#7 Florida Gators

For the first time since the Outback Bowl following the 2005, the Florida Gators will take the sidelines without Tim Tebow in uniform. Gator Nation has had a certain safety net over their lives for the past 4 and ½ years. This year, that net will be raised, and the program will be tested like never before.

Coach Urban Meyer has rebounded from his retirement, then “leave of absence”, and is now back 100% in the office and claiming that his health is no longer an issue. Tebow, along with 8 of his teammates were drafted in April and the Gator list of superstars will have some fresh faces in 2011.

There are very few teams that have the luxury of putting a Gatorade National player of the Year on the bench for 3 seasons. But, that has been the story for John Brantley. After breaking Tebow’s Florida State High School Record with 99 TD passes, he decided to follow in the footsteps of his father and uncle (John and Scott, respectively) who both playerd their college ball in Gainesville. Now Brantley will step in to one of the most high profile positions in the nation, following in the footsteps of arguably the greatest College Football player of all time. His strong spring and 3 years of learning behind Tebow should aid him in having a quick start to the 2010 season.

In the backfield, Brantley will be handing off to the speedster RB Jeff Demps, who is the current NCAA 60-meter National Champion in track. Demps had a whopping 7.5 yards per carry average in 2009 while gaining 745 yards. He will be joined by Senior Emmanuel Moody (the former USC Trojan) and Sophomore Mike Gillislee who averaged 8.6 yards per carry during his Freshman season.

Noticeably absent from the list of returning RBs is Chris Rainey. This is due to a position change that occurred this spring. With the departure of Brandon James, Riley Cooper, and David Nelson, the Gator’s offensive coaches thought that some experience was needed at the Slot WR position. With Rainey’s speed and versatility, he was a perfect fit. The Junior ran for 575 yards in 2009, so he may still be used out of the backfield at times, but the majority of his snaps will be taken on the outside. The rest of the WR corps is young, but full of talent. Deonte Thompson is the leading returning WR and he will need to make great strides in both production and leadership. Redshirt Freshman Andre Dubose has garnered many Percy Harvin comparisons, so expect him to see the ball early and often. Four starting offensive linemen return to protect Brantley, including Pre-Season All-American Mike Pouncey (twin brother of Pittsburgh Steeler 1st Round Pick Maurkice Pouncey).

Defensively, the Gators lost a lot of firepower with the graduation of Brandon Spikes, Ryan Stamper, and Dustin Doe and the early departures of Major Wright, Carlos Dunlap, and Joe Haden. But the mark of a top tier program is the ability to keep churning out top level talent. DTs Omar Hunter and Jaye Howard are expected to be All-SEC caliber guys. 2009 5-star LB recruits Jon Bostic and Jelani Jenkins will get their chance to shine as they join veteran Senior A.J. Jones in the middle. The secondary will be strong as starters Ahmad Black, Will Hill, and Janoris Jenkins return. The one key loss to the defense is in the staff as former coordinator Charlie Strong departed for the Head Coaching job at Louisville. Former Arizona Cardinals Defensive Backs coach Teryl Austin gets the nod to replace Strong.

Special Teams should be a solid area for the Gators as Punter Chas Henry returns after earning All-Conference honors in 2009. K Caleb Sturgis also returns after nailing 22 field goals last year (including going 4 for 4 on field goals between 40 and 49 yards).

The Gator schedule is never friendly and this year is no exception. The usual suspects crowd Florida’s march to a possible SEC and National Title. After a week 1 cream-puff (Miami of Ohio), week 2 brings a unique challenge as the South Florida Bulls travel to the Swamp. Last year, the Bulls upset the FSU Seminoles early in the season. The SEC schedule then kicks off with a trip to Tennessee. And early October road trip to Alabama is the biggest game of the entire 2010 SEC calendar. The Gators host LSU on October 9th, and travel to Jacksonville for the annual rivalry against Georgia later in the month. The always intriguing matchup against Steve Spurrier and the South Carolina Gamecocks comes in Week 11, then Florida ends the regular season with a trip up Interstate 75 to face the Seminoles of Florida State.

Pending the success of John Brantley and the new Defensive Coordinator, the Gators are certainly on par to continue their dominant ways. There is no reason to think that Florida wont be playing in their 3rd consecutive SEC Championship game in December.

Key Returning Players:
OL Mike Pouncey
RB Jeff Demps
WR Chris Rainey
DT Omar Hunter
LB A.J. Jones
CB Janoris Jenkins
S Will Hill
S Ahmad Black
K Caleb Sturgis
P Chas Henry

Key Games:
Sept 11 - South Florida
Sept 18 - @ Tennessee
Oct 2 - @ Alabama
Oct 9 - LSU
Oct 30 - Georgia (in Jacksonville)
Nov 13 - South Carolina
Nov 27 - @ Florida State