable to last season which contributed to them being poor on third downs.
The Gators are getting back to their aggressive, fly around the field, leave you in the dust play style that led to them being so great in the past.