Florida football coach Jon Sumrall still has mixed feelings about his offensive line.
The Gators scrimmaged for the first time in fall camp this past weekend with some players standing out while other struggled with consistency.
“Some guys are elevating,” Sumrall told reporters on Monday, Aug. 17. “The challenge there has been consistency. We have to be dialed in. We have to be detailed in assignment, fundamentals and technique.”
The biggest mistake during the scrimmage was the failure to convert in several short-yardage situations with star running back Jadan Baugh in the backfield.
“Each play is different,” Sumrall said. “Sometimes it’s the offensive line, sometimes it’s the back, sometimes the defensive player makes a great play. I would say with consistency, though, I don’t care what’s blocked or ain’t blocked at running back. We got to go get a yard all the time, everybody.
“We got to continue to work on creating movement at the last scrimmage. There’s a couple of really good calls that we have in defensively too that make it really, really stressful for the O-line in short yardage.”
Florida was still rotating linemen between the first and second team during the scrimmage. Overall, Sumrall admitted that he’s confident about the interior offensive line, but is still questioning both tackles.
The Gators’ first-year coach specifically praised Eagan Boyer, who appeared in eight games last season at Penn State, as well as Stanford transfer Emeka Ugorji, who started eight games.
Sumrall also emphasized the need for veteran Caden Jones, who started 10 games last season, to elevate his play.
“Need Caden [Jones] to continue to step up. He needs to play like a veteran, and we’re challenging him every day. The interior probably played cleaner and better all training camp, maybe. On the interior O-line, I feel pretty comfortable with who we are and what we are. Tackle is the biggest question.”
There was also a similar callout for Bryce Lovett, who started two games at tackle last season, to maintain his consistency. Over the offseason, Lovett dropped 43 pounds of fat and put on 20 pounds of muscle.
“He has an ideal tackle body, but he’s good enough to go in and play guard,” Sumrall said. “One of our best short-yardage, goal-line plays last week in our live period was him at right guard and moving the line of scrimmage. “He can be as good as he wants to be, man. Bryce has the ability to be as good as he decides to be. It’s up to him. He’s changed his body. He’s cut out all the fast food and junk he was eating, and he looks like a different athlete. I just want to see him play to his capacity. If he puts in, if he maximizes his potential, the sky is the limit.”
The Gators ran 127 plays during the scrimmage, using a much wider range of plays than they would during a typical game week.
“Right now, the playbook, the volume is really big,” Sumrall said. “We’re not pared down in a game plan mode. That affects everybody in the offense, the quarterbacks, the O-line. I think when the call sheet is that substantial, the volume of plays that you could get called and you have to go execute, that’s a lot.”
Florida will begin to reduce the number of players that will receive reps at certain positions this week.
“The line is getting challenged in a lot of ways, so they’re growing,” Sumrall said. “When we start, a week from now, we’ll start to act like we’re in a game week.
“I do think in the first couple games, you’re going to see us play a few different rotations. It has nothing to do with who we play; it’s because we’ve got to figure out who we are. I’m still not completely sure yet. I have some ideas, but until you go do it against someone wearing a different color jersey, you don’t ever really know.”
Reach Florida Gators writer Andrew Abadie at AAbadie@usatodayco.com or on X (formerly Twitter) at @AndrewAbadie. You can also find him on Facebook at Andrew Abadie Sports Reporter or on Instagram @andrewabadie_sports.
This article originally appeared on The Gainesville Sun: Florida football has questions along o-line after first scrimmage
Reporting by Andrew Abadie, Gainesville Sun / The Gainesville Sun
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Andrew Abadie, Gainesville Sun | USA TODAY Network
