<body><div><h2>An in-depth look at Florida's cornerback unit heading into fall camp</h2>Florida's cornerback unit is looking to take a step forward in 2024, and they'll return two starters from last season while bringing back multiple underclassmen with potential. In the aftermath of last season, the Gators received word of the return regarding a critical playmaker within the secondary. Rather than enter the NFL Draft, Jason Marshall Jr. opted to return to Gainesville for his senior season, giving the unit a leader at cornerback ahead of Billy Napier's third season at the helm. The Gators' most experienced player at the position, Marshall didn't necessarily live up to lofty expectations in 2023; there was speculation he could string together an impressive season and secure an early-round draft selection, potentially as a first-round pick, but that wasn't the consensus after last season.Now, Marshall will look to improve his stock in his fourth season with the program, and the Gators are hopeful a full year of Devin Moore opposite of him along with a change in leadership on the coaching staff will lead to improvement across the board.Moore battled through a variety of ailments, which led to him playing just seven games during the regular season. When he was on the field, Moore consistently graded out as one of UF's top playmakers on defense, and a full season of consistent play The unit will be led by a pair of new position coaches in 2024 after Florida parted ways with Corey Raymond shortly after the conclusion of the regular season and hired Will Harris from the Los Angeles Chargers as the secondary coach before later adding off-field analyst Beyah Rasool from Bowling Green to oversee the cornerbacks in particular.While Marshall and Moore provide the most experience in the room, the Gators have several underclassmen competing for playing time within the room, along with a late-May addition from a highly regarded prospect in the class of 2023, Cormani McClain. Considering Moore's availability issues last season, Florida's underclassmen will need to be prepared to play a role at a moment's notice, and the expectation is the Gators will continue evaluating their second-unit options when fall camp opens. <h2>High expectations for Jason Marshall Jr. </h2><figure><img src="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?type=thumbnail_580x000&amp;url=2vIalF_0ufIjUGZ00" alt="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?url=2vIalF_0ufIjUGZ00" width="620" height="320" ><figcaption>(Photo: Jordan McKendrick | UF Communications)</figcaption></figure>The return of Marshall was a necessary one for both the upperclassmen cornerback and the UF secondary, given the Gators primarily targeted the safety position via the transfer portal rather than add experience to the roster at the cornerback position. The Gators did recruit multiple cornerback options in the portal, including UCLA's John Humphrey and former UTSA defensive back Kam Alexander, yet neither player ultimately joined the roster in the offseason; instead, the lone addition came in the form of Cormani McClain, who entered the portal after one season at Colorado. Having started all 12 games at outside corner for the Gators in 2023, Marshall paced the team with a career-high 10 pass breakups for the second straight year, in addition to recording 26 total tackles, including 3.0 for a loss, and a sack, marking the first solo quarterback takedown of his career.The perception, however, is Marshall struggled at times in coverage during his first season as an upperclassman, and improving in that regard will be a key point of emphasis during what will be his final season at the collegiate level. The need for improvement isn't lost on Marshall."Just reading overall coverages," Marshall said of his main focus in 2023. "Cover-3 drops, reading the zones, things like that. Route concepts. Things that I struggled with last year, and just knocking those off the checklist. And everything else will play out from there.The hope is Marshall picks up where he left off early in his UF career rather than plateau; he was considered to be one of the Southeastern Conference's top corners entering the 2023 season after he experienced a great deal of success in 2022, which saw him allowed zero touchdowns in 300-plus coverage snaps, according to Pro Football Focus.PFF also tabbed him as the SEC's best coverage corner during his freshman season, when he led the conference in completion percentage against at just 36.8 percent.<h2>Devin Moore aiming to stay healthy</h2><figure><img src="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?type=thumbnail_580x000&amp;url=2bmAMC_0ufIjUGZ00" alt="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?url=2bmAMC_0ufIjUGZ00" width="620" height="320" ><figcaption>(Photo: Getty)</figcaption></figure>Moore's talent was on display during his sophomore season in Gainesville, yet he was hindered repeatedly by multiple injuries, which also was the case during his freshman season when he underwent season-ending shoulder surgery. Ahead of last season, he suffered an upper-body injury in fall camp, which kept him off of the field for a brief window, although UF head coach Billy Napier didn't seem overly concerned with Moore's ailment at the time. Misfortune would continue to strike in the weeks ahead. In the second week of the season, however, an illness prevented Moore from competing against McNeese State, and he missed two games in November