2017 Florida Gators football team

2017 Florida Gators football
Conference	Southeastern Conference
Division	Eastern Division
2017 record	4–7 (3–5 SEC)
Head coach	Jim McElwain (3rd season: First 7 games (3-4 record), fired) Randy Shannon (1st season: Last 4 games (1-3 record), interim)
Offensive coordinator	Doug Nussmeier (3rd season)
Offensive scheme	Multiple
Defensive coordinator	Randy Shannon (1st as DC; 3rd overall season)
Co-defensive coordinator	Chris Rumph (1st as co-DC; 3rd overall season)
Base defense	4–3
Home stadium	Ben Hill Griffin Stadium (Capacity: 88,548)[1]
Seasons ← 2016 2018 →

2017 Southeastern Conference football standings
v t	Conf							Overall
Team		W		L					W		L
East Division
No. 2 Georgia x$^		7	–	1					13	–	2
South Carolina		5	–	3					9	–	4
Kentucky		4	–	4					7	–	6
Missouri		4	–	4					7	–	6
Florida		3	–	5					4	–	7
Vanderbilt		1	–	7					5	–	7
Tennessee		0	–	8					4	–	8
West Division
No. 10 Auburn xy		7	–	1					10	–	4
No. 1 Alabama x#^		7	–	1					13	–	1
No. 18 LSU		6	–	2					9	–	4
No. 19 Mississippi State		4	–	4					9	–	4
Texas A&M		4	–	4					7	–	6
Ole Miss*		3	–	5					6	–	6
Arkansas		1	–	7					4	–	8
Championship: Georgia 28, Auburn 7
# – College Football Playoff champion ^ – College Football Playoff participant $ – Conference champion x – Division champion/co-champions y – Championship game participant * Ole Miss ineligible for postseason due to NCAA sanctions Rankings from AP Poll

The 2017 Florida Gators football team represented the University of Florida in the 2017 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Gators played their home games at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium in Gainesville, Florida. Florida played as a member of the Eastern Division of the Southeastern Conference (SEC). They were led by third-year head coach Jim McElwain until his dismissal on October 28, after which defensive coordinator Randy Shannon served as the interim head coach until the end of the season.^[2]

Florida finished with a 4–7 record overall and were 3–5 in SEC play, good for fifth place in the Eastern Division. It was the program's second losing season since 1979.

Previous season[]

The 2016 season opener was highlighted by the rededication of Florida Field to honor Steve Spurrier, the all-time winningest head coach in Florida history, as the field was rebranded as Steve Spurrier-Florida Field.^[3] Florida yielded only 14 points over the first three games of the 2016 season, including a 38-point domination of SEC East rival Kentucky, and a shutout victory over the North Texas Mean Green. In the latter game, Gators starting quarterback Luke Del Rio exited the game with a knee injury and would not return. Austin Appleby was called to lead the offense for the next two games at Tennessee and Vanderbilt respectively. Tennessee, seeking revenge for the previous year's comeback by the Gators at The Swamp, quickly fell behind as the Gators entered halftime with a commanding 21–3 lead. However, the Gators experienced a colossal collapse in the second half as Tennessee stormed back with 35 unanswered points before Florida could score a touchdown late in the game, and the Gators left Knoxville with a stunning 28–38 loss on their record, the first of the season. At Vanderbilt, the Gators struggled to a 13–6 victory over the Commodores. The Gators' next game was to be against the LSU in Gainesville. However, it became apparent that week as the date of the game approached that Hurricane Matthew would likely devastate Florida's Atlantic coast. Because only a small deviation in the storm's destructive projected path would have brought severe weather to the immediate Gainesville area, the Saturday game was indefinitely postponed on Thursday.^[4] In the week that followed, heated negotiations between athletic directors Jeremy Foley of Florida and Joe Alleva of LSU. LSU refused to concede a home game in order to make up the game, so Florida agreed to travel to LSU on November 19. In exchange, LSU agreed to play the Florida game in Gainesville for the next two seasons.^[5] After an unplanned bye week, Florida cruised to a 40–14 victory over Missouri, a game in which Luke Del Rio made his return, as the Gators led into the originally scheduled bye week before the annual rivalry game against Georgia in Jacksonville. Florida led 14–10 after a back-and-forth first half before shutting out the Bulldogs 10–0 in the second half to earn their third consecutive victory over their rivals with a 24–10 win, earning a 6–1 record on the season. With Tennessee losing their third consecutive conference game the same day, Florida moved into November with a 2-game advantage over the Volunteers.^[6] However, the Gators would pick up their second conference loss the following week after a 31–10 blowout by the unranked Arkansas Razorbacks. Florida returned home for senior day against South Carolina the next week, defeating the Gamecocks 20–7 in Will Muschamp's first time back to The Swamp since his firing after the 2014 season. The Gators were now poised to secure the Eastern Division championship in the conference finale, the makeup game at LSU. The defense capitalized on numerous LSU turnovers while the offense put on a solid performance which included a 98-yard touchdown pass to put the Gators up 10–7 entering the fourth quarter. The game eventually came down to a fourth-and-goal play for LSU with three seconds remaining in the game, a play which was stuffed by the Gators defense, preserving an emotional 16–10 win in Death Valley to guarantee a berth in the 2016 SEC Championship Game against undefeated Alabama. Florida lost for the fourth straight year to rival Florida State 13–31 to close out the regular season, and was trounced 54–16 by Alabama in the SEC Championship Game. Florida accepted a berth in the 2017 Outback Bowl against Iowa, which the Gators easily won 30–3 to end the season at 9–4, earning Jim McElwain his only bowl victory at Florida.

