Six Florida Gators defensive players who impressed during fall camp
GAINESVILLE, Fla. — The Florida Gators wrapped up fall camp on Friday afternoon with a scrimmage. The Gators will travel west to take on the Utah Utes in less than two weeks to kick off the 2023 football season.
Gators Online spoke with program sources to gather a list of players that the coaching staff has been impressed with. These are six players on the defensive side of the ball that Florida’s coaching staff is excited about.
Gators who impressed the coaching staff during fall camp
DL Caleb Banks
The redshirt sophomore comes to Florida from Louisville. Banks enrolled in the spring after spending two years with the Cardinals. Ha played in one game in 2021 while redshirting. In 2022, Banks played in six games. He recorded his first career sack and forced a fumble against Wake Forest.
“Coming from Louisville, not really playing much, I was kind of scared deciding what school I wanted to go to, if I wanted to go higher or lower,” Banks said last week. “And I believed that I was a good enough player to go to a higher school and actually do what I was able to in high school and what I was supposed to do at Louisville. I believed in myself.”
That belief has paid off. Banks has earned a starting job next to Cam Jackson on the interior defensive line.
S Jordan Castell
The safety room will enter the 2023 season as one of the biggest question marks on the team. The Gators have had to move a receiver to the room to add depth. They added RJ Moten from Michigan, but the group as a whole hasn’t given a ton of reason for optimism this season. It’s a young group that has struggled with tackling and will need to improve.
“That’s one of the areas on our team where young players are going to have to play, there’s no question, Billy Napier said. “The Jordan Castell project, the Bryce Thornton project, and certainly Kamari and Miguel both being young players who had some experience playing last year but not necessarily returning starters. That room is a room where we’re doing a lot of work.”
One player that has taken advantage of a lackluster room is freshman Jordan Castell. The freshman from Orlando enrolled in the spring and has quickly earned his place on the team. While Moten, provides veteran leadership and experience, the Gators will need to rely on young players. Kamari Wilson and Miguel Mitchell came out of spring penciled in as the starting safeties but Moten and Castell could change that. If not for the first game, at some point this season.
CB Ja’Keem Jackson
One of the Gators’ cornerback spots will be locked up by Jason Marshall. If healthy, Devin Moore and Jalen Kimber appear to be in a battle for the second starting spot, while Jadarrius Perkins and Jaydon Hill handle the STAR position.
One freshman that will absolutely see the field on defense is Ja’Keem Jackson. The four-star cornerback was ranked as the best cornerback in the state of Florida by On3. Jackson is a pure cover corner. He’s athletic and has flashed his ability since enrolling early in the spring.
“I think we’ve been pretty happy with Ja’Keem Jackson at corner,” linebackers coach Jay Bateman said in the spring. “I don’t want to speak for C-Ray, but he jumps out at me.”
Jackson just puts himself in positions to make plays and he’s been a bandit, getting his hands on passes regularly. Jackson was a late riser in the recruiting rankings but he’s going to get on the field this fall and make an impact for the Gators.
EDGE TJ Searcy
The Georgia native is one of the most physically gifted players in the class.
“Probably one of the freakier dudes in the group,” 6’5-1/4″, 250 pounds-plus, probably 260 now. This guy played tight end, outside linebacker as a junior, and played more of a 4-3 end as a senior. Unique movements for this size now and a very disruptive player.”
Searcy spent most of the spring working with Mike Peterson on setting the edge and getting better in run defense. He’s a bonified pass rusher and will make his living getting to the quarterback. Right now he’s working on getting more well-rounded. With Justus Boone’s season-ending knee injury, the Gators will push younger players into the mix right away.
“I’m really excited about the young group of edge players,” Billy Napier said. “I would like to know if there’s a better group of young edge players in the country. You think about Kelby [Colins], Kamran [James], TJ [Searcy], Jack’s [Pyburn] a, young player. I think that room there, we’re just gonna have to live with growing pains if that makes sense. You know, but I do think those guys are excited about the opportunity.”
LB Teradja Mitchell
Mitchell played four seasons at Ohio State and finished his stint with 63 total tackles, 31 solo tackles, seven tackles for loss, and one pass deflection. He played just four games in 2022 but did not log any stats.
As a member of the Class of 2018, Mitchell was a four-star recruit out of Virginia Beach (Va.) Bayside, according to the On3 Industry Ranking, a weighted average that utilizes all four major recruiting media companies. He was the No. 2 overall prospect in the state, the No. 5 overall linebacker in the class, and the No. 35 overall prospect in the class.
He arrived at Florida in the spring and less than one month after getting on campus was directing plays and players on the field like Steven Spielberg on a movie set. He’s a veteran player. A strong voice on the field and in the locker room and will be the Gators starting middle linebacker.
DT Jamari Lyons
To be honest, this was a name we were surprised to hear. The interior defensive line seems to be set. Caleb Banks and Cam Jackson are set to start. Chris McClellan and Desmond Watson back them up. Still, you can never have enough depth. The 6-4, 308-pounder appeared in three games last season.
Last season the Gators played two defensive tackles and more than 1,000 snaps. It hurt the team. If the defensive line isn’t getting a pass rush because they’re tired the defensive backs have to cover longer. If they’re not filling their gaps because they’re tired, offensive linemen will get to the second level or running backs can get into the open field easily, forcing the secondary to make open-field tackles in space. This year the Gators have depth and Lyons is working his way into that group.
The post Six Florida Gators defensive players who impressed during fall camp appeared first on On3.