after suffering a concussion. By season's end, Moore had played fewer than 200 snaps across seven games; by comparison's sake, Marshall saw the field 651 snaps for the Gators last season while appearing in all 12 games. Regardless, Moore's talent appears to be undeniable after he graded out as the team's top overall defensive player according to Pro Football Focus, with a 78.3 defensive grade. Albeit with a limited sample size, he finished with the top coverage grade on the roster, with an 81.7. With Moore fully healthy ahead of fall camp, in addition to improving his body throughout the offseason, the goal for the native of Naples is to capitalize on his opportunity to once again start opposite Marshall at cornerback. If he's hindered once again, the Gators will once again find themselves relying upon underclassmen at the position, or possibly moving Trikweze Bridges to cornerback, the position he played during his final season at Oregon. <h2>Underclassmen on the rise</h2><figure><img src="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?type=thumbnail_580x000&amp;url=4BwDVX_0ufIjUGZ00" alt="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?url=4BwDVX_0ufIjUGZ00" width="620" height="320" ><figcaption>(Photo: Andrew Ivins, 247Sports)</figcaption></figure>While <a href="https://247sports.com/college/marshall/">Marshall</a> and Moore may be projected to start from Day 1 when fall camp opens, the Gators have multiple underclassmen on the roster with potential who are keen on carving out sizable roles in 2024. <a href="https://247sports.com/Player/dijon-johnson-46128114/">Dijon Johnson</a> and <a href="https://247sports.com/Player/jakeem-jackson-46129580/">Ja'Keem Jackson</a> served as Florida's back-up cornerbacks late in the season, and the pairing should be in competition for a larger role as sophomores after continuing to improve throughout spring camp and during the offseason training program.As a freshman, Jackson played 113 snaps, according to PFF, although he didn't grade out particularly well in coverage, with a 54.5 coverage grade, indicating he still has work to do. Still, the Gators are high on his potential, and he was considered one of the standout players during spring camp, which should lead to an increased role in the cornerback rotation this season.Regarding Johnson, he played primarily on special teams last season, with just 22 snaps on defense for the Gators according to PFF. Only 10 of those snaps were in coverage, making it difficult to evaluate his play as a freshman. With two new position coaches tasked with developing the unit in Rasool and Harris, it's a clean slate for the underclassmen to show what they're capable of this season, and a jump in production remains a distinct possibility for the duo of Jackson and Johnson. They won't just be competing with Marshall and Moore for playing time, however. The Gators added several freshmen with promise in the class of 2024, including <a href="https://247sports.com/Player/jameer-grimsley-46138651/">Jameer Grimsley</a>, who transferred to the Gators after initially joining the <a href="https://247sports.com/college/alabama/">Alabama Crimson Tide</a> as an early-enrollee, and <a href="https://247sports.com/Player/teddy-foster-46131292/">Teddy Foster</a>, the No. 66 overall cornerback in the 247Sports Composite Rankings. Grimsley, who participated in several practices with the Crimson Tide ahead of the College Football Playoff, was impressive considering his lack of experience throughout spring camp, and he's continued to improve his physical makeup in the time since the Gators concluded spring practices in mid-April. meaning he had to transfer rather than be let out of signed letter of intent. While Grimsley and Foster still are in need of refinement at the cornerback spot, it would be a surprise to see neither player compete on special teams while gaining experience as reserve options at their positions throughout the 2024 season, and the Gators made sure to add an underclassman to the unit before the summer offseason program arrived, giving the team multiple players with potential who could fill a void if need be in 2024. <h2>What to expect from Cormani McClain</h2><figure><img src="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?type=thumbnail_580x000&amp;url=4MPzao_0ufIjUGZ00" alt="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?url=4MPzao_0ufIjUGZ00" width="520" height="268" ><figcaption>(Photo: Florida Athletics)</figcaption></figure>Five weeks after <a href="https://247sports.com/college/florida/">Florida</a> concluded spring camp, the Gators secured an intriguing addition at cornerback ahead of the summer. <a href="https://247sports.com/Player/cormani-mcclain-46109958/">Cormani McClain</a>, who spent his freshman season at <a href="https://247sports.com/college/colorado/">Colorado</a>, transferred to Florida, albeit as a preferred walk-on for the 2024 season, giving the program a player with enormous potential, yet someone who isn't expected to play a sizable role this season with the Gators. Behind closed doors, the expectation has been that McClain will need the 2024 season to hone in on his craft and improve from a physical standpoint. He arrived at Colorado weighing 155 pounds after missing spring camp, and he was thrust into action despite being largely unfamiliar with the Buffaloes' defensive scheme, making it difficult to evaluate his play last season. Ranked No. 14 overall and No. 1 among cornerbacks in