Should the Florida Gators Be Concerned About Overall Roster Attrition?
The Florida Gators are walking down an interesting path. While the team as a whole has been loaded with talent during the Dan Mullen era, there have been concerning elements to the roster-building itself which may not be as sustainable as one would like.
There is no dispute that the college football climate has changed completely since the addition of the transfer portal which launched in 2019. The Gators as a whole have exhausted the portal themselves while also losing some players, something that is common in this day and age.
Where the Gators find themselves in a bit of a quandary comes as players continue to leave the program prior to stepping foot on campus, something that has now become a trend. Mullen took over as the Gators head coach in 2018 which would allow for the nine transfers that occurred prior to the start of that season, however, the 2018 class as a whole was not the saving grace one would hope for.
Now, it is worth it to preface this by stating many of these issues could be unavoidable, the 2018 class, for example, saw the Gators lose multiple players due to medical purposes, including tight end Noah Banks and safety Randy Russel.
However, players such as defensive end Malik Langham, tight end Lucas Krull and safety John Huggins (dismissed) were big losses for the team, leaving them with 15 out of their expected 20 scholarship players for that class.
Last year's class didn't inspire much more confidence. The Gators saw six players from last year's class either transfer or not qualify - something that has now become an issue of sorts -, including high-quality players such as cornerback Chris Steele (transfer) and linebacker Diwun Black (academic). The Gators also saw quarterback Jalon Jones transfer and it was later revealed Jones had multiple sexual assault allegations cast on him. No charges were filed, however, the Gators lost Jones and Steele as a result.
To round out the 2019 class, Florida saw offensive linemen Wardrick Wilson (visa issue), Da'Quan Thomas (transfer) and Deyavie Hammond (academic) and wide receiver Arijei Henderson (academic) either not make it onto campus entirely or simply leave just one year later. Overall, the Gators lost seven out of 24 of their expected players from the 2019 class, including four from the 21 enrollees.
Recently, the Gators have seen two players not make it onto campus. Defensive tackle Johnnie Brown did not qualify and will be attending junior college, joining Henderson, Hammond and Black as three players that have not qualified over the past two seasons. Offensive lineman Issiah Walker transferred from the team a month ago due to personal reasons.
One player, wide receiver Leonard Manuel, has yet to sign anywhere but committed to the Gators in 2019. It is unclear whether or not he will join Florida at this point, whether due to academic-eligibility issues, or otherwise.
In total, the Gators have lost 14 players due to various reasons since 2018, although players like Black will likely attend the university after spending a couple of seasons at the junior college level. By comparison, top-tier SEC teams such as Alabama, Georgia and LSU have lost seven, six and 10 players, respectively over the same span. In 2019, the teams lost a total of five players.
In the past, Mullen has not been shy about offering players who may not have a shot to make it to campus due to academic eligibility, telling reporters at SEC media day in 2019 "there's a chance for them to make it."
“They want to be Gators. They can still go to junior college and qualify there. They can go to prep school depending on their situation with NCAA eligibility numbers," said Mullen.
"So a lot of it is, it’s a guy you start recruiting a little bit later in his career, and you look, their freshman, sophomore grades, and they really don’t have much of a chance. But all of a sudden, they pick it up as they move on and you say, 'OK, this guy is going to figure it out and can be a good player.' I’ve had success with that with junior college players in the past as a head coach.”
Mullen has well-documented success with junior college players dating back to his time as Mississippi State's head coach.
Roster attrition isn't typically an issue immediately, rather it can become one down the line as more players leave due to running out of eligibility. Without an adequate amount of high-tier depth on the roster, a team can go from competing for a title to becoming a middling product very quickly. However, the Gators have been active in off-setting this, most notably with the transfer portal.
Among all SEC teams, Florida has been the fourth-most active team in the transfer portal tied with Vanderbilt, a system Mullen has criticized plenty of times in the past. Over the past two years, Florida has brought or is bringing in, eight players including seven for the 2020 class. The Gators have had plenty of success with transfers in the past, most notably defensive end Jonathan Greenard, defensive tackle Adam Shuler and wide receiver Van Jefferson.
To add a bit more context, Arkansas has secured the most transfers with 13, and Alabama is tied (LSU, Ole Miss) for the second-least transfer-acquisitions with three. Texas A&M has secured the least at 0.
Due to how many players the Gators lost both before and after the 2019 season, it makes sense the team would need to supplement using the portal, with the hopes of reviving talented players who simply need another shot.
Last week, Mullen noted that perhaps the system for transfer players needs to change. For instance, due to how many scholarships the Gators are allowed to give out, the Gators aren't allowed to bring in extra players to supplement if a player does decide to transfer.
"If I have a guy leave Florida to go in the transfer portal, I can sign a guy out of the transfer portal," Mullen said of how he'd go about changing the portal on Pat McAfee's radio show last week.
"Scholarships are all equal. Opportunities are met for different kids that are out there, instead of, 'Hey, we signed 25 in this year's recruiting class. We don't have any spots available. We have three kids leave for the transfer portal. We can't replace them because I've already signed my signee number for the year.' I think there's some balance of things that we're going to have to get to moving forward in the future."
Balance is part of the issue with the Gators roster currently. While the issue is not dire at all, and there have been positives, the attrition along the roster is still something worth monitoring down the line.
Most of these issues could be solved, quickly. If the Gators continue on their success not only will players be less indecisive, but more four or five-star recruits will be more willing to join the team as a result.
All transfer numbers obtained with the help of 247Sports.com and compiled by AllGators.
