
Florida’s Secondary Part Two: The Safeties and STAR Rooms
Part two of breaking down the Florida secondary now shifts to the Gators’ last line of defense—the safety and STAR rooms.
The secondary stands out as the biggest area of improvement for Florida’s defense this season. In 2024, Florida’s pass defense struggled. They surrendered 228 yards per game through the air and ranking 11th in the SEC and 83rd nationally. The Gators also gave up far too many explosive plays, as coverage breakdowns repeatedly hurt them. According to Pick Six Previews, Florida ranked 101st nationally in explosive passes allowed at 6.9%.
Despite those struggles, Florida excelled at creating turnovers from 2023 to 2024, especially interceptions. After forcing just three picks in 2023, the Gators generated 14 last season. Junior safety Bryce Thornton returns for his third year after leading the team with three interceptions.
All three starters return from last year, leaving the safety room in better hands this season. Asa Turner and D.J. Douglas are both out of eligibility, and Greg Smith III transferred to North Carolina.
For the third straight year, junior Jordan Castell will lead Florida at the strong safety position. After earning SEC All-Freshman honors in 2023, Castell maintained his starting spot in year two. In 13 games, he led Florida with 732 defensive snaps and recorded 55 total tackles, 29 solo, and one sack. Castell was also strong in pass coverage, holding a 62.9 percent coverage completion percentage and breaking up nine passes.
Castell discussed the improvements he needs to make heading into this season, as well as maintaining the standard set in the safety room.
“Just taking on blocks, doing whatever it takes to help the team win,” Castell said. “It’s a standard for our room, I feel like last year I ain’t make enough plays. I left a lot of plays out there, but really setting the standard, and holding that standard for the young guys.”
Next to Castell, at free safety, will be Thornton, who becomes the Gators’ last line of defense. Thornton missed the first two games of 2024 before bouncing back for the remainder of the year. He finished the year with 41 total tackles, 19 solo, one forced fumble, six pass breakups, and a coverage completion percentage of 59.1. His biggest game came against Ole Miss, where he delivered 14 tackles, along with two game-sealing interceptions off of first-round NFL quarterback Jaxson Dart.
https://twitter.com/SSN_Gators/status/1860420181488468239
“It boosted my confidence. Always believing in myself, had the chance to make the plays. Gave me a lot of confidence,” Thornton said on Aug. 6 about his big day against Ole Miss.
Florida’s biggest question entering fall camp was not who is starting, but figuring out where all the extra pieces on the depth chart fall.
“Who are the fourth, fifth safeties? Who’s the fourth corner? Who’s the fifth edge player?” Head coach Billy Napier said at SEC Media Days in July.
Behind the four capable starters – Castell and Thornton at safety, and junior Sharif Denson and redshirt-sophomore Aaron Gates at STAR, who steps up behind them?
One guy returning from last year looking to create a bigger role for himself is senior Alfonzo Allen Jr.. Allen Jr. transferred from Baylor a season ago, but only appeared in four games, with his best game coming in the bowl win over Tulane. In that game, he recorded his first career interception, along with one solo tackle.
Also competing are two top 100 four-star recruits from this past recruiting cycle – Lagonza Hayward and Drake Stubbs. Florida kept recruiting him even though he had been committed to Tennessee for nearly five months. That work paid off when Hayward decommitted three days before signing day. On Dec. 4, 2024, he signed with Florida. Thornton gave himself credit for recruiting the highly sought-after safety.
“He was at Tennessee, so I tried to get him to flip, and eventually he came here,” Thornton said. ” I was his host, so I was telling him all the good things about Florida, the secondary, how we turn the ball over, why Florida is DBU.”
On Monday, Napier said that Hayward and Southern Mississippi transfer Michael Caraway Jr. have emerged from the group fighting for playing time.
“They both have emerged from that group as guys that are capable, and we’re going to need those guys to continue to make progress,” Napier said. “We have four players in safety that we would consider starters, and then after that, I think those two guys have stepped up.”
As for Stubbs, he, too, has received praise from his fellow teammates for his hard work since arriving on campus last spring.
“He loves football. You can tell that’s his main goal,” Thornton said. “He’s always in the building, always working, trying to find the little things. But you can tell he loves the game.”
Shifting over to the STAR position is where Denson and Gates will take over. After a seven-tackle freshman year, Denson took a big step in year two. He posted 37 tackles, 22 solo, five tackles-for-loss, two sacks, one interception, three passes defended, and one forced fumble.
His counterpart, Gates, has made a miraculous turnaround this offseason after suffering a torn ACL against Ole Miss. Before going down for the year, Gates recorded 27 tackles, four for loss, one interception, four defended passes, and two fumble recoveries.
AARON GATES! Another interception for the Gators defense!
Gates continues to ball out pic.twitter.com/BmcVueLxzH
— Stadium and Gale: A Florida Gators Podcast (@StadiumAndGale) November 2, 2024
“AG back because he loves the game,” Thornton said about his teammate’s drive to get back on the field. “Like you heard Jordan [Castell], he’s always in the building, making sure his knee is right, doing extra things on the side. So it didn’t really surprise me when I saw him back.”
Redshirt freshman Josiah Davis sits behind Denson and Gates on the depth chart. He appeared in two games at STAR and four games overall, recording a tackle on defense against Mississippi State. Opponents caught both of the two targets sent Davis’ way this season.
Check out the other defensive position groups’ previews: Interior defensive line, EDGE, linebacker, and cornerback.
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