Spring Game[]

The spring game, dubbed the Orange and Blue Debut, took place on April 7, in Gainesville.

Date	Time	Spring Game	Site	TV	Result	Attendance
April 7[7]	7:30 p.m.	Orange vs. Blue	Ben Hill Griffin Stadium • Gainesville, FL	SECN	Orange 31–0	48,000

Schedule[]

The Gators' 2017 schedule consisted of 6 home games, 3 away games, and 2 neutral site games in the regular season. The Gators hosted SEC opponents Tennessee, Vanderbilt, LSU, and Texas A&M. They traveled to Kentucky, Missouri, and South Carolina. They faced Georgia at a neutral site.

Florida's non-conference schedule consisted of two home games: UAB and their rival Florida State. A third was scheduled for Sep 9 vs Northern Colorado, but was canceled due to inclement weather caused by Hurricane Irma. The season was opened against Michigan in the Advocare Classic.

Date	Time	Opponent	Rank	Site	TV	Result	Attendance
September 2	3:30 p.m.	vs. No. 11 Michigan*	No. 17	AT&T Stadium Arlington, TX (Advocare Classic / SEC Nation)	ABC	L 17–33	75,802
September 16	3:30 p.m.	No. 23 Tennessee	No. 24	Ben Hill Griffin Stadium Gainesville, FL (rivalry)	CBS	W 26–20	87,736
September 23	7:30 p.m.	at Kentucky	No. 20	Commonwealth Stadium Lexington, KY	SECN	W 28–27	62,945
September 30	12:00 p.m.	Vanderbilt	No. 21	Ben Hill Griffin Stadium Gainesville, FL	ESPN	W 38–24	84,478
October 7	3:30 p.m.	LSU	No. 21	Ben Hill Griffin Stadium Gainesville, FL (rivalry / SEC Nation)	CBS	L 16–17	88,247
October 14	7:00 p.m.	Texas A&M		Ben Hill Griffin Stadium Gainesville, FL	ESPN2	L 17–19	86,114
October 28	3:30 p.m.	vs. No. 3 Georgia		EverBank Field Jacksonville, FL (rivalry / SEC Nation)	CBS	L 7–42	84,107
November 4	12:00 p.m.	at Missouri		Faurot Field Columbia, MO	ESPN2	L 16–45	49,154
November 11	12:00 p.m.	at South Carolina		Williams-Brice Stadium Columbia, SC	CBS	L 20–28	79,727
November 18	4:00 p.m.	UAB*		Ben Hill Griffin Stadium Gainesville, FL	SECN	W 36–7	84,649
November 25	12:00 p.m.	Florida State*		Ben Hill Griffin Stadium Gainesville, FL (rivalry)	ESPN	L 22–38	89,066
*Non-conference game Homecoming Rankings from Coaches' Poll released prior to the game

^{^[a]} The game between Florida and Northern Colorado was originally scheduled for September 9 at 7:30 p.m. On the Wednesday before the game, the kickoff time was moved up to noon, as forecasts for Hurricane Irma had the storm approaching the east coast of Florida on Sunday. On Thursday, updated forecast tracks (correctly) predicted that Irma would move up the middle of the Florida peninsula as a major hurricane, prompting both schools to agree to cancel the game altogether due to safety and traffic concerns. This cancellation marked the third time in four seasons that Florida had to cancel or move a home game due to inclement weather and the second season in a row in which a scheduled home game was affected by the threat of a hurricane.^[8]

Schedule Source^[9]

Rankings[]

Ranking movements
Legend: ██ Increase in ranking. ██ Decrease in ranking.
NR = Not ranked. RV = Received votes. т = Tied with team above or below. ( ) = First place votes.

