Billy Gonzales Shares Early Impressions of New-Look Florida WR Room

Billy Gonzales discusses his return to Florida for his third stint as the Gators' wide receivers coach and shares his early impressions of the position's contributors.

Photo: Billy Gonzales; Credit: Zach Goodall 

The decision to return to Florida, again, was an easy one for Billy Gonzales. 

The two-time BCS National Championship-winning Gators assistant officially agreed to fill the role of wide receivers coach under head coach Billy Napier on March 23, reuniting with the program that employed him twice before in the same position (2005-09, 2018-21).

"I was really ecstatic about the opportunity to come back," Gonzales told reporters on Saturday. "Very humbled but very honored to have the opportunity. It’s a prestigious university, Coach Napier is a fantastic coach so I’m excited about the opportunity to be back, absolutely.”

One of the program's most successful assistant coaches in terms of producing pro talent, former Florida receivers Kadarius Toney, Van Jefferson, Freddie Swain, Tyrie Cleveland, Riley Cooper, Percy Harvin, Louis Murphy, Andre Caldwell, Dallas Baker and Chad Jackson evolved into NFL Draft picks under Gonzales' tutelage.

His return to Gainesville, however, isn't paired with the familiar faces of his first two stints such as Dan Mullen and John Hevesy.  

Gonzales is currently familiarizing himself with a new head coach in Napier, a new staff of assistants, a new-look receiver room and a new offensive system, on a time crunch considering he rejoined the program in the middle of spring camp.

He hasn't been without help in his transition, though. Gonzales propped analyst David Doeker up for filling in as the team's interim receivers coach before his hiring, paired with several off-field assistants keeping the position up to speed while the full-time role was vacant. 

Gonzales also noted Napier's history as a wide receivers coach and current position as Florida's quarterbacks coach aiding in the process. Napier oversaw Alabama's wide receiver position from 2013-16 and is credited for helping develop former Crimson Tide star pass-catchers Amari Cooper, Calvin Ridley and Ardarius Stewart, among others.

"Extremely organized, extremely detailed, does a great job," Gonzales described Napier. "I’m excited to have the opportunity to learn from coach. He’s been in the meeting rooms with quarterbacks, receivers ... a chance for me to not just learn from him as a head coach but from a position coach, he’s coached some great players from that standpoint as well.”

Gonzales "fired up" to coach new-look Gators WR room

While he was only gone for a year and some change, Florida's wide receiver position looks far different now than it did when Gonzales was last in Gainesville.

Since his Dec. 2021 exit, six of the ten scholarship receivers that were on the Gators roster have left the team due to graduation, the transfer portal or the NFL Draft. Ja'Markis Weston has also since moved to safety. 

Napier signed one receiver in his transitional 2022 recruiting class, welcomed two transfers at the position last offseason and signed another three high school prospects in the 2023 cycle to make up Gonzales' group in its current form. Five walk-ons also contribute: Kahleil Jackson, Taylor Spierto, Daniel Cross, Zak Sedaros and Alex Gonzalez.

“I like the guys. I tell you what I really like the guys," Gonzales said. 

"They’ve got great work ethic. There’s length, there’s quickness, there’s size. I’m fired up to have the opportunity to coach them. Everybody’s a little different, everybody’s a little unique in what they bring but as far as them learning, they’ve done a great job here.  

The Gators' top returning receiver in yards (661) and scores (five), Ricky Pearsall opted to use his fifth season of eligibility for a second year at Florida following his 2022 transfer from Arizona State instead of going pro.

Pearsall desires to make it to the NFL and has now placed his confidence in Gonzales to get him there, with hopes of elevating his stock in 2023 after producing career-high numbers in his first season at UF.

"[Pearsall] has a lot of want, and when I say that, he’s constantly texting, wanting to ask questions as far as what can I get better at, what can we do, can we learn, how can I get open off of this leverage," Gonzales explained. 

"He’s a football player that’s constantly asking questions to learn to make himself better and when you have that coupled with the athletic ability he has, you’ve got a really good opportunity for a special player in the making. So, absolutely love everything about him.”

Joining Pearsall in the first-team lineup is veteran receiver Xzavier Henderson, who Gonzales recruited to Florida and coached from 2020-21. The 6-foot-3, 198-pound Henderson also made the most of his first season under Napier's leadership, posting personal bests of 38 receptions and 410 yards in 2022 with two touchdowns.

Gonzales suggested that Henderson surpassed that number of scores in Florida's second intrasquad scrimmage of the spring this past Thursday, finding the end zone three times.

"He's playing with confidence right now ... he's coming into his own at the back end of being here," Gonzales said of Henderson. "He's done a great job transitioning. Super smart kid that you can play at multiple positions." 

Although they weren't recruited by the assistant as prep prospects, true freshmen receivers and midyear enrollees Andy Jean and Aidan Mizell are also standing out to Gonzales thus far. The third signee of the 2023 class, Eugene Wilson III, is expected to enroll at UF this summer. 

The speed and physicality of the college game, as expected, have created a learning curve for the young duo of Jean and Mizell to follow. Gonzales has been compelled by each player's approach to the adjustment, though, paired with their natural abilities as receivers, leading to plenty of involvement within the offense shortly following their arrivals. 

"I want guys that are competing and I want guys that are finishing, so competitors and finishers. They do a great job with that," Gonzales commended Jean and Mizell. 

"They're not going to back down from anything. They're going to compete. They're lively, they're energetic. They're going to run around and they bring speed to the game. They're both fast football players, have good hands. So for them, it's just about the faster they learn the offense, the faster they're going to play. But extremely impressed with both of those guys.” 

Sophomore Caleb Douglas — who Gonzales complimented for being a willing blocker in the practice setting, sophomore Thai Chiaokhiao-Bowman, junior Ja'Quavion Fraziars and redshirt sophomore Marcus Burke join Pearsall, Henderson, Jean and Mizell to form Gonzales' first group of scholarship receivers under Napier.

Just three — Henderson, Fraziars and Burke — were on the roster during Gonzales' prior stint with the team.

But despite the position's assistant coaching swip-swap dating back to Dec. 2021, paired with the attrition the unit has experienced, Gonzales believes the group is in sync this spring and was developed well during former wide receiver coach Keary Colbert's one-year tenure with the Gators.

"It’s a very cohesive unit and they communicate really, really well with each other and they’ve got a vision to work together," Gonzales said. "So, I give tons of credit to the coaches that have been here in the past as well.”

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