Gators Football Starts Spring Practice

The Florida Gators Football team will kick off spring practices on Tuesday under first-year head coach Billy Napier. After losing players from last year’s starting lineup, other players and transfers will work to fill in the positions. This will be the team’s first opportunity to impress their new coaches prior to the 2022 season.

Tomorrow, a new chapter begins.

Narrated by: @DannyWuerffel pic.twitter.com/2tUk6QsRWf

— Florida Gators Football (@GatorsFB) March 14, 2022

Fresh Faces in Gainesville

Billy Napier hired a plethora of new staff for the Gators this season. One standout hire is DB coach Corey Raymond. In 10 seasons at LSU, he produced 7 first team All-Americans and 14 NFL Draft picks. He will be a key factor in building the Gators’ defense in the upcoming season.

https://twitter.com/UF_CoachRaymond/status/1469840604167352330?s=20&t=kyYQbqM8-oqBQzMSyCrLGQ

Aside from new coaches, transfers will also see new opportunities this season. Georgia transfer Jalen Kimber will be a player to look out for. He was ranked as the number eight cornerback nationally in high school and saw only a small amount of play in Athens.

Kimber is joined at Florida by three notable transfers who all came from Louisiana with Napier. Senior O’Cyrus Torrence received all-conference honors as an offensive lineman. He is expected to be a strong addition to Florida. Running back Montrell Johnson was last season’s Sun Belt Conference freshman of the year. He rushed for 12 touchdowns and played all 14 games for Louisiana last season. Napier also brought over offensive tackle Kamryn Waites, who hopes to see more play at Florida this year.

Furthermore, eyes will be on incoming freshmen who have a chance to stand out in their opening season. Four-star safety Kamari Wilson comes to Florida from IMG Academy. Alongside him, cornerback Devin Moore is another four-star prospect who joins the team this season.

BOOM! 5⭐️ Safety, Kamari Wilson from IMG Academy high school in Fort Pierce, Florida has committed to the University Of Florida! 247Sports composite currently ranks Wilson as the No. 28 overall prospect and the No. 2 Safety in the 2022 recruiting class. pic.twitter.com/OTnfXYEzkw

— BeGatorsToday! (@BeGatorsToday) December 15, 2021

Options for Starting Quarterback

Last season, Emory Jones started 12 games for the Gators as QB. However, his recent consideration of the transfer portal leaves questions about his status on the team. He currently remains on the 2022 spring football roster alongside Anthony Richardson, who played eight games in 2021. However, they will be joined by transfer Jack Miller. Miller’s a former four-star signee to Ohio State and played four games last season. Additionally, last year’s redshirts Carlos Del Rio-Wilson and Jalen Kitna join the large pool of quarterback options.

Start of a New Era for Gators Football

Spring training will run from March 15th through April 16th. Napier will be searching to find an identity for the Gators this upcoming season. As the new head coach, he is looking to improve from last season’s sixth-place finish in the SEC East.