Florida Gators Roster is Built for Long-Term Success Under Billy Napier, if He Lasts

the Florida Gators have done a better job recently in setting themselves up for future success you are locked on Gators your daily podcast on the Florida Gators part of the locked on podcast Network your team every day hello and welcome back to another episode of lockon gators part of the lockon podcast Network you Team every day thanks for making lockdown Gator your first listen of the day every day we are available daily and free weev in the podcast and on YouTube happy Thursday I'm Brandon Olson find me on Twitter at wns Brandon find all my written work with giants country New York Giants on si.com uh and also find our Dynasty modes with whole n Sports w h o l n i n Sports on YouTube we've got Florida Nevada and a team Builder uh today's episode is brought to you by Game Time download the game time app cre account need could locked on college for $20 off your first purchase terms to apply and when I say that the Flor Gators have done a better job or done a good job of setting themselves up for future success I mean that from yeah the building blocks time um if you don't know what the building blocks are prepare to be a better fan a a smarter fan now Thomas demitro former general manager of the Atlanta Falcons I know a lot of you probably like because I feel like we've got a lot of Falcons fans Braves fans uh listening I hate the Braves um but Thomas mitrov was a longtime general manager of the Atlanta Falcons and he had a thought process when setting the team up it was you want to have a key player a franchise player at the premium positions the pillar positions okay those pillar positions are considered the most important parts of a team the most important individual positions in football it is quarterback offensive tackle pass catcher pass rusher and outside cornerback okay so basically who wins passing situations offensive tackle versus your best Edge rusher receiver versus your best corner quarterback making the tough decisions right so I think for us we're going to look at this as the present and the future which is why I say they've got they've done a good job of setting themselves up for the future because for the present you have to be a good player and I mean a player where you're not really gonna have too much of of a debate about well are they a good player we're going to avoid that okay um so for example when we get the tackle I I don't think he got one uh but quarterback's obviously the most important position and Florida is just absolutely crushed it here not in terms of qual in terms of quantity but in terms of quality Florida's got Graham Herz he's a good quarterback I don't care I I've said like I think he's limited as far as the NFL goes I think he's pretty physically capped and I think that that that will limit him come time for the NFL drafts and everything but there's no doubt in my mind he's a good quarterback you know how I know he's a good quarterback because well I don't say he's not going to get drafted I don't say he's not going to go to the NFL I know he's going to get a shot in the NFL I know he's going to get a fair shot in the NFL it's probably going to be a draft pick I just don't think he's going to be an early one the fact that I'm saying I know he's going to get drafted like I know he's going to get a shot in the NFL is good enough to say he's he's a good player because he's not going to get drafted based off his athletic ability like AR went fourth overall not because of his quarterback play but because of what he can be with his athletic ability and his skill set Graham is not going to get drafted for that Graham is going to get drafted because he's mechanically sound he doesn't screw up often and he's shown that he can show up for you in in moments like I look I remember when gr Merz committed to play for Florida I remember looking at it and saying and coming on this show and saying you know what I don't have anything against Instagram I think he'll be average I think that he won't lose you games but I don't think he'll win you games I don't think he lost you any games last year if you're Florida there was no game where I go man that's on Graham and part of that's because the defense was so bad that it was easy to say it's on them part of that's the offensive line so bad that it's easy to say it's on them but also part of is that Graham doesn't make a lot of critical errors he makes errors holds the ball too long takes a sack doesn't throw the ball away things like that he does I don't think anybody will deny that he does that and if you do deny that you're lying um but he doesn't turn the ball over frequently at three picks all of them were tipped by his own players last year things like that and he's shown the ability to lead you whether he's driving down the field in a crucial moment like or just being your quarterback keeping you steady that South Carolina game last year I've said it I think that was that was an important game for Billy Napier because everybody was counting you out everybody and what did your