Should Gators Wide Receiver Kadarius Toney See an Expanded Role in 2020?
Florida has a secret weapon in wide receiver Kadarius Toney. The human-joystick in Gainesville has made play after play, at least when given the opportunity.
Since being recruited out of Blount High School in Eight Mile (Ala.) as a three-star athlete, Toney has tallied 97 touches for 1,025 yards, and three touchdowns in 27 games. While there was speculation the then-junior wide receiver might declare for the NFL Draft early, he held firm and decided to return to Gainesville for one last ride.
While those numbers aren't overtly impressive, his yards per touch averages are. In the run-game, Toney averages a staggering 8.9 yards with 47 attempts while also contributing 50 receptions for 12.1 yards per reception.
Following the season, there was speculation Toney may have entered the draft, but the Gators receiver ultimately decided to return. Perhaps a respectable decision considering his overall lack of production predicated by lack of touches along with a shoulder injury that caused him to miss the bulk of his junior campaign.
Over the course of the season, the Gators have tried to get Toney the ball in any way imaginable. Screens, reverses, hand offs, receptions, any way to simply allow him to work his magic on the way to the end zone. However, oftentimes the human-joystick wasn't as fortunate. In 2019, five out of 22 (22.7%) of his touches went for negative yards (-17 yards in total).
Those kind of mishaps can cause any coach to have doubts about whether or not to get one even their most electric players the football in key situations.
Gators head coach Dan Mullen touched on this subject last season following the team's game against Vanderbilt. While the team oftentimes tries different ways to get Toney, and sometimes quarterback Emory Jones on the field at the same time, something exciting is going to happen. “Something, maybe good, maybe bad, but it’s going to be exciting," Mullen said.
To Toney's credit, however, he has not been given an ample opportunity to prove that those negative plays are few and far between, whether due to the team's game plan or his own misfortune due to injuries. His ability to make a defender miss in the open field is one of the more impressive sights to see on game day.
The Gators want to get Toney the ball, however, there aren't very many plays that are designed to simply target one receiver, Mullen explained.
"We have ways to move people around to where we can expect to get them the ball, but still, if they give you a certain coverage - we call this play, the ball is going to go here, or if they run this defense, it will go here, of this defense, it will go there – so we try to do the different things I think we did the other day."
Toney accounted for three touches for 49 yards in that game: Two receptions and one rushing attempt. With the majority of the team's veteran receivers now out of eligibility and seeking an opportunity to play professionally, Toney becomes one of the elder statement in the group next season. Theoretically, his touches should go up as a result.
Getting the football in one of the team's most electric football players should be a priority moving forward. Whether it is in the backfield, where the Gators are reshuffling, or as a receiver, where they are inexperienced, the ability to apply pressure to the opposing team's defense is one of the most important aspects of an offense.
The Gators will have a while to figure out different, creative ways to get Toney the football in 2020. And if proven correct, they'll reap the rewards similar to his highlight plays showcased above - there's a reason why he dons the No. 1.
"Move him into the backfield, throw him a reverse pitch, try to get him a screen, those type of things. We saw the other day, when he gets the ball, exciting things happen.”
