Pat Dooley’s Grades: Orange & Blue Game

Pat Dooley grades the Gators’ spring game

Offense B-

First half: Anthony Richardson kind of showed us why he is QB1 on this team, especially on the first two drives. He threw the ball with accuracy and ran the team with pose. Jack Miller was OK at time, but his throw into triple coverage in the end zone was brutal.

Second half: Both offenses slowed down after halftime and the awards were handed out. The Blue scored on a 12-yard TD drive and two long field goals. The second-team offense floundered again.

For the game: It’s very clear that Richardson is Florida’s guy and he had better stay healthy. Miller was mediocre and neither of the two late quarterbacks showed anything. Walk-on Noah Keeter from Buchholz had a really nice game.

Defense C

First half: The good news was that we saw several good plays by guys we have been waiting for to take a step like Derek Wingo and Diwun Black. The bad news was that the first-team defense gave up 21 points.

Second half: The defense definitely got better on both sides and made plays in the secondary (hooray). Tyreak Sapp had a really good night and you could see that Ventrell Miller makes a difference even though he is a little bit out of shape.

For the game: There were some good things to see defensively, especially two interceptions (although both passes were awful). This team has further to go defensively than on offense, but that has been the way it has been for two seasons.

Special teams B

First half: Well, it wasn’t a good start with Demarkcus Bowman fumbling the opening kickoff. Fortunately for him, the Orange team kept the ball. Fenley Graham looked good on a couple of kickoff returns.

Second half: Jeremy Crawshaw had a nice punt in the third quarter that pinned the Orange back at the 11. Then, it was Adam Mihalek time. He made a 52-yarder and a 47-yard field goal. Unfortunately, he also kicked the ball out of bounds in between those kicks.

For the game: Florida did not show a whole lot in terms of special teams because you certainly don’t show anything in a spring game. Mihalek, a redshirt freshman, was certainly the bright spot.

Overall B-

This squad has a long way to go. Richardson is going to be a problem for opposing defenses, but Florida still lacks speed at receiver and turned the ball over four times. This is an important off-season for the Gators, trimming some of the fat and bringing in transfer portal guys. But the ones who are here really need to work on a lot.