team do rallied and didn't stop didn't quit and kept the same energy the whole time there were some lucky breaks ball hits Ricky pall's hands pops up Trey Wilson Dives and catches it there were some lucky breaks but to have the mentality to work through that comeback is is crucial so for the present you've got Graham Merz he's your QB for the future I I'm I'm setting this as objective as possible the future has to be a blue chip player that has been in college for no longer than one season or a player that or a blue chip player that hasn't gotten to college yet so anyone from the 2023 class 2024 class 2025 6 future whatever anyone from there so for Florida 2023 class no Blue Chip q but 2024 class the best quarterback in the country that's who you got DJ lagway of course you've got that guy and last time we did this about eight months ago last time you did this you still had that answer however last time we did this you didn't have another answer because now you have another building block there if you're Florida because you've got will Griffin in 2026 you don't have a kid for 2025 but 2026 you've got will Griffin so you got gram Merz good player don't care about any disagreement you have good player I don't think he's great I don't think he's exceptional good player though DJ lagway Blue Chip player that's been there for less than a year it's his first year right will Griffin Blue Chip quarterback that hasn't even gotten on campus yet quarterback Florida's done a fantastic job of setting themselves up longterm for Success other positions maybe not not as certain but maybe we'll talk about those next on lockd on Gators game time is an authorized ticket Marketplace of Major League Baseball which makes getting tickets faster and easier prices on the game time app actually go down the closer that it gets to the first pitch with killer last minute deals Allin prices views from your seat and their lowest price guarantee game time takes the guest work out of buying MLB tickets or concert tickets or college football tickets wink wink I will be at the Florida game versus Miami bought my tickets on game time yeah take the guess workk out of buying MLB tickets at game time download the game time app create an account you could locked on college for $20 off your first purchase turn Supply again create an account redeem code locked on college for $20 off download game time today last minute tickets lowest price guaranteed thanks for Mak lock down Gator your first listen of the day every day we are available daily and free wherever you listen to podcast and on YouTube and this segment we're going to talk about the rest of the offensive positions makes sense right we talked about quarterback we explained the building blocks the pillar positions premium positions whatever you want to call it now we're going to pass catcher and offensive tackle and by pass catcher I I mean receiver I don't mean tight end I think tight end you'd have to be one of one like you have to be Kyle pittz if you want to call Travis KY a tight end Travis KY he's a SL receiver for me um things like that right past catcher you look at the present I'm torn I'll be honest I'm I'm a little torn on it because Eugene Willison the Third he hasn't been used like an elite Wide Receiver right usually was not there to a true freshman last year was a true freshman All-American deserves everything incredible player with the ball in the sand what I'm talking about when I say is he a Bonafide good football player that you can't even argue I don't know you could you can definitely say just as a playmaker absolutely but as a wide receiver have we seen him do it frequently Arkansas was the first game last year where he like went down field and found success Georgia still underneath but a little bit further he ran the dig that he caught in touchdown I will say Eugene Wilson the third I'm gonna give it to Florida here mostly because I think he's a tremendous talent I think he could be a good route Runner I just think he wasn't used like one but as far as talent I don't really have the question about Trey it is strictly what do you have there like like what are you what are you going to use him as that's what it is for me as far as the future Trey Wilson counts for that too his last year was his true freshman season Dre Hawkins counts for that this season T TJ Abrams toasy Abrams counts as that for this season Aiden myel still counts as it Burnell Brown theii for 2026 for 2025 counts Joshua Moore for 2025 counts you've got six players at receiver that are blue chip players okay Blue Chip players with less than a year of college experience that's pretty damn good I don't know if you know that that's pretty damn good and there's also guys like Andy Jean who when he was coming out of high school there was a big talking point of like why isn't he a Blue Chip player I don't know man I don't make the rules but he wasn't but you have players like that where you still feel pretty damn good about them they're just not blue N/A players offensive tackle I am not going to give it to Florida this time okay and and