	Week
Poll	Pre	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	Final
AP	17	22	24	20	21	21	RV	NR	NR	NR	NR	NR	NR	NR	NR	NR
Coaches	16	24	25	22	20	20	RV	RV	RV	NR	NR	NR	NR	NR	NR	NR
CFP	Not released									NR	NR	NR	NR	NR	NR	Not released

Game summaries[]

Michigan[]

Overall record	Previous meeting	Previous winner
0–3	January 1, 2016	Michigan, 41–7

Uniform Combination*
Helmet	Jersey	Pants

• Special "color rush" uniforms

Tennessee[]

Overall record	Previous meeting	Previous winner
26–20	September 24, 2016	Tennessee, 38–28

With 0:09 seconds left in the fourth quarter quarterback Feleipe Franks threw a 63 yard hail mary to wide receiver Tyrie Cleveland for the win.

Uniform Combination
Helmet	Jersey	Pants

Kentucky[]

Overall record	Previous meeting	Previous winner
50–17	September 10, 2016	Florida, 45–7

Uniform Combination
Helmet	Jersey	Pants

Vanderbilt[]

Overall record	Previous meeting	Previous winner
38–10–2	October 10, 2016	Florida, 13–6

Uniform Combination
Helmet	Jersey	Pants

LSU[]

Overall record	Previous meeting	Previous winner
32–28–3	November 19, 2016	Florida, 16–10

Uniform Combination
Helmet	Jersey	Pants

Texas A&M[]

Overall record	Previous meeting	Previous winner
2–1	September 8, 2012	Florida, 20–17

Uniform Combination*
Helmet	Jersey	Pants

• Special "alligator skin" uniforms

Georgia[]

Overall record	Previous meeting	Previous winner
43–49–2 (per Florida) 43–50–2 (per Georgia)	October 29, 2016	Florida, 24–10

Following the game, it was announced that Florida and Head Coach Jim McElwain would be parting ways and Defensive Coordinator Randy Shannon was to be promoted to interim head coach for the remainder of the season.

Uniform Combination
Helmet	Jersey	Pants

Missouri[]

Overall record	Previous meeting	Previous winner
3–3	October 15, 2016	Florida, 40–14

Uniform Combination
Helmet	Jersey	Pants

South Carolina[]

Overall record	Previous meeting	Previous winner
26–8–3	November 12, 2017	Florida, 20–7

Uniform Combination
Helmet	Jersey	Pants

UAB[]

Overall record	Previous meeting	Previous winner
2–0	September 10, 2010	Florida, 39–0

Uniform Combination
Helmet	Jersey	Pants

Florida State[]

Overall record	Previous meeting	Previous winner
34–25–2	November 26, 2016	Florida State, 31–13

Uniform Combination
Helmet	Jersey	Pants

Personnel[]

Roster[]

As of November 8, 2017^[14]

