Florida football held its second practice of fall camp on Thursday at the Sanders Practice Fields.
In all, the Florida Gators will hold 17 practices over 22 days in camp to prepare for their season opener on Aug. 31 at The Swamp against Miami.
“This is our third year going into a big game,” Florida defensive lineman Justus Boone said. “I feel like it’s safe to say that being at Florida, that’s what’s gonna happen. You’re gonna be in big games. So, honestly, not emphasizing too much on the first game or nothing like that. Just emphasizing on being better each day and doing what we need to do with people to prepare for whatever we gotta do.”
Florida coach Billy Napier said he expects this year’s camp to be the most competitive in his three years as coach, based on 14 starters returning on offense and defense and a squad with more than 41,000 snaps of experience.
Here are three takeaways from the 12-minute open portion of practice:
Florida quarterbacks work on deep throws with receivers
Florida quarterbacks continued to work on deep throws with receivers, with mixed results. Starting quarterback Graham Mertz missed receiver Chimere Dike on an over-the-shoulder fade route, but later connected with Eugene Wilson III and hit Aidan Mizell in stride.
Freshman quarterback D.J. Lagway overthrew Elijhah Badger on a deep route before connecting with wide receiver Alex Gonzalez in stride on a nice throw.
Florida is looking to improve its downfield passing game after ranking 13th out of 14 teams in the SEC on pass plays of 30 or more yards (14) last season.
Gerald Chatman continues to push Florida football defensive line
Florida defensive line coach Gerald Chatman was again animated in trying to get through to UF’s defensive line in drills. Chatman was upset with their lack of focus.
Chatman is trying to push a Florida defensive line that totaled just 22 sacks last season, which ranked 12th out of 14 in sacks last season in the conference.
Florida added a new defensive lineman to its roster, JUCO transfer Tarvorise Brown, who took part in his first practice on Thursday. The 6-foot-7, 290-pound Brown played at Hutchinson (Kan.) College last season.
Defensive lineman Jermari Lyons in non-contact jersey
Florida defensive lineman Jermari Lyons was working out in a non-contact jersey on the stationary bike during the open portion of practice. Freshman UF offensive lineman Fletcher Westphal was also in a non-contact jersey for the second straight day.
Florida sophomore wide receiver Andy Jean is back practicing after missing most of the spring with a hamstring issue. Jean had a TD catch in practice on Wednesday and made a few nice grabs in passing drills on Thursday.
This article originally appeared on The Gainesville Sun: Three takeaways from second Florida football practice
The Gainesville Sun
