Florida Football: An Early Look at the Defensive Depth Chart for Spring Practice

The Florida Gators defense finished eighth nationally in total defense a year ago, despite starting mainly underclassmen. 

They will bring back 10 of 11 starters and will contend to become the best defense in the nation this year. 

The only area where the Gators need drastic improvement is in creating turnovers.

The Gators forced just 14 turnovers last season, the lowest total since the Ron Zook era. The Gators will also bolster their run defense with a strong recruiting class. Of the 23 recruits in the 2012 class, 13 are defensive players. 

Will Muschamp is quickly getting his type of player on campus, and the style of play will soon show on the field. 

Here is a projection of what the Gators' defensive depth chart will look like for spring practice beginning on March 14th. 

BUCK

Ronald Powell 

Lerentee McCray

Kedric Johnson

Ronald Powell is the unquestioned starter in the hybrid linebacker/defensive end position. After a slow start the former No. 1 overall recruit picked up his play down the stretch. Powell will be looking to finally reach the potential and justify the fanfare he entered college with. 

Lerentee McCray will be listed again this season as the backup and he will have a depth chart battle of his own at his SAM linebacker position. 

Defensive Tackle

Sharrif Floyd 

Omar Hunter 

Leon Orr 

Damien Jacobs 

Floyd was forced to play out of position all of last year due to lack of depth at defensive end. The Gators added much-needed depth along the defensive line with this recruiting class, so it wouldn't make sense to put Floyd back at end only to have him switch back in the summer.

Floyd showed at the end of the year that he is made for defensive tackle, not end. 

Omar Hunter came on and played his best football in the second half of 2011. Hunter will get plenty of playing time this season, especially while the future of Dominique Easley's knee is still up in the air. 

Orr and Jacobs will add much-needed depth to the position. 

Nose Tackle

Leon Orr 

Omar Hunter

Damien Jacobs 

Sharrif Floyd

Make no mistake about it, this position belongs to Dominique Easley. Easley had surgery to repair a torn ACL before the Jan. 2 Gator Bowl and will miss spring practice. When Easley shows his knee is back to 100 percent, which it should be before the start of the season, he will be the starter. 

Orr and Jacobs will be battling for the backup position here and Floyd would only play nose tackle in an emergency situation. 

Defensive End

Earl Okine 

Kedric Johnson

Tevin Westbrook

Clay Burton 

Dan Quinn, Will Muschamp and Sharrif Floyd all are hoping that Earl Okine or Kedric Johnson has a great spring and can earn a starting position. That would keep Floyd from having to make the move back to end. 

Okine had the best year of his career last season and is the front-runner to take over the starting position. 

Strong-Side Linebacker (SAM)

Lerentee McCray

Darrin Kitchens

Antonio Morrison 

Gideon Ajagbe

While McCray had a good season before missing time with an injury, this position was the weakest of the three linebacker positions for the Gators.

McCray will have some competition in spring as Darrin Kitchens has been cleared to play after a scary neck injury he suffered against Florida State, and early enrollee Antonio Morrison will see time at both SAM and WILL positions. 

For now this is McCray's position to lose. 

Middle Linebacker (MIKE)

Jon Bostic 

Michael Taylor

Graham Stewart

Bostic is coming off of his best season as a Gator, where he led the team in tackles with 94. Bostic has taken the reins and filled the shoes of former Gator great Brandon Spikes. Bostic will be the middle linebacker until he graduates after this season. 

Michael Taylor filled in for Lerentee McCray and had some spot duty behind Bostic. Taylor is the future MIKE linebacker with Graham Stewart filling in on special teams. 

Weak-Side Linebacker (WILL)

Jelani Jenkins

Antonio Morrison

Chris Johnson

Just like Bostic at middle linebacker, Jelani Jenkins will be the starting WILL linebacker until he graduates or decides to leave early for the NFL.

Jenkins and Bostic were both a part of the same recruiting class, with Jenkins taking a redshirt his freshman season. The bond the two linebackers have made off the field transfers on the field, and they have both become field generals, getting the play calls from the sideline and relaying it to the defense. 

Antonio Morrison is built in the mold of what Muschamp wants in a linebacker. Morrison is a fierce tackler and a hard-nosed player. He will be given every opportunity to earn playing time, especially with him being an early enrollee. 

Chris Johnson is a player who could see a move to offense, running back in particular. The Gators are low on numbers at running back and Johnson could make a move to fill the depth chart. 

Cornerback 1

Marcus Roberson

Jaylen Watkins 

Willie Bailey 

Roberson was just the third cornerback to start their first game in college following in the footsteps of Joe Haden and Janoris Jenkins. Roberson did enough to earn his starting position with his play last season and should be healthy enough coming off a neck injury to be a factor in spring practice.

Jaylen Watkins (the older brother of Clemson freshmen standout Sammy Watkins) played well in the time he got after Roberson went down with injury. 

Willie Bailey will make a big impact on special teams this year, as in high school he had a knack for getting his hand on the ball on special teams. 

Cornerback 2

Cody Riggs 

Jaylen Watkins 

Loucheiz Purifoy

Jeremy Brown

Watkins had a solid season filling in for Riggs and Roberson. This is going to be one of the tightest competitions outside of quarterback. While Roberson has one starting corner position locked up, the other starting corner will likely come down to Riggs and Watkins. 

I give Riggs a slight edge, based on having two years of starting experience under his belt. 

Regardless of who earns the starting position, Riggs, Watkins and Roberson will all see a lot of field in 2012. 

Free Safety

De'Ante "Pop" Saunders 

Josh Evans 

Valdez Showers 

Saunders won the starting position as a freshman last season. He missed a game due to violating team rules and struggled at times. His play will need to become more consistent if he wants to earn the starting position again.

Josh Evans started eight games at both safety positions last year and will be Saunders' biggest competition for the starting job.

Strong Safety

Matt Elam 

Jabari Gorman

Elam led the team in interceptions, passes broken up and tackles for a loss in his first full year as a starter. The position is Elam's to lose and even if he were to have a bad spring (which is unlikely), the starting position would still be his. 

Jabari Gorman seems to have worked his way into the favor of the coaches and will have spring practice to try to earn his backup role. With Marcus Maye and Rhaheim Ledbetter set to enroll in the summer, Gorman will be fighting for a spot backing up Elam.