Gators at a glance

2001 schedule Sept. 1 vs. Marshall Sept. 8 vs. Louisiana Monroe Sept. 15 vs. Tennessee Sept. 22 at Kentucky Sept. 29 vs. Mississippi St. Oct. 6 at LSU Oct. 13 at Auburn Oct. 27 at Georgia Nov. 3 vs. Vanderbilt Nov. 10 at South Carolina Nov. 17 vs. Florida St. 2000 results (10-3, 8-1 SEC) Ball State W 40-19 Middle Tenn. St. W 55-0 at Tennessee W 27-23 Kentucky W 59-31 at Mississippi St. L 47-35 LSU W 41-9 Auburn W 38-7 Georgia W 34-23 at Vanderbilt W 43-20 South Carolina W 41-21 at Florida State L 30-7 Auburn W 28-6 vs. Miami (Fla.) L 37-20

While this is a young football team overall, there is plenty of high-level talent spread out on both the offensive and defensive side of the ball. They also are fortunate to have a veteran placekicker returning in Jeff Chandler, who has already established himself as the Gators' all-time leading scorer and field-goal maker. His conversion percentage on field goals is at the top of the Gators' chart as well.

OFFENSE
As always, the key to the success of Spurrier's wide-open, complex pass offense is the performance of the QB, who has to be precise and accurate, with decision-making scrutinized on a play-to-play basis. In the spring, Rex Grossman had his good moments but reportedly lacked consistency. This opened the door for Brock Berlin, who was able to close the gap to the point where he and Grossman are basically even heading into fall practice.

The running game should be solid, although there really isn't a defined featured back who figures to get the majority of the carries. Earnest Graham finished strong last year, relying on strength and a hard-nosed approach for his success. But he's not shifty or elusive. The change-of-direction type is Robert Gillespie, but at just 5-9 and 178 pounds, the concern is whether he can withstand the punishment. The RB who seemed to emerge in the spring was redshirt freshman Willie Green. The 5-9, 215-pounder underwent knee surgery last summer and was expected to be limited throughout spring practice. But that wasn't the case, as Green turned some heads with his ability to make defenders miss in the hole. He also caught the ball well. Ran Carthon also impressed in the spring, but a shoulder injury sent him to the sidelines for the final two weeks of the practice sessions.

While there is outstanding competition at the RB spot, there is some concern about the FB position. Rob Roberts was shifted back to FB from TE but underwent knee surgery the last week of spring practice. This forced untested youngster Ray Snell to move in with the first team. Remember, in the Gators' offense, the FB has to be able to effectively handle blocking responsibilities, with blitz pickup also a key.

While Jabar Gaffney is the primary headliner and Reche Caldwell is a proven performer, the wideout who garnered the most positive commentary in the spring was junior Taylor Jacobs. Remember, under Spurrier, the third and fourth options have always been pivotal in the success of the Gators offense. At one point in their college careers with the Gators, that was the role of players such as Jacquez Green and Chris Doering. Also pushing for serious playing time at WR will be talented sophomore Carlos Perez. Fellow sophomores Kelvin Kight and Matt Jackson are in the mix as well.

With the talent on hand, look for the Gator TEs to provide more of an impact than they have in recent years. Junior Aaron Walker is a quality athlete who reportedly came a long way in the spring. The 6-6, 254-pounder definitely provides an ideal target. Also heavily in the mix will be sophomore Ben Troupe, who moved ahead of Kirk Wells on the depth chart. Troupe, a 6-4, 250-pounder, can stretch the deep middle area and shows potential as a blocker.

The Gators have the potential to field an outstanding offensive line. Junior LT Mike Pearson ranks as one of the best at his position in college football, while huge (6-7, 360) sophomore LT Max Starks, the son of former Notre Dame All-American DE and Cincinnati Bengal Ross Browner, is coming off an excellent spring. Looking to provide some competition for Starks in the fall will be highly regarded freshman Mo Mitchell. He originally signed with Alabama a year ago, but ended up going to prep school. Mitchell signed with the Gators in February and will be seeing his first action during fall practice. Tommy Moody is a lock to open at RG, but there figures to be plenty of competition at the LG spot. Sophomore Shannon Snell is considered the LG front-runner going in, but don't count out senior Erik Strange. If things don't come together at LG as expected, you could see either David Jorgensen or Zac Zedalis move over from the center position. Zedalis, who came off the injury list to enjoy a solid spring, will be challenging Jorgensen for the starting job in the pivot. Jorgensen sat out spring practice while working his way back to full strength from wrist surgery during the offseason.

