You may be aware that Florida's depth chart is set to be released Monday, giving the world a first look this fall at Will Muschamp's two-deep for the 2012 season and settling the Jacoby Brissett vs. Jeff Driskel battle at quarterback. Except I think it will do the former and not the latter, and not just because both quarterbacks will play against Bowling Green.
Here's our final projected Florida depth chart:
Offense
| Position | First-String | Second-String | |
|---|---|---|---|
| QB | Jacoby Brissett | OR Jeff Driskel | Tyler Murphy |
| RB | Mike Gillislee | Mack Brown | |
| FB | Hunter Joyer | Trey Burton | |
| WR – X | Frankie Hammond | Latroy Pittman | OR Solomon Patton |
| WR – Z | Quinton Dunbar | Andre Debose | |
| TE | Jordan Reed | Tevin Westbrook | OR Omarius Hines |
| F-Back | Trey Burton | OR Omarius Hines | |
| LT | Xavier Nixon | D.J. Humphries | |
| LG | James Wilson | Kyle Koehne | |
| C | Jonotthan Harrison | Sam Robey | |
| RG | Jon Halapio | Jessamen Dunker | |
| RT | Chaz Green | Matt Patchan |
Defense
| Position | First-String | Second-String | |
|---|---|---|---|
| DE | Dominique Easley | Earl Okine | |
| NT (5T) | Omar Hunter | Damien Jacobs | |
| DT (3T) | Sharrif Floyd | Leon Orr | |
| Buck | Lerentee McCray | Dante Fowler | |
| Sam | Neiron Ball | Darrin Kitchens | |
| Mike | Jonathan Bostic | Michael Taylor | |
| Will | Jelani Jenkins | Antonio Morrison | |
| LCB | Marcus Roberson | Jaylen Watkins | |
| FS | Josh Evans | De'Ante Saunders | OR Valdez Showers |
| SS | Matt Elam | Jabari Gorman | |
| RCB | Loucheiz Purifoy | Cody Riggs | |
| Nickel | Matt Elam | OR Cody Riggs | De'Ante Saunders |
Special Teams
| Position | First-String | Second-String |
|---|---|---|
| K | Caleb Sturgis | Austin Hardin |
| P | Kyle Christy | Caleb Sturgis |
| KR | Andre Debose | Mike Gillislee |
| PR | Marcus Roberson | Solomon Patton |
| LS | Drew Ferris | Kyle Crofoot |
| H | John Crofoot | Tyler Murphy |
Some quick notes on this after the jump.
- The more I thought about it, the more I convinced myself that there's no way Muschamp et al. won't play the OR game with Brissett and Driskel. Someone's gonna take the first snap on Saturday, and, at some point, we may have a starter formally named, but this is going to be what's put on the paper.
- Matt Jones isn't listed here. I think he'll get carries against Bowling Green, though, and might be the OR player behind Mack Brown.
- You may notice that there is a lot of Latroy Pittman on this list. This is because I think he could bring a lot more to the offense than Stephen Alli (who was behind Debose at the X in the spring) and about as much as Solomon Patton. I don't know if the coaches agree with me.
- That backup tight end spot could be Hines or Westbrook or Clay Burton.
- There could be an F-Back spot on the depth chart, and there could not be one. It's a position in Brent Pease's offense, but it wasn't listed on the spring depth chart.
- Floyd was listed at DE in the spring, because of Easley's ACL tear. Now that Easley's back at his natural end position, Floyd slides back to the 3-technique position where he can be devastating.
- I think Damien Jacobs fits better at nose tackle than DT. That may be wishful thinking.
- Bostic and Jenkins are just about the best bets Florida to stay in starting roles all year.
- As for that Sam (strong-side) linebacker spot, I think Ball's speed and rushing ability have moved him ahead of Kitchens. I also think that Muschamp recognizes that having Ball start makes a kid who has rebounded from tragedy to be a leader a person guys will listen to on the field.
- The only thing I feel good about in the secondary is that it'll be Roberson and Purifoy in the starting spots at corner and Elam and Evans at safety. Florida listed a nickel back in the spring, and it was Matt Elam. I don't expect that to happen again.
- Last year, on this depth chart of the first game week, Florida listed Jordan Reed as the second-string punt returner. Which ... no.
- I listed Tyler Murphy at second-string holder because he was holding for kicks while other QBs were doing throwing drills at practice last week. That may be more reflective of how far down he is on the depth chart at QB
What do you think about this depth chart? Am I grievously wrong anywhere? Are there any players you wish were on this list or higher on it than they are here?