2017 Florida Gators roster
Quarterbacks  8 Malik Zaire – Senior 11 Kyle Trask – Freshman 12 Jake Allen – Freshman 13 Feleipe Franks – Freshman 14 Luke Del Rio – Junior 29 Jack Ruskell – Freshman 42 Nick Sproles – Freshman Running Backs 20 Malik Davis – Freshman 22 La'Mical Perine – Sophomore 24 Mark Thompson– Senior 25 Jordan Scarlett – SUS Junior 32 Adarius Lemons – Freshman 33 Tyriek Hopkins – Sophomore Wide Receivers  4 Brandon Powell – Senior  9 Dre Massey – Senior 10 Josh Hammond – Sophomore 16 Freddie Swain – Sophomore 18 Daquon Green – Freshman 31 Anthony Gigla – Sophomore 39 Jacob Mesenger – Freshman 43 Glenn Jarriel – Sophomore 44 Tucker Nordman – Sophomore 45 Charles Nordman – Sophomore 81 Antonio Callaway – SUS Junior 83 Rick Wells – SUS Freshman 85 James Robinson – Freshman 87 Kalif Jackson – Sophomore 89 Tyrie Cleveland – Sophomore Tight Ends 16 Brian Fallace – Junior 30 DeAndre Goolsby – Senior 39 Ryan Ferguson – Junior 46 Harry Gornto V – Sophomore 80 C'yontai Lewis – Junior 82 Moral Stephens – Junior 88 Kemore Gamble – Freshman Punters 19 Johnny Townsend – Senior 86 Jacob Finn – Freshman 88 Tommy Townsend – Freshman 97 Jon Gould – Sophomore		Offensive Line 51 Antonio Riles – Senior 53 Kavaris Harkless – Junior 59 T.J. McCoy – Sophomore 61 Brett Heggie – Freshman 64 Tyler Jordan – Junior 65 Jawaan Taylor – Sophomore 66 Nick Buchanan – Sophomore 69 Marcus Givens – Sophomore 70 Tanner Rowell – Freshman 71 Nick Villano – Sophomore 72 Stone Forsythe – Freshman 73 Martez Ivey – Junior 74 Fred Johnson – Sophomore 75 TJ Moore – Freshman 76 Kadeem Telfort – SUS Freshman 77 Andrew Mike – Junior 78 Ricardo Benalcazar – Senior 79 Dallas Bruch – Freshman Defensive Line 17 Jordan Sherit – Senior 42 Jordan Smith – SUS Freshman 54 Khairi Clark – Junior 55 Kyree Campbell – Freshman 56 Tedarrell Slaton – Freshman 57 Elijah Conliffe – Freshman 68 Richerd Desir-Jones – SUS Sophomore 90 Antonneous Clayton – Sophomore 92 Jabari Zuniga – Sophomore 93 Taven Bryan – Junior 94 Zachary Carter – Freshman 95 Keivonnis Davis – SUS Junior 96 CeCe Jefferson – Junior 97 Justus Reed – Sophomore 98 Luke Ancrum – Sophomore 99 Jachai Polite – Sophomore Placekickers 15 Eddy Piñeiro – Junior 79 Daniel Justino – Freshman 98 Jorge Powell – Junior		Linebackers 11 Vosean Joseph – Sophomore 28 Kylan Johnson – Sophomore 33 David Reese – Sophomore 34 Lacedrick Brunson – Freshman 40 Nick Smith – Freshman 41 James Houston IV – SUS Freshman 43 Cristian Garcia – Senior 44 Rayshad Jackson – Sophomore 45 R.J. Raymond – Junior 46 Will Thomas – Freshman 50 Jeremiah Moon – Sophomore 51 Ventrell Miller – SUS Freshman 53 Brendan Ackerman – Freshman 58 Jahim Lawrence – Sophomore 59 Danny Weldon – Freshman 84 Camrin Knight – Sophomore Defensive Backs  2 Brad Stewart – Freshman  3 Marco Wilson – Freshman  5 C. J. Henderson – Freshman  6 Brian Edwards – Freshman  7 Duke Dawson – Senior  8 Nick Washington – Senior 12 Christopher McWilliams – Freshman 13 Donovan Stiner – Freshman 14 Chris Williamson – Junior 21 McArthur Burnett – Freshman 23 C. J. Gardner-Johnson – Sophomore 25 Brady Walters �� Junior 26 Marcell Harris – Senior 27 Quincy Lenton – Freshman 29 Jeawon Taylor – Sophomore 30 Garrett Stephens – Senior 31 Shawn Davis – Freshman 35 Joseph Putu – Senior 36 Eddie Giles - Junior 38 Nick Oelrich – Freshman 47 Austin Perry – Freshman 48 Edwitch Merisier – Freshman 49 Cameron Town – Junior Long Snappers 41 Ryan Farr – Junior 48 Brett DioGuardi – Freshman 49 Jacob Tilghman – Sophomore Athlete 17 Kadarius Toney – Freshman

• Redshirt
• Injury
• ^SUS Suspension

Coaching staff[]

Name	Position	Joined Staff
Jim McElwain	Head coach (dismissed Oct 29)	2015
Randy Shannon	Defensive coordinator / Interim head coach (after Oct 29)	2015
Doug Nussmeier	Offensive Coordinator / Quarterbacks	2015
Chris Rumph	Defensive Line / Interim defensive coordinator (after Oct 29)	2015
Robb Akey	Defensive Line (after Oct 29)	2017
Greg Nord	Special Teams Coordinator / Tight Ends	2015
Brad Davis	Offensive Line	2017
Ja'Juan Seider	Running Backs	2017
Kerry Dixon II	Wide Receivers	2015
Tim Skipper	Linebackers	2015
Corey Bell	Defensive Backs	2017
Mike Kent	Director of Strength & Conditioning	2015

Recruiting class[]

