11 Florida Gators on Athlon Sports' Preseason All-SEC Teams
With the projected 2020 college football season creeping up on us amidst the coronavirus pandemic, preseason honors are beginning to surface and several Florida Gators on the receiving end.
Athlon Sports released its Preseason All-SEC teams this week, going four-deep at every position to recognize the top talent in the SEC entering the 2020 season and predict each player's level of contribution going forward. In total, 11 Gators made the cut, the third-most in the conference behind Alabama and Georgia with 13 apiece. Five SEC teams had double-digit players represented in total.
Below, you can find a quick breakdown of each 11 players and analysis of where they ended up.
First Team
TE Kyle Pitts: It's of little surprise to see Pitts not only at the top of the board for Florida entering the 2020 season, but considered to be the best tight end in the conference and one of the best in the nation. A rising junior, Pitts is still growing into his 6-6 frame and is now up to 246 lbs., who plays with wide receiver-caliber movement skills to separate as a route-runner.
Pitts is one of Florida's top draft prospects a season removed from being eligible to enter the NFL Draft, after a breakout campaign where he caught 54 passes for 649 yards and five touchdowns. Returning as quarterback Kyle Trask's No. 1 target from last season after taking over the starting QB role in Week 4, Pitts should see his production increase further this year.
Second Team
QB Kyle Trask: Going from six-year backup quarterback through high school and college to Second-Team Preseason All-SEC would have sounded like a pure dream for Trask a year ago, and now that dream has become a reality.
Completing 66.9% of his passes for 2941 yards and 25 touchdowns in 12 appearances (10 starts) in 2019, Trask comes back to Florida for a final season as, arguably, the conference's most proven starter. Yet he falls behind Georgia's Jamie Newman on the preseason squad, which is puzzling as Newman has yet to play a game for the Bulldogs and was far from a finished product at Wake Forest.
AP Kadarius Toney: Despite playing just over half of the 2019 season and seeing a total of 22 touches, Toney managed to earn a second-team selection and is looking to prove that worth entering his senior year.
An electric athlete with elite elusiveness, Toney can break off for extraordinary gains on a given snap no matter where he lines up. That could be seen despite limited action in 2019: Toney's first touch, a screen pass, turned into a 66-yard touchdown against Miami in Week Zero, and he finished the season with a career-high 11.5 yards per touch.
CB Kaiir Elam: Starting five games as a true freshman, Elam is one of the most talented cornerbacks in the SEC and should compare with LSU's Derek Stingley Jr. as the conference's top cornerback for the next two years as they're both in the same class. Stingley Jr., along with Alabama's Patrick Surtain II (rising junior), made the first team.
Elam allowed only 10 receptions across 23 targets (43.5%) as a freshman according to Pro Football Focus, and made plays on a bountiful amount of those targets. The lengthy, 6-2, 187 lb. defensive back tallied three interceptions and four pass breakups, including multiple key plays in the 2019 Orange Bowl.
Third Team
DL Zachary Carter: After handling starting duties at strong-side defensive end in place of the oft-injured Jabari Zuniga in 2019, Carter is ready to handle the role as a full-time starter and has progressed his body this offseason to further his impact physically. Carter tweeted in March that he now stands at 6-4, 287 lbs. with 16% body fat, up 24 lbs. from his listed weight and down from his 27.3% body fat in 2018.
With improved size to pair with impressive athleticism and strength, Carter looks to put all of his traits together to become a complete player in 2020, which could pay serious dividends for his NFL Draft prospects. In his rotational role seeing less than half of the team's defensive snaps in 2019, Carter finished second on the team in sacks with 4.5 and tied for sixth in tackles for loss with six, while recording the third-most quarterback pressures on the team with 20 (PFF).
CB Marco Wilson: Set to play opposite of Elam with the flexibility to Scott inside to STAR nickel cornerback, Marco Wilson is one of the veteran leaders of Florida's secondary and enters the 2020 season with high expectations.
After missing the majority of the 2018 season with a torn ACL, Wilson naturally had to shake some rust off and his play last year showed that at times. Yet, Wilson made his presence known by improving the play at STAR and managing to intercept a career-high three passes. Now with a season under his belt following the injury, Wilson is in a position to make a big leap.
S Shawn Davis: The Gators' safety unit has faced warranted criticism for inconsistencies both in coverage and run support recently, but Davis is the room's saving grace following a productive junior season. The 5-11, 185 lb. safety made 51 tackles and three interceptions while allowing a passer rating in coverage of 37.8 (PFF).
Only Elam (18.3) posted a better passer rating allowed, and for reference, the passer rating on an incomplete pass (not intercepted) is 39.6. Offering range and quick reaction speed, Davis is one of Florida's better coverage defenders and needs to be on the field consistently despite the Gators' knack for rotating safeties.
K Evan McPherson: Florida hasn't had to worry about the kicker position since McPherson earned the starting role right out of the gate as a true freshman.
In 2019, McPherson finished 17-of-19 on field goals and 47-of-48 on extra points while also handling kickoff duties. He set a career-long with a 50-yard field goal against Florida State this past season.
Fourth Team
WR Trevon Grimes: Given his lack of production in a crowded wide receiver corps over the past two seasons, it's understandable that Grimes isn't higher on the list at his position. However, when it comes time to take a look back on the Preseason All-SEC teams following the 2020 season, it might come as a shock that Grimes was relegated to the fourth-team.
A big-bodied deep-threat, Grimes poses a dynamic that UF's other experienced receivers can't provide physically. Grimes hauled in 33 receptions for 491 yards (14.9 yards per reception) and three touchdowns in 2019, turning 23 of those receptions into first downs and averaging 8.2 yards after the catch (PFF). After watching four mentors at the position graduate this offseason, Grimes is in position to emerge as a true No. 1 receiver for the Gators in 2020.
OL Stewart Reese: The addition of Reese as a graduate transfer to Florida's offensive line ahead of the 2020 season could prove as pivotal for the Gators' as Jonathan Greenard's transfer from Lousiville the offseason prior. A starting-caliber veteran at a position of need, Reese will help mend the Gators' front five in more ways than one.
Reese has spent time at both right guard and tackle and could play either position at Florida which gives offensive line coach John Hevesy some flexibility with putting together his unit. Though, Reese is best in pass protection as a guard which flows with the strength of UF's offense - which ranked No. 16 in passing offense nationwide last year - so we're forecasting him on the interior for now.
DL TJ Slaton: Primarily rotating at 3-technique defensive tackle, Slaton flashed throughout the year and is slated to take over the starting gig in 2020. After posting two sacks, four tackles for loss, 29 total tackles, and 12 quarterback pressures across only 265 snaps last year, Slaton could be in for a breakthrough as a starter.
The colossal defensive tackle is listed at 6-5, 358 lbs. on Florida's roster, although he noted he was down to 335 lbs. before the 2019 season started. Should Slaton have continued shedding weight and getting stronger, his athletic profile backs up the idea that he could make a big impact.