DEFENSE
On defense, the Gators should field one of the best back sevens in the SEC, with LB and the secondary an obvious strength. With all the injuries the Gators sustained at LB last year, a number of young players were able to gain playing experience. At MLB, Travis Carroll, who missed spring practice due to offseason shoulder surgery but is expected to be 100 percent in the fall, will be challenged for the starting job by Andra Davis. A 6-1, 255-pound senior, Davis was regarded as the Gators' top LB in '99 before suffering a knee injury in last year's opener. Davis was back on the field in the spring and is reportedly close to 100 percent. At OLB, the potential starters include junior Mike Nattiel, sophomore Matt Farrior, junior Marcus Oquendo-Johnson, junior Byron Hardmon and sophomore Travis Harris. There is also a chance that Carroll or Davis could be shifted to strongside LB.

The secondary is equally deep and talented. Junior CB Lito Sheppard will be counted on to put the clamps on the opposition's top wideout. Sheppard is a big-time SEC CB. Opposite Sheppard will be either Robert Cromartie or Bennie Alexander, both seniors. Cromartie appears to have the slight edge going into the fall. While extremely talented, Alexander will be looking to show the necessary consistency to beat out Cromartie. The safety spots are set with Marquand Manuel and Todd Johnson, while sophomore Guss Scott provides outstanding depth behind Manuel at SS and figures to again be a valuable and underrated member of the Gators' deep patrol.

Unlike past years, the defensive line is not the Gators' strong suit this season. Not only has super blue-chipper Gerard Warren moved on to the Cleveland Browns, but the Gators also have to make up for the graduation losses of Derrick Chambers and Buck Gurley. That's why it's so critical that senior DE Alex Brown play up to the level of his enormous talent on a series-to-series and game-to-game basis. Brown made a wise decision to return for his final campaign in Gainesville. Now viewed as a team leader, Brown has the potential to rank as the most feared outside-pass rusher in college football. Sophomore Clint Mitchell will open at the other DE spot, although strong competition is being provided by another talented sophomore, Darrell Lee.

The primary area of concern on defense is at tackle. Replacing Warren will be a tall order. Even when he wasn't wreaking havoc on his own, Warren was occupying blockers and freeing up his teammates along the defensive front. One player to watch, though, is sophomore Ian Scott. The talented 6-2, 305-pounder saw a great deal of action as a freshman last season and could become a real force in the SEC. Junior Tron LaFavor and juco transfer Bryan Savelio are in the mix at the other DT spot.

SPECIAL TEAMS
While Jeff Chandler is Florida's all-time leading scorer and one of the elite kickers in the nation, the punting job is up in the air heading into the fall. The hope is that freshman Matt Leach will prove to be the right man for the job in August.

Overview: The Gators will be looking to become the first team in SEC history to win at least nine games in 12 consecutive seasons. Folks, that tells you all you need to know about the phenomenal job Spurrier has done since taking over as the Gators head coach in 1990. By the way, in addition to the Gators, Florida State and Nebraska also have streaks of nine-plus wins in 11 consecutive seasons. Even though there are eight bowl teams on the schedule, the Gators will be facing Tennessee, Mississippi State and Florida State at The Swamp. Their most difficult road battle will take place Oct. 6 in Baton Rouge when they face a talented LSU squad.

Whether it is Grossman or Berlin who emerges at QB, the Gator signal caller will be surrounded by an excellent group of WRs as well as a better situation at TE with the pass-catching potential displayed by Walker and Troupe. While there is depth at RB, it will be interesting to see if Graham or Green win out as the primary feature back, with Gillespie providing a nice change of pace. The offensive line, led by super blue-chip LT Mike Pearson, should come together very well. Outstanding senior PK Chandler also returns.