How much should Florida's offensive starters play against UT-Martin?

Different guys need different reps.

For the Gators, week 2 against UT Martin should be a blowout. Vegas has the spread at 44.5, and that is with knowing that Florida played a sloppy game against Miami. That said, in all likelihood this game will be essentially over by halftime and the backups will get plenty of reps. That said, each position group on this team features guys that look fairly different in terms of how many reps they need. So, let's look at each group.

Quarterback

I fully expect Feleipe Franks to be done for the day before halftime. The more interesting part of this, infinitely more interesting actually, is how coach Dan Mullen distributes the reps between Kyle Trask and Emory Jones. My expectation is that Trask will come in right after Franks sometime in the second quarter and play for one drive in the third. But Emory Jones is the future of this football team at quarterback. He got valuable game experience last season thanks to the new redshirt rules and the more drives he gets to dictate, especially by way of throwing the ball, the better for UF's future.

Running Back

Similar to QB, there should be very limited action for Lamical Perine. I actually expect even less from Perine than Franks because of the simple injury nature of the running back position. Also, Malik Davis and Dameon Pierce need reps badly. Both looked awful against Miami in limited action and need t break off big carries if not for anything other than confidence. Look for those two to carry most of the game's load and then perhaps Iverson Clement and Nay'quan Wright to get some fourth quarter carries.

Wide Receiver

Jacob. Copeland.

This man needs to play, and play a lot.

I don't just mean play when Van Jefferson, Trevon Grimes, Josh Hammond, Tyrie Cleveland, Freddie Swain and Kadarius Toney are done for the day and Rick Wells is catching hitches from Trask. Copeland needs to get early reps with the starters.

I don't expect this, I expect him to get maybe a jet sweep at best and not play as a real wide receiver until later on, but I really hope that I'm wrong. All of those starting names I mentioned could be gone next year besides probably Toney and maybe Grimes.

As for those starters, a quarter and half, maximum.

Offensive Line

This group is different from the rest of the groups. This group needs reps.

Yes, the offensive line looked very solid against Miami for a group that only returned one starter. But I expect the right side of the line, guard Chris Bleich and tackle Jean Delance to play the entire first half and perhaps even a drive into the second half. This is not to say either player looked bad against Miami. In fact, our own Zach Goodall's film room piece on the line highlighted Bleich, and discussed how good he looked. It is just that Bleich is a redshirt freshman and this is Delance's first time as a full-time starter in college.

The other side of the line is more interesting. Tackle Stone Forsythe may be battling to keep his job, as redshirt freshman Richard Gouriage has looked impressive all camp. Forsythe held his own against an excellent front seven against Miami, but it will be interesting to see how Gouriage fares in a real game. How early the current backup comes in in this game will tell us a lot about how secure the starter's spot is. I expect to see Gouriage late in the first half.

Finally, at left guard, the spot is securely Brett Heggie's but Gator fans know that in all likelihood Heggie will be injured in some way at some point this season. That said, the super talented freshman Ethan White needs a lot of time in this game. If something happens to Heggie and White gets tossed in against Georgia or LSU, Gator fans will feel a lot more comfortable if he's played a good sum of snaps, even if it is against an inferior opponent.

Tight End

From what I have seen, Kyle Pitts and Lucas Krull could use plenty of reps doing the opposite of what they excel at. Krull is enormous and a solid blocker, especially on draws for Franks, but he needs work as a route runner and pass catcher. He probably only plays in one half but could benefit greatly from a big seam play down the middle against abysmal safety play from UT Martin.

Kyle Pitts is not a bad blocker, but he is so slender that his footwork and form need to be exceptional for him to be a difference maker as a blocker. Pitts is well on his way to being an elite pass catcher for years to come, but he will be a lot less predictable if Mullen can keep him in on heavier packages. This game is great practice for that.

The whole second half should feature Kemore Gamble and Dante Lang. We know at this point what Gamble is: not a game changer but reliable. The redshirt freshman Lang should play in this game more than he ever has so far for Florida.

These groups all have different needs as far as reps in this game. At quarterback and receiver other than Copeland, it is more of a preseason game than anything. For the offensive line and backup tailbacks, these reps in some ways are as valuable as the tougher opponents.