UF SPRING PRACTICE
Injuries are the pits under Meyer
The Gators' new football coach is determined to toughen up his players.
By Jeff Darlington | Sentinel Staff Writer
Posted March 27, 2005
GAINESVILLE --
Wearing heavy steel chains around his neck, Florida offensive lineman Ronnie Wilson walked up and down the steps of Ben Hill Griffin Stadium on Saturday while his teammates scrimmaged on the wet, gloomy field below.
Wide receiver Michael McIntosh loafed behind him, carrying a large rock with both hands. On another set of bleachers not far away, safety Terrence Holmes lugged a sandbag over his shoulder.
This didn't look like a football practice. It looked like a prison yard.
"He's acting like we messed up," Wilson mumbled to a teammate, his chains clanking against his shoulder pads as he walked past pointing fans. "We're just injured."
Wilson makes a good point -- it did appear as if the players were being punished. But it seems he also doesn't get the real point.
During the first scrimmage of the spring under Florida Coach Urban Meyer, you didn't need to see quarterback Chris Leak's 65-yard touchdown pass to Chad Jackson to appreciate the new regime's tactics. Instead, the sight of injured players lugging odd objects was far more telling.
"That's the pit," Meyer said. "Stay out of the pit. It's an ugly deal. Nothing good comes out of the pit. That's for injured guys. Their goal is to get out of the pit and practice. Practice is easier than the pit."
You see, Meyer thinks his Gators are too soft. He doesn't think a minor injury should get you out of practice. And he'll take any means necessary to motivate his players to get back on the field.
"I don't think we're a tough team," he said. "We're just not."
So even though it was important to Meyer that backup quarterback Gavin Dickey had an impressive scrimmage, (he completed 5 of 7 passes in the regular phase of the workout for 96 yards), it was more important to Meyer that defensive tackle Ray McDonald also played well.
Before the scrimmage, trainers told Meyer that McDonald couldn't practice because of a minor ankle sprain. Meyer told McDonald otherwise.
"He fought through it," said Meyer, praising the junior's effort. "We had a guy like that at Utah. Everybody says he has great potential, but he doesn't go real hard all the time. That's all I've heard about Ray and [defensive tackle] Marcus [Thomas].
"We're going to change that, or they're not going to play. Ray can decide to continue not to go real hard, and he can transfer somewhere else where that's acceptable. But it's not acceptable here."
Sure, Meyer agrees with the notion that Florida possesses great talent. Jackson made that much clear after catching three passes for 105 yards during the scrimmage.
To this coaching staff, however, it's not just