Plenty of excitement at the Orange & Blue Debut

By Joe Mayes  |   Friday, April 18, 2008  |  Comments( 0 )

Florida Gators
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If you were one of the estimated 61,000 die-hard Florida Gator fans who shelled out $5 to watch the team debut at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium last weekend and you expected to see a finished product on the field, you walked away disappointed. If, however, you expected to see a lot of talented young men showing what they can do, it was a very good day.

The Gators showed only the very basic versions of their run-oriented spread offense and the defensive sets were very bland. However, it was the players who were given the opportunity to shine and few shone brighter than redshirt freshman Chris Rainey.

Rainey started the day when he missed the start of the final heat of the Gators’ version of Pros vs. Joes (“Pros” only in the rhetorical sense, in case any NCAA investigators are reading). The delayed start only heightened the tension before he blazed to a Jeremy Foley-timed 4.24, ensuring that Florida’s athletic department won’t be shelling out another $30,000-$40,000 to the school for a new scholarship.

And as is the case with Manny Ramirez in Boston, it was a case of Tim Tebow being Tim Tebow, only better. While it hardly seems possible that there would be a dramatic improvement over his play last year, Tebow looked to be an even better quarterback than he was in 2007. His passes were sharp and on target, and he rarely left the pocket as he progressed through his reads frighteningly fast.

On the other hand, Cameron Newton looked nowhere ready to take over second chair in Urban Meyer’s two-quarterback orchestra. Most of his throws were off the mark and he pulled the ball down and took off running far too quickly, a sign that rather than seeing the coverages, he was seeing the pass rush. That’s never good for a quarterback. If Meyer wanted to run a two-QB system like the Gators had in 2006 with Chris Leak and Tebow, Newton’s the guy. However, if, as Meyer’s said, he wants to run the same package of plays with both of them, don't expect Newton to be ready by Aug. 30.

Here are some other points from the game:

- QB John Brantley, with his jammed hand in a cast, didn’t play. As previously stated, it's doubtful Newton will be ready to be the No. 2 guy, but Brantley may be. Unfortunately, fans and observers will have to wait until two-a-days this summer to find out.

- Junior college transfer WR Carl Moore (ankle) was out, which was disappointing for fans. Everyone knows what Cornelius Ingram, Louis Murphy and Percy Harvin can do, so they were eager to see Moore. He had moments during the spring practices but was inconsistent.

- Tebow played dirty when he blew up Major Wright on Lorenzo Edwards’ 50-yard interception return, while Wright was forbidden from returning the favor. No doubt that Wright will remember that hit when fall practice starts.

- The patchwork offensive line showed flashes of nastiness to come. Though several linemen were limited (or didn’t play at all) thanks to injuries, the run blocking was pretty impressive against a seemingly uninspired defensive front seven. On a second-quarter Chris Rainey off-tackle run, Jim Barrie, Mike Pouncey, Kyle Newell, and tight end Aaron Hernandez completely crushed the defense.

- Though Carlos Dunlap recorded a spring game-record four sacks, it looked like he kept inching further to the outside to give himself a clean line to the quarterback. As a result, he was often out of position to defend the run.

- On his 65-yard touchdown catch and run, Rainey showed he’s been paying attention to running backs coach Kenny Carter.

- After an impressive 19-yard run in the third quarter, Emmanuel Moody, on the other hand, did not. The good news is that immediately after the goal-line fumble, Carter cornered Moody for a perfect opportunity to drive home his point.

- Speaking of Moody, he is going to be an SEC star. Despite limping noticeably throughout the game, he gained 111 yards and scored a touchdown on just 14 carries. After the game Meyer insisted, “He will not play football if there’s a chance [the ball’s] falling on the ground.” Expect Carter to work closely with Moody between now and the start of fall practice and look for Moody to win the starting job.

- Matt Patchan playing on the defensive line sounded silly on Friday. After Saturday, however, it looked like a pretty good idea. Though he’s still probably 30 pounds too light to play offensive tackle in the SEC, on defense his athleticism allowed him to consistently shed blockers and was around the football on most plays. Not bad for a kid who turned 18 just 10 days before the game.

- Corners Wondy Pierre-Louis and Joe Haden looked solid and the defensive backfield is deep but young, with Jacques Rickerson, Markihe Anderson, Ahmad Black, Major Wright, and Moses Jenkins giving the Gators seven solid players with incoming freshman Will Hill still to report.

All in all, there was plenty of good news for Gator fans. Tebow is Tebow, and Rainey is Harvin. Moody, Harvin, and the rest of the receivers will be ready for the fall and it wouldn't be surprising to see the Gators' offense hang 50-plus points on Hawaii and rebuilding Miami before they open their SEC schedule in Knoxville on Sept. 20. If the offensive line can get and stay healthy, and if the defensive front seven can carry itself well, the Gators look to have the playmakers in place to shine in 2008.
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About Joe Mayes

Joe Mayes is an award-winning writer with credits ranging from national sports columns to local newspapers and commercial and technical writing. Joe is the host of "The Morning Wrap," a morning drive-time sports talk radio show on WTKE-FM in Northwest Florida.
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