Napier: Young Pieces Stepping Up to Provide Florida Adequate Depth

The Florida Gators continue to search for adequate depth as the season approaches, but Billy Napier sees the core of the second unit is beginning to take shape.

Photo: Tyreak Sapp; Credit: Alex Shepherd

A central aspect of success in college football rests in the hands of the injury bug.

As Florida has quickly learned this offseason, the war on attrition begins early and can only be combated with viable depth pieces stepping up into contributing roles in place of those who go down. 

The Gators currently do not have the luxury of a full game-ready second team heading into the season. However, Florida's hope isn't lost.

On Wednesday, Gators head coach Billy Napier addressed the relative lack of depth the team carries heading into the season, stating that he feels comfortable with one and a half of his units. However, the core of that second team compiled with unproven, unseen talent is taking shape as week one approaches.

"I've always felt kind of like going into the after spring, I would say, we've got a one and a half units, if that makes sense," Napier said about being two-deep on the entire roster. "But I do believe that we've made progress. I think we've got players that have proven over time that they are loyal. We see consistency from them. They are responsible; they are dependable. We need more players that can play winning football. I think we have some that are in the middle of that process."

For a team that hasn't recruited at a high level for quite some time, the process Napier speaks of is extensive. That problem increases at crucial positions like offensive tackle and defensive end, where injuries pile up frequently and quickly at all levels.

However, luckily for the Gators and Napier in year one of his rule, that is precisely where depth pieces are beginning to arise.

"I do think that we've developed some players that maybe had not played a significant role for the Gators in the past," he said. "A few off the top of my head would be [defensive end] Tyreak Sapp, [offensive tackle] Austin Barber. You know, those are two in particular that stand out to me, they're starters in my mind. They may or may not be a starter on game day, but they're going to play."

Sapp, one of the highest-rated members of the 2021 recruiting class, held high expectations before he even stepped foot on campus. 

Standing at 6-foot-3, 263 pounds, the former St. Thomas Aquinas standout took a season to find his niche on the defensive line. He failed to appear in a game as he redshirted in his freshman season. 

Now, Sapp is skyrocketing the depth chart toward a high snap count, showing that the slow transition didn't stunt his growth. He made a huge impact in Florida's spring game and picked up where he left off during the fall, consistently standing out in practice.

On the other hand, Barber is a different type of unknown for the average fan.

Joining the 2021 recruiting class late in the cycle to fill a glaring need on the exterior of the offensive line, the Trinity Christian Academy (Jacksonville, Fla.) offensive tackle provided a high upside protect piece to the unit. However, even at his peak, the thought of Barber playing meaningful minutes in year two seemed bleak.

Now, he is gearing up to fill a crucial role in rotation in case of injury up front. He isn't quite the sixth man off the bench, but he's primed to come off the bench in case of emergency.

However, the unproven second-year players aren't the only ones who have shown the promise that makes Napier confident in their ability to uphold the starters' level of play when they step on the field. In fact, a few freshmen earned direct praise from the head coach, starting with one of the highest-rated prospects in the 2022 transition class linebacker Shemar James.

Napier deemed the summer enrollee "an exceptional player," furthering the buzz surrounding James' potential to receive early playing time as an uber-athletic off-ball linebacker in rotation. 

His efforts have led him to work as the third linebacker at times in positional drills behind expected starters Ventrell Miller and Amari Burney, and also to occasional first-team reps in team drills. While that doesn't necessarily indicate that he aligns in front of Derek Wingo, Diwun Black and Jeremiah Williams on the official depth chart, the dynamic of operating as a hybrid first/second-teamer in practice, paired with the praise, suggests that it's a serious possibility.

Other potential freshman contributors include two offensive weapons in running back Trevor Etienne and wide receiver Caleb Douglas. Napier raved about the staff's evaluation of each to add them to the 2022 class. 

Etienne provides a mentally mature and stout ball carrier to a unit that will likely feature four backs in a run-heavy offense this season. Etienne could be trending toward a usage rate similar to fellow Gators running back Montrell Johnson during his first year at Louisana-Lafayette a season ago.

"I've been very pleased with Trevor. The guy's 5-foot-8 and three-quarters and he weighs 207 pounds. He's loose, got a low center of gravity, catches the ball. I think he's got some returner value," Napier explained. "The big thing with him is his character, his consistency. The guy shows up and works. He's gotten a little bit ahead of the game there because of his brother's experience there. I like him, and I think he's got a chance to be a good player for the Gators."

Meanwhile, Douglas continues to impress as a pass catcher in Keary Colbert's relatively thin wide receiver unit, suggesting room for rapid upward growth as the season plays out.

"I think Caleb, in particular, showed he flashed in the scrimmage the other day, made some plays," he said. "I think we're excited about his upside. He's got some unique traits I think, the things that are required to play receiver. He's a developmental player that I think is making progress."

The youth of Florida football may not be 100 percent ready for the spotlight the gridiron generates, especially in the SEC. Still, the staff appears confident that the handful of aforementioned players can progress with in-game reps.

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"So I think that, development in football, sometimes you've got to go out there and learn," he said. "You know, you think you understand what it's going to be like out there to play in a game setting, but I think that's one of the exciting things to me about this team, is we got a lot of players that have minimal experience that I think are going to grow as the season goes." 

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