Florida Gators Football: An in-Depth Look at the 2011 Season

Will Muschamp enters a program that is blessed with as much talent as any school in the country, meaning he won't receive any grace period as the new lead man. Will he be able to win and win right away, like the Gator faithful expect?

With the days of Urban Meyer and Tim Tebow fading to black, the Florida Gators are entering a new era for their program. Meyer, following a tumultuous effort in 2010, decided to step aside and allow someone else to take control of one of the country's most prestigious programs.

While it came as a shock to many, Urban had placed the writing on the wall during the previous season, and it appeared the Florida administration had a proper plan in place to deal with the occurrence.

Will Muschamp, Charlie Weis and Dan Quinn were all brought on board to restore the Gators to glory, and do so at a rapid pace. Thankfully, the Gators possess one of the most prolific athletic departments in the entire country and enough talent that any random joe could win seven or eight games.

Which means that expectations are high for the new staff, specifically Will Muschamp.

Muschamp, the former coach-in-waiting for the Texas Longhorns and Mack Brown, has the proper pedigree needed to develop into one of the country's most quality football coaches.  Coach Meyer left him with plenty of fun toys to use and abuse throughout the season, on offense and defense, and the Gators are poised to leave the rebuilding mode of 2010 and be a factor in the SEC East race.

While last season was considered a failure in Gainesville, the majority of the fan base realized that a rebuilding year was inevitable following the departure of one of the school's all-time greats, Tim Tebow. Considering that the Gators were still  competing for an SEC East crown with the Gamecocks, that should be considered an extremely successful season during a rebuilding process.

However, due to the rebuilding  of a year ago and the extreme talent on hand, Muschamp receives no honeymoon. When you are handed the keys to the Florida Gators machine, you're expected to win and win immediately. Welcome aboard, Will.

QUARTERBACKS

The Tim Tebow tenure was four years of brilliance and four years of the perfectly molded quarterback for a specific offensive system; however, the script was flipped when John Brantley entered the fray.

Brantley, a considerable talent, came to Florida because he wanted to be a Gator. He overlooked the fact that he was a square peg in a round hole in the Urban Meyer system—he just wanted to be a damned Gator.

He could have went anywhere and played football, and was widely considered one of the most talented pro-style quarterbacks in the country but chose Florida; thankfully, his new offensive coordinator is the perfect man to utilize his skills.

Charlie Weis has a knack for developing pro-style quarterbacks, and he has quite a project on his hands. Brantley, who was a complete disaster last season, now must attempt to return to the form that made him so highly regarded.  

The offense will be a more natural fit. The progressions, the reads, the drops, everything will be in Brantley's wheelhouse. Will he be able to regain the confidence he brought to campus several years ago, under the tutelage of Weis? That is the most important question of the season for the Florida Gators.

If Brantley struggles again, incoming freshman Jeff Driskel is waiting in the wings to become the next great Gator gun-slinger. The 6'4", 235 pound quarterback possesses a cannon for an arm and expectations that rival that of the predecessor of his predecessor. Driskel was blessed with all the tools needed to be a great quarterback in a pro-style offense.

He throws a beautiful deep ball, but also possesses the touch needed to connect on the short to intermediate routes. Driskel must be ready early and often, because if Brantley continues to struggle, a deafening roar in the name of Driskel will overtake the fan base.

Tyler Murphy will also be in the hunt for snaps, even though he is much more suited for the spread offense.  The former walk-on is an athletic marvel that was the epitome of a spread option quarterback—too bad that is no longer the required offense in Florida.

After a terrible 2010 season, the transition to a new offense and a new coach should lead to much better things for the Gator offense in 2011.

RUNNING BACKS

Jeffery Demps, an absolute burner on the track and on the football field, is the ultimate football weapon—when he is able to stay healthy. During the 2010 season, health was a problem for Demps and he was missing in action throughout much of the season.  

He is much more effective as a scat back that is used in a variety of ways, similar to the extremely versatile skills of Chris Rainey and Trey Burton.

Rainey splits time at the receiver and running back positions, while possessing a set of 4.24 wheels that set the turf on fire. Rainey, while receiving limited carries, is a productive runner when given the opportunity.

Trey Burton, whom has been used at nearly every skill position on the field, ranging form quarterback to h-back, is productive anytime the ball is in his hands.

He won't see as much time at the quarterback position, but he will provide a contribution from several different areas on the field.  However, he will be most useful in power running and goal-line situations, similar to the Kentucky game in 2010, where he punched it in the end zone 6 times.

The most intriguing member of the backfield is sophomore Mack Brown, one of the most talented incoming freshmen in the country in 2010.  He burnt his red-shirt in a puzzling manner, but he possesses the frame, power and speed needed to be a quality running back. If the injury bug continues to bite Demps and company, Brown may see significant action in 2011.

With that being said, the entire unit possesses too much talent to produce as little production as we saw in 2010. With improved health, experience and more talent added to the fray, this unit should improve tremendously.

RECEIVERS

The terrible struggles at the quarterback position translated mightily into the receiving corps in 2010. Brantley's inability to get the ball down the field, accompanied by terrible drops and route running led to a disastrous season for the Gator receivers. With improved play expected at the quarterback position, can the receivers handle the workload?

Deonte Thompson and Quinton Dunbar are poised to take the reigns as the leaders of the unit.  Thompson struggled with drops last season and is still remembered as the guy who took the dig at Tim Tebow. However, Dunbar is an unbelievable talent that should have a breakout campaign.  

He is coming off a tremendous spring, where he showed excellent route running ability and enough speed to get by defenders down the field. Dunbar has the ability to be the most productive of the group.