here's my reasoning for it Austin Barber very high ceiling I know that a lot of people are really optimistic about what he's going to do this year and I'm cool with that I'm not not going to fault you for feeling optimistic I'm not going to fault you for feeling positive about him however to this point I can't say he's a definite good player I understand he was hurt last year I get that him being hurt last year and playing awful does not mean that because he's healthy he's going to play great right he could be awful he could be amazing he could be the best tackle we've seen in gamesville for a long time but we don't know that and so that's where I I can't give it to Austin Barber I I simply can't I can't go oh yeah without a doubt he's going to be a really good player this year I can't and you can't either and if you do say that you can say that you're lying to yourself just know that Brandon kensaw Dixon San Diego State offensive tackle very productive career at San Diego State very good film from San Diego State but there's that question of can you go from the Mountain West to thec and still pop like that like can you go from the Mountain West at San Diego State to the SEC and still look as good as you looked at at San Diego State we'll find out but that alone is a big enough question mark for me to say I can't definitively say that the answer is yes so for me that's that's where I'm I'm out on that one where I just can't say it or not out I don't want I don't want to seem like I don't think he'll do it I think both can be pretty good I think Brandon CR Dixon will be good I think Austin Barber I said this when he was finishing his red Shir refreshment season I was like he's got a really high ceiling he's an a atic tackle he can do everything physically Wise It's just about putting it together if he does put it together this year I'll tell you what if Austin Barbara puts it together this year he won't be with Florida next year he will be in the NFL and he will be a top 80 pick which is damn good future you've got Fletcher wall 2024 class you've got a blue chip offensive tackle in Fletcher Westfall right then and you can look at the 2023 class as well uh and at offensive tackle you have Kaden Jones Kaden Jones was a consensus fourstar offensive tackle that's a blue chip so you've got two blue chip offensive tackles in your on your roster right now that have been in college for less than a year you don't have any offensive lineman committed for 2025 or 2026 but as far as do you have players at those premium positions yep both both both tackle spots you could say you have a blue chip player that's considered a future building block Kaden Jones last year was his freshman year didn't play buter westall this year is going to be his freshman year highly doubt he plays but you've got guys that that fit the criteria again this is objective it is not me saying whether or not I think they're going to work out it is not me saying whether or not anything it is me saying are they a chip recruit that has been in college less than a year or has not entered College yet and is committed to the Florida Gators yes then that's it it is not opinion based at all so yeah because I think pass catcher could be different I think defensively we could talk about different things right but we're not we are about to talk about the defense we do have to talk about the defense we're going to talk about that next which I'm really excited for on lockdown game to wrap up today's episode of lock on Gators we are talking about the pass rusher and the cornerback and I will say this pass rusher I'm a little more lenient on pass rusher than I am on pass catcher because I think pass catcher at tight end like you could because it's fast catcher you could say tight end but you need to be an elite tight end George KD Kyle pittz um you can go back to Brock Bowers for college like that that kind of gamechanging tight end and I think for recruits it's really hard to to even say any of them can do that iir Jackson's really good but he's a project player he needs to get College ready so that's where I fall but pass rusher I think a lot of people want to say who's at Edge right but I think you can look at just just defensive line because especially now in in football interior pressure is so valuable being able to have a a three tack a defensive tackle that can rush the passer from the interior is so crucial because what's the quickest way from point A to point B a straight line when you've got someone on the interior that can get there that's a really short distance to cover right so interior pass rusher has gone up in value so while people say Edge rusher I I like to talk about pass rushers I look at it similar to tight end but not as egregious right like tight end I'm talking about you know do you have a a a Kyle pittz a George k a Travis Kelce if if you want to talk about them as as the guys that you're bringing up but I think when we look at the interior defensive line you can can look at guys like I I mean there's obviously the Aaron Donald's that you can talk about and you can get