US college sports recruiting information for 2017 recruits
Name	Hometown	High school / college	Height	Weight	40‡	Commit date
Kadarius Toney ATH	Eight Mile, Alabama	Blount HS	6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)	177 lb (80 kg)	—	Enrolled January 4, 2017
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals: N/A   247Sports:    ESPN:
Kadeem Telfort OT	Miami, Florida	Booker T. Washington HS	6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)	300 lb (140 kg)	—	Enrolled January 5, 2017
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals: N/A   247Sports:    ESPN:
James Houston IV OLB	Fort Lauderdale, Florida	American Heritage HS	6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)	225 lb (102 kg)	—	Enrolled January 8, 2017
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals: N/A   247Sports:    ESPN:
Kemore Gamble TE	Miami, Florida	Miami Southridge HS	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)	216 lb (98 kg)	—	Enrolled January 4, 2017
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals: N/A   247Sports:    ESPN:
Kyree Campbell DT	Kingston, Pennsylvania	Wyoming Seminary Prep School	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)	320 lb (150 kg)	—	Enrolled January 4, 2017
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals: N/A   247Sports:    ESPN:
Marco Wilson CB	Fort Lauderdale, Florida	American Heritage HS	6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)	180 lb (82 kg)	—	Signed February 1, 2017
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals: N/A   247Sports:    ESPN:
Jake Allen QB	Fort Lauderdale, Florida	St. Thomas Aquinas HS	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)	200 lb (91 kg)	—	Signed February 1, 2017
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals: N/A   247Sports:    ESPN:
Daquon Green WR	Tampa, Florida	Tampa Bay Tech HS	6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)	185 lb (84 kg)	—	Signed February 1, 2017
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals: N/A   247Sports:    ESPN:
Donovan Stiner CB	Bellaire, Texas	Bellaire HS	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)	185 lb (84 kg)	—	Signed February 1, 2017
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals: N/A   247Sports:    ESPN:
Ventrell Miller LB	Lakeland, Florida	Kathleen HS	6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)	227 lb (103 kg)	—	Signed February 1, 2017
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals: N/A   247Sports:    ESPN:
Zachary Carter DE	Tampa, Florida	Hillsborough HS	6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)	250 lb (110 kg)	—	Signed February 1, 2017
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals: N/A   247Sports:    ESPN:
Malik Davis TB	Tampa, Florida	Jesuit Tech HS	5 ft 11 in (1.80 m)	190 lb (86 kg)	—	Signed February 1, 2017
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals: N/A   247Sports:    ESPN:
Brad Stewart CB	New Orleans, Louisiana	McDonogh 35 HS	6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)	194 lb (88 kg)	—	Signed February 1, 2017
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals: N/A   247Sports:    ESPN:
T.J. Moore OT	Charlotte, North Carolina	Mallard Creek HS	6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)	290 lb (130 kg)	—	Signed February 1, 2017
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals: N/A   247Sports:    ESPN:
Lacedrick Brunson OLB	Miami, Florida	Miami Jackson HS	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)	210 lb (95 kg)	—	Commit February 1, 2017
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals: N/A   247Sports:    ESPN:
Tedarrell Slaton OG	Fort Lauderdale, Florida	American Heritage HS	6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)	360 lb (160 kg)	—	Signed February 1, 2017
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals: N/A   247Sports:    ESPN:
Elijah Conliffe DT	Hampton, Virginia	Hampton HS	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)	305 lb (138 kg)	—	Signed February 1, 2017
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals: N/A   247Sports:    ESPN:
C. J. Henderson CB	Miami, Florida	Columbus HS	6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)	175 lb (79 kg)	—	Signed February 1, 2017
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals: N/A   247Sports:    ESPN:
Nick Smith LB	Orlando, Florida	Dr. Phillips HS	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)	210 lb (95 kg)	—	Signed February 1, 2017
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals: N/A   247Sports:    ESPN:
Brian Edwards CB	Hollywood, Florida	Miramar HS	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)	195 lb (88 kg)	—	Signed February 1, 2017
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals: N/A   247Sports:    ESPN:
James Robinson IV WR	Lakeland, Florida	Lakeland HS	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)	205 lb (93 kg)	—	Signed February 1, 2017
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals: N/A   247Sports:    ESPN:
Adarius Lemons TB	Clearwater, Florida	Clearwater HS	6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)	195 lb (88 kg)	—	Signed February 1, 2017
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals: N/A   247Sports:    ESPN:
Overall recruiting rankings:   247Sports: 10  ESPN: 13
‡ Refers to 40 yard dash Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height, weight and 40 time. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "2017 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. Retrieved February 1, 2017.

Players drafted into the NFL[]

Round	Pick	Player	Position	NFL Club
1	29	Taven Bryan	DT	Jacksonville Jaguars
2	56	Duke Dawson	CB	New England Patriots
4	105	Antonio Callaway	WR	Cleveland Browns
5	173	Johnny Townsend	P	Oakland Raiders
6	184	Marcell Harris	S	San Francisco 49ers

References[]