Frankie Hammond, Omarius Hines and Andre Debose will all be fighting for repetitions throughout the season. Hammond and Hines have shown flashes of ability, but Debose is the real question mark. A former five-start recruit has underachieved throughout his career with injuries and inconsistent play, but he has all the tools to be an All-American performer.

Jordan Reed and A.C. Leonard will be manning the tight end position, and Reed is poised to be another great Gator tight-end. He was used at moments at the quarterback position last year, but he will make his complete transition over to tight-end this season, where he will be a factor right away.

The talent exists in this unit and with improved quarterback play, this unit should improve tremendously.

OFFENSIVE LINE

Watching the Florida offensive line struggle so mightily was disturbing for the Gator faithful. The indecisiveness shown by the quarterbacks, the terrible snapping of the ball, poor run blocking and just overall poor play were a microcosm of the 2010 season.  

The line loses three starters, but there is still hope with the tremendous amount of natural talent and depth that exists due to great recruiting.

Xavier Nixon, Chaz Green, Jonatthan Harrison, John Halapio and Ian Silberman appear poised to form a new team up front, and there is hope that they will protect much better under the Charlie Weis' schemes.  The quarterbacks must become more decisive with the ball and not hold onto it for so long, leading to ill-advised sacks at inopportune times.

Kyle Koehne, Matt Patchan, Sam Robey and others will be providing quality depth to a unit that should be able to improve upon the lackluster production in the 2010 season.

DEFENSIVE LINE

Throughout last season's struggles, the Florida defense was far from the unit to blame. They finished the season in the top ten in the country in yards allowed and were dominant at times. When they did struggle it was against power running games, such as South Carolina. However, they expect even more improvement within their talented front line.

The defensive line could have been viewed as a bit of a disappointment, due mostly to their lack of pass rush and soft rushing defense, but they were still better than most up front. This season, they should experience tremendous improvement led by the insanely talented Ronald Powell.  

Powell possesses and unbelievable burst off the line of scrimmage for his size and will be an absolute terror for opposing offenses.

William Green and Earl Okine will also be able to provide a quality rush against the passer from the defensive end and buck positions.

The interior of the line appears set for the years to come. Omar Hunter and Dominique Easley form one of the most physically gifted defensive interiors in the country, and if they can avoid the injury bug, they should be a terror for the opposition.

Easely and Hunter are both high-quality, five-star recruits that have the ability to clog the middle or penetrate the backfield. Easley needs to add some size to his frame to full realize his potential.

Shariff Floyd and Jaye Howard will be providing depth on the interior, giving the Gators one of the most talented groups of defensive tackles in the entire country.  That is the very reason you should see a strong improvement against the running game of opposing offenses in 2011.

LINEBACKERS

With the struggles on the defensive line a year ago, the linebackers were often left with recovering on plays that should have been stopped by the front four; however, with improved line play up front, there should be  more room for the linebackers to properly perform their duties.

Jelani Jenkins, Jonathan Bostic and Lerentee McCray are one of the quickest and most disruptive groups of linebackers in the conference, specifically Jenkins. The speed that Jenkins possesses on the weakside make him an absolute terror for opposing offenses and combining him with the steady play of Bostic in the middle is a perfect match.

McCray will be attempting to win the battle on the strong-side, but he will be pushed by Gideon Ajagbe, Michael Taylor and Dee Finley for repetitions.

This unit must stop the big play, which will come with the maturation process from an inexperienced group; yet, there is enough talent on hand to be among the SEC's best.

DEFENSIVE BACKS

The loss of Janoris Jenkins sticks out as a devastating blow to the Gator secondary. Thankfully, they are blessed with enough natural talent that they can offset the losses of the aforementioned Jenkins and their leading tackler from a year ago, Ahmad Black.

Jeremy Brown and Cody Riggs should move into the cornerback positions, where they should be able to contribute nicely; however, they are both a bit on the smallish side.

Josh Evans and Matt Elam will be called upon in the secondary to man the safety positions.  Elam has all the tools needed to be a star at all levels of the game, and while he lacks a bit of size, he is a superb hitter with great ball-hawking ability. He will be the key to the secondary's success.

Muschamp will be blessed with a plethora of young talent in the secondary, including several incoming freshmen that are among the country's best.  Marcus Roberson, Valdez Showers and Jabari Gorman will have the opportunity to grow together and form a potent defensive backfield of the future.

While there will be some regression in 2011, the future is extremely bright for the defensive backfield.

FINAL SYNOPSIS

Following a disappointing, jump-off-the-bridge, type of year in Gainesville, the Gator faithful are ready for a return to elite status. Throughout last season's struggle, the talent was still there, but something was off with the team--perhaps the Urban Meyer fiasco was weighing heavily on their minds.

This season, even with a new coach at the helm, things appear more relaxed around the program and Muschamp is poised to have this team contending for an SEC crown.

If the quarterback plays improves, this whole team will be taken to another level and be one of the most difficult teams to defend in the country. They have speed for days at all the skill positions and, as long as they are utilized correctly, they will be a potent offense.

Defensively, they will struggle at times with a young defensive backfield, but the pressure they will apply up front should help maintain a quality defense, one of the better ones in the SEC.

The problem is the difficulty of the Gators schedule. They suffer through a murder's row in October that would make some NFL teams blush and it will be difficult for them to avoid two losses in that scenario.  They must win two of three from Georgia, South Carolina and Florida State to establish a nine-win season.

As I said before, welcome aboard, Will.  This ain't no cupcake.

Last Year's Record:8-5

Projected 2011 Record: 9-3