Could Florida Gators Position Battles Last into the 2020 Season?

The six-week college football preseason program might not be enough practice for teams across the nation after the loss of spring football and other team activities this year amidst the global coronavirus.

Without those activities, players were naturally set back on their development track and coaches could only provide so much to their student-athletes. At-home workout plans and virtual meetings became the new norm, until the NCAA allowed schools to begin hosting voluntary workouts on campus this month. In July, the NCAA will allow colleges six weeks to condition, train, and practice in pads prior to the 2020 season's scheduled kickoff on August 29th.

In order for teams to be fully prepared to compete to their fullest extent in 2020, it might take more time for teams to find their chemistry and balance.

"That's one of the challenges this year. One of the big challenges every year is understanding the personality of your team," Florida Gators head coach Dan Mullen said on Tuesday in a Zoom conference call with media. "For us, when you talk about the evaluation, not just the players who are ready to play but the personality of the entire team, and across the board.

"We're just going to have to do that in a restricted window in camp, and it might actually even take a couple weeks into the season until we really find the personality of this team."

The Gators are entering a pivotal year under Mullen, his third on the job following two consecutive New Year's Six Bowl victories. With a veteran quarterback in Kyle Trask leading a roster full of talent, the expectations are being raised and some projections consider Florida to be a threat to push for a College Football Playoff spot.

However, much of the talent on Florida's roster is young, and plenty of key contributors from a season ago must be replaced following graduations and the NFL Draft. The unorthodox offseason certainly slowed down the progress Mullen was making with his team earlier in the year, as spring camp was set to kick off just days after the NCAA suspended team activities.

Hence, position battles at several important positions for Florida: The offensive line, linebacker unit, wide receiver corps, and running back room - positions that lost a combined seven starters and other contributors - likely won't be settled quickly. Units across the roster will be susceptible to change even throughout the initial stretch of the 2020 season - should it happen.

Team chemistry could also take some time to develop as players continue to shake off their rust. Mullen made note that while virtual meetings were certainly a game-changer in terms of communication and building this year's team, it is yet to be seen how effective they'll end up being as the Gators take the field.

"The problem is guys learn very differently, some guys can watch it and learn it, some guys have to write it down and learn it, some guys have to physically do it to learn it," said Mullen.

Of course, this won't solely be a Florida Gators problem. While times are chaotic as new, sometimes conflicting information is revealed daily in regards to the coronavirus and steps are simultaneously being taken towards a return to college football, programs everywhere are in the same boat. Uncertainty is rampant and the potential for universal team development to last into the projected season is nearly absolute.

"There's all different guys learning different ways, we're kind of limited in our teaching, Mullen said. "So we're going to have to find out, when we can eventually, whenever, hopefully even start our walkthroughs on July 24th, to see how much knowledge guys have retained and how much they can translate that knowledge from a virtual meeting onto an on-the-field application."