okay well them maybe but you also could look at guys that are more situational because it it's just having a good pass treasure at those spots not saying someone who you know plays 15% of your snaps 20% of your snaps but someone who's out there for 55 60% of them that he's there for most of your snaps he's really good pass ressure at some spots maybe he's not thought of as as a game-changing defensive lineman but he's up there like like Leonard Williams is a damn good pass rusher from the interior but you're not g to talk about him as a future franchise player or anything like that right so I think that when you look at the defensive line presently none and I don't think you can argue that Prince Li on M left he would be a guy that would say yep presly princ think he counts Elite pass pressure and I I I know that a lot of people hate him I don't think you could argue he's an Elite pass rush um but as far as who you have proven nobody proven production pass pressure you don't have it cayb Banks had your second most pressures last year and he had half the pressures prinsley had and it's not because oh he was getting so much attention no he wasn't that good last year last year was his first year playing any significant snaps he was very inconsistent showed good flashes but very inconsistent this year hoping he put it together more so present I don't think you have a guy that could say yep definitely a good pass rusher Tyreek Sapp and Justice Boon no justice Boon's got like 300 snaps play in his career Tyreek sap has not flashed Out Future Kelly Collins Cameron James TJ CI LJ McCrae is here now Jaylen Wiggins is committed for the 2025 class the future you've got a lot of guys you could talk about there the future hell yeah there's a lot of people that you can go yep that guy's gonna be the gonna be the real deal pass rusher that we have right because odds are one of them's gonna hit Kelby Collins is playing the three Tech spot you could be an elite premium pass rusher from the three Tech spot we just had a conversation about that you can do that TJ cersi starting a jack this year hopefully ceiling way up there TJ Seri if he reaches expectations this year he's going to be considered a damn good pass rusher LJ McCrae top defensive lineman in the country last year guess what he's a damn good pass rusher what he supposed to be doing right Jaylen Wiggins supposed to be a really good pass rusher all these guys that we're talking about we go yeah they're blue chip players like they fit that spot for the future absolutely that further goes to what I said earlier you've got guys at every position you do for the future you've got guys your present you might not have right now present so far we're two for two right or two and two we got QB we got pass catcher we don't have offensive tackle we don't have Adra or past rure so far two for two in present but future every single position has multiple players that's important that matters and there's outside corner I specify outside corner because you're not frequently thinking of your your star your slot Corner in college as your best corner they don't typically shadow in college but outside corner do you have a proven guy I don't think so Jason Marshall's film has been wildly inconsistent he ended 2023 on a strong note he did he had some flashes in 2023 but he also had the will Sheard face mask play which I understand yeah yeah got a finger in the face mask he was recovered by the time the B got to will Shepard and he was complaining to the rup about it Tennessee he just got straight up beat whiffed on his press touchdown he's had a lot of negative moments you can't be considered a a definitive good player there if you've got as many negative moments as Jason Marshall has had Devin Moore film really good you can't be considered a definitive really good football player really good building block if you're not healthy how are you supposed to be a pillar player if you're never holding up everybody else if you're never holding up the foundation of the program you can't be so no presently you don't have one however for the future which again Blue Chip player at the position and love this one blue chip player at the position with less than one or one or less seasons in college football 2023 class 2024 class 2025 and Beyond jaem Jackson 23 class desan Johnson 2023 class Corman mlan 2023 class jir Grimsley 2024 class nobody in 2025 class got little drip Jaylen Waters in the 2026 class you've got guys multiple future building blocks at every single position if you're floor present might be rough but as far as just the pure roster building aspect of this futurewise you're setting yourself up in damn good position that deserves to be acknowledged that deserves credit thanks M lock down G is your first listen of the day every day we are available daily and free reviews in the podcast and on YouTube we'll be back tomorrow we're talking Florida and Miami for on Gators I'm Brandon Olson don't forget to follow me on Twitter at wns Brandon find all my written work with giants country and NFL 33 and I will see you all next time