Players to Know for the Florida Gators

The Gators are having a difficult season so far but there are a few stand outs on this year's squad who are worth paying attention to.

The starting goal for any SEC team is to win your division but that is already out of the window for the 4-3 Gators. Florida is playing for pride and a chance to trip up the 7-0 Bulldogs this weekend in the World's Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party. With their first-year head coach, the Gators are trying to reshape and reorganize into a more competitive program. The struggling 2022 UF team may only have one SEC win under their belt but they have several noteworthy players that you should keep an eye on.

The strength of this Florida team is their rushing offense. There is a lot of athletes on this offense who can move. Starting quarterback Anthony Richardson, running back Montrell Johnson Jr and Trevor Etienne all are talented players who have put up consistent numbers. During the Missouri game, Johnson Jr and Etienne had an outstanding per-attempt average of 9.55 yards on just 18 carries. Richardson complimented them with another five carries for 45 yards against the Tigers. On the year, Johnson Jr has 425 yards with 7.2 yards per carry and Etienne is averaging 6.3 yards per for 334 yards. 

Anthony Richardson is the critical piece to this year's Gator offense. Everything starts with how he is playing and so far he's had plenty of ups and downs. This season Richardson has more interceptions than throwing touchdowns and shown signs that he's still working on his progressions with mixed results. His best performance was against the 130th-ranked Tennessee Volunteer's passing defense where he passed for 453 yards and had four touchdowns (2 rushing/2 passing). Against the Kentucky Wildcats, the 14th-ranked passing defense, Richardson would only complete 40% of his passes and throw 2 interceptions.

Outside of the running game, Florida has a few receivers worth paying attention to.  Justin Shorter and Ricky Pearsall are the leaders in overall production this season. Shorter currently has 405 yards for 22.5 per catch and Pearsall has 303 yards for 18.9 per catch. Both are older players but this is their first year under the offensive coordinator Rob Sale and wide receivers coach Keary Colbert. The Gator's passing offense as of now is tied with Duke's at 93rd in the nation averaging 217 yards per game.

On the defensive side of the ball, Florida's performance has been middle of the road. Gervon Dexter Jr is not only one of the best defensive players in the conference but he is one of the best talents in the entire country. A former 5-star recruit, Dexter has been a disruptive force for the Gators. Another name to pay attention to is transfer Brenton Cox Jr who recorded a sack against Missouri. He is part of a defensive front that plans on trying to help a struggling defensive backfield with unique pressures and sacks.

Overall Florida is working through its first year with head coach Billy Napier with a lot of close wins and losses. So far this year the Gators have lost or won by a margin of just 8 points.  Football Outsider's FEI rating, an efficiency-based measurement of a team, has Florida ranked 21st on offense and 67th on defense. A potent rushing attack helps carry a weaker passing game and a stout defensive front helps mask a lot of issues on the back end. They've had flashes of success but it has been anything but consistent.

The betting odds are favoring Georgia by 22.5 points. There is not a lot on film that explains how Florida keeps this one close but this is the World's Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party and the better team doesn't always win it. Georgia looks posed to cover based on their last two games but the Gators have found a way to keep games close at times this season. 

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