the 2023 recruiting class on 247Sports, McClain served as a spot starter in his first and only season at Colorado, appearing in 10 contests and recording 13 total tackles, including one for a loss, and two passes defended.After meeting with McClain repeatedly in May, the Gators came away with the sense the Lakeland native is eager to make up for lost time and improve to a point where he's able to compete for a role in 2025. He may be a well-known name, but McClain will, again, spend much of the year working on his game and preparing to make an impact during his third season at Florida, where he'll have an opportunity to earn a scholarship when January arrives. With players ahead of him at his position, McClain will need to learn from those around him in Gainesville and avoid complacency. If he can do just that, he should be a name to watch at cornerback by this time next year. <h2>Quotable</h2><figure><img src="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?type=thumbnail_580x000&amp;url=03YmAM_0ufIjUGZ00" alt="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?url=03YmAM_0ufIjUGZ00" width="620" height="320" ><figcaption>(Photo: Andrew Ivins, 247Sports)</figcaption></figure>On Jason Marshall Jr. "I feel like the guys that we have with the experience. If you just look at it, J Marshall has 1,910 snaps, that's a lot of snaps," Will Harris said on April 9. "And so you just look at the experience that he has, and obviously when you go down the like with Asa and Trikweze and DJ with the experience they have, and then having the guys that played last year as far as young guys, Ja, we talk about Bryce and Jordan, I'm saying I think just having those guys understand, hey, coming together and brining all that with our experience."On Devin Moore"I think Devin gives us a taller, longer player. Gives some play strength there. Devin's just had a tough time with the injury component, but when he's been available, he's been very effective," Napier said on Nov. 22. "As we go forward here, hopefully we can keep Devin healthy. He gives us a significant player, especially when we're talking about matching up."On Ja'Keem Jackson and Dijon Johnson"I do think Ja'Keem and Dede (Dijon Johnson) have started to emerge as well," Napier said on Aug. 11. "They were both really impressive in the scrimmage, and I think those guys, you know, they'll be a factor in lots of parts of our teams, special teams in particular."<figure><img src="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?type=thumbnail_580x000&amp;url=0bI4VR_0ufIjUGZ00" alt="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?url=0bI4VR_0ufIjUGZ00" width="620" height="320" ><figcaption>(Photo: Kim Grinolds / Dawgman)</figcaption></figure>On Jameer Grimsley"Grimsley, we all know is 6-foot-2 and change. He's like 190 pounds. He's a two way player, a guy that played receiver as well. But big, long corner, heavy handed, balls skills, was a little bit banged up as a senior but I think we feel really good about the skill set there," Napier said on Signing Day. "Certainly keeping a player from the state of Florida at home. And Jameer is a Gator. He grew up dreaming of playing for the Gators and we were able to get that done."On Cormani McClain"He's a young player. Obviously, we're well aware of his history. He's a local kid from Lakeland and he's got relationships with players on our team. We run a tight ship. There's discipline, there's routine, there's accountability," Billy Napier said at SEC Media Days. "It's hard these days. You're in the minority if you show up in June, much less the middle of June because you're a couple weeks later. The guy's had a great week so far this week. He's gained 10 pounds and I think he's learning expectations, he's learning the culture."<h2>Projected depth chart</h2><figure><img src="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?type=thumbnail_580x000&amp;url=3mGSHd_0ufIjUGZ00" alt="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?url=3mGSHd_0ufIjUGZ00" width="620" height="320" ><figcaption>(Photo: 247Sports)</figcaption></figure>CB: <a href="https://247sports.com/Player/Jason-Marshall-46051367">Jason Marshall Jr.</a>, <a href="https://247sports.com/Player/jakeem-jackson-46129580/">Ja'Keem Jackson</a>, <a href="https://247sports.com/Player/jameer-grimsley-46138651/">Jameer Grimsley</a>, <a href="https://247sports.com/Player/cormani-mcclain-46109958/">Cormani McClain</a>CB: <a href="https://247sports.com/Player/devin-moore-46085619/">Devin Moore</a>, <a href="https://247sports.com/Player/dijon-johnson-46128114/">Dijon Johnson</a>, <a href="https://247sports.com/Player/teddy-foster-46131292/">Teddy Foster</a></div></body>

Show less about: NFL

Block Source: 247Sports

Misinformation

Clickbait

Old or repetitive news

Explicit content

Location not relevant

An in-depth look at Florida's cornerback unit heading into fall camp. Florida's cornerback unit is looking to take a step forward in 2024, and they'll return two starters from last season while bringing back multiple underclassmen with potential. In the aftermath of last season, the Gators received word of the...

Florida fall camp position preview: Cornerback

NewsBreak

247Sports

An in-depth look at Florida's cornerback unit heading into fall camp. Florida's cornerback unit is looking to take a step forward in 2024, and they'll retu

Florida fall camp position preview: Cornerback - NewsBreak

WebKit

Florida fall camp position preview: Cornerback

Comments