‘The roster's been great' – Florida Gators are ready to take the next step, as one CFB analyst projects
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It’s been evident for years that the Florida Gators have underachieved. This year, they are primed to finally live up to expectations.
The Florida Gators are entering a new era under head coach Jon Sumrall, and there are questions that still remain. The biggest one is simple: can they finally take the next step? “The film guy” Brooks Austin has them ranked at 17th overall going into the season, and his reasoning is simple: coaching.
“The roster’s been great for three years, despite the fact that they have severely underperformed in the wins and loss columns. There’s no doubt about that. I just don’t think they’re going to underperform based off the talent this year because I believe in the coaching. I believe in Brad White. I believe in Buster Faulkner, and we’ll find out what Sumrall is as a Power Four head football coach. But I think the most important thing a head coach can do when they get to the Power Four is hire damn good coordinators, and I think he did exactly that. I expect them to be a top 20 football team this year, and I put them as high as 17.”
Florida Gators are primed to take needed next step
The argument for the Gators the last few years has always been about underachieving. They had a ridiculously skilled quarterback in Anthony Richardson in 2022 and DJ Lagway the last two seasons, but never pieced it together enough to be competitive for a national title, let alone the SEC.
One of the biggest reasons why they didn’t take that step was former head coach Billy Napier refusing to hire a serious offensive coordinator to be the play caller. He finally admitted his mistake after taking the James Madison head coaching job.
“I think that I probably was a little stubborn,” Napier told Rivals’ Wilson Alexander. I think that took away from the level of detail that I had provided in a lot of those areas in the past.”
Sumrall didn’t have that kind of ego, and hired two great coordinators. With the level of talent the Gators have on both sides of the ball, especially at premium positions, it wouldn’t be a shock to see them taking a leap forward.
This article was originally published on A to Z Sports. Read the full story here: ‘The roster’s been great’ – Florida Gators are ready to take the next step, as one CFB analyst projects
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