Projecting Florida's 2023 Specialists Depth Chart

All Gators concludes its 2023 Florida depth chart projection series by breaking down each specialist position.

Photo: Adam Mihalek; Credit: Alex Shepherd

The conclusion of our Gators' positional depth chart series ends without much intrigue, as Florida head coach Billy Napier has already disclosed which players will be at the core of UF's special teams in 2023.

"That group is two deep, it’s solid as a rock," Napier stated on Aug. 19. "We are really confident in that group of specialists.”

At the time, he named redshirt sophomore Adam Mihalek as the team's starting placekicker, sophomore Trey Smack as the kickoff specialist, junior Jeremy Crawshaw as the punter and redshirt sophomore Rocco Underwood as the long snapper, making each player an incumbent first-teamer at their respective position. 

All Gators analyzes each player's role, and the positional depth behind them, and projects the kick and punt returners for Florida entering the 2023 season below. Our previous positional depth chart projections can be found at the bottom of this story.

Placekicker: Adam Mihalek

Despite his walk-on status, Mihalek earned starting duties at this spot in 2022 and flashed a powerful leg over the course of the season, although inconsistencies with accuracy cast blemishes onto the campaign. He finished 14-of-21 on field goals with three made from 50+ yards away, and went 42-of-43 on extra point attempts.

"Kentucky, I hit a 50 [yard attempt] and then Tennessee I missed my first 50. And Missouri, I would say that was not my best game of all the games during that season. But when I went out for the 50 and 47, I think that's what they were, I was like, "Oh, I'm gonna crank this," and it didn't go that well," Mihalek described from his 2022 performance on Aug. 19. 

He went 1-of-3 on three-point attempts against Missouri, statistically his worst showing of the year. But Mihalek rebounded by converting nine of his next 12 field goal tries.

"I learned that to hit it with power, a ton of power, you have to have some accuracy," Mihalek explained. "Really hitting the sweet spot all the time and believing in yourself, knowing you can do this — you do this all the time in practice — I guess that's what it is for me." 

Mihalek shared that, following his offseason training, he is currently capable of connecting on 65-yard field goal attempts.

Kickoff specialist: Trey Smack

Smack, on scholarship, will occupy kickoff responsibilities for the second year in a row. It remains to be seen if he will factor into placekicking after not attempting a field goal or extra point attempt as a freshman.

Smack suggested on Aug. 19 that he is operating at "100 percent right now," having fully recovered from a groin injury that impacted his availability at the beginning of the 2022 season.

“Kickoffs are the most violent thing in the kicking game," Smack explained. "My coach used to tell me one kickoff equals eight field goals. If I do eight kickoffs in a game, that’s like 64 field goals. That puts a pretty big toll on your leg. There’s a lot of glute activation, quad, hip, groin, it’s a lot of muscle straining.”

In the practice setting at full health, Smack claims to average 73-yard kickoffs with a hang time of 4.1 seconds.

Punter: Jeremy Crawshaw

Quietly one of the most effective punters in the nation last year, Crawshaw didn't kick the ball enough to qualify for the Ray Guy Award. He had a case to raise the trophy after averaging 47.9 yards per punt, the second-most of any punter in the FBS, and a net average of 44.8 yards, good for eighth-best in the country.

But Napier's aggression on fourth downs — Florida's 32 conversion attempts ranked No. 3 in the SEC a year ago, although its 46.9 success rate ranked No. 11 — prevented Crawshaw from gaining the national recognition one could argue he deserved. He's on the award's watch list this year.

Crawshaw will have another chance to bolster his NFL Draft profile in his fourth season with the Gators, which he intends to accomplish with the same team-first approach that has placed him in the program's leadership groups since Napier's Dec. 2021 arrival.

“Really, things don’t change because NFL is on the horizon or not, I still have a job to do here, I still have to punt for the Florida Gators, I want to win every game I’m here," Crawshaw said on Aug. 19. 

"I want to do my best for field position every time we play somebody, so of course I’m out there, I’m out there every game you’ve got to check the stats, hang time is good, average, location. So, this year is just another year where you are trying to build professionality out of yourself, consistency and just ultimately be there for the team when the team needs it.” 

Crawshaw made note of a personal best punt of fall camp that went 65 yards with 5.1 seconds of hang time.

Walk-on redshirt senior Jacob Watkins, a product of local Gainesville (Fla.) Buchholz, is set to back Crawshaw up in 2023.

Long snapper: Rocco Underwood

The cousin of former Florida punters Johnny and Tommy Townsend, Underwood maintains his starting role entering the 2023 season but will make his debut as a Week 1 first-teamer at Utah. He stepped in for former Florida long snapper Marco Ortiz, who suffered an injury against the Utes in last season's opener.

Underwood went on to start in 12 games as a redshirt freshman, making 94 snaps — 61 on field goal and extra point attempts, and 33 on punts — and two special teams tackles. In 2022 preseason practices, he also performed as a tight end in practice while the Gators dealt with injury issues. 

Freshman Gannon Burt, a walk-on, is the only other long snapper on Florida's roster and will serve as Underwood's backup this season. 

Kick returner: Trevor Etienne and Eugene Wilson III

Napier on Aug. 11 indicated that Florida was experimenting with offensive skill players in the return game. 

After averaging 24.8 yards per kick return across 17 attempts last year, running back Trevor Etienne is "obviously" going to be involved as a returner in 2022, according to Napier. 

It is less obvious who will align opposite Etienne on the first kick return of the 2023 season — veterans, wide receiver Ricky Pearsall and running back Montrell Johnson Jr., and freshmen, wide receivers Eugene Wilson III, Andy Jean and Aidan Mizell have factored into the competition for returns this fall.

Wilson, who is expected to factor greatly into UF's offense in 2023 despite his youth, is guaranteed to receive some opportunities. As a result, we've included him as both a kick and punt returner in this projection.

"I don't think there's any question that Tre will also be a factor at some point," Napier. said on Aug. 11.

In high school, Wilson returned one kickoff and two interceptions for touchdowns, scored 22 times offensively and averaged 16.8 yards per catch across 108 receptions.

Punt returner: Ricky Pearsall or Eugene Wilson III

If we're taking his word for it, the Gators' undisputed wide receiver No. 1 will also handle punt return duties in 2023. 

Ricky Pearsall only attempted four returns last year, but with former starting receiver and punt returner Xzavier Henderson transferring to Cincinnati this offseason, Pearsall has assumed those responsibilities in addition to his feature role within the offense.

"Yesterday, we were returning punts and I was running down the field telling people, 'This is what I'm most excited for," Pearsall said on July 19, via Swamp247. "It's a little nerve-wracking but I'm going to be the guy to do it." 

In the event Florida wants to eliminate the risk of special teams injury to Pearsall, Wilson and the other freshmen receivers could be asked to take over the role. 

Previous Gators 2023 Depth Chart Projections

• Quarterback
• Running back
• Wide receiver
• Tight end
• Offensive line
• Defensive line and Edge rushers
• Linebackers
• Secondary

Stay tuned to All Gators for continuous coverage of Florida Gators football, basketball and recruiting. Follow along on social media at @AllGatorsOnFN on Twitter and All Gators on FanNation-Sports Illustrated on Facebook.

Get your Gators football, basketball, baseball and other sporting events tickets from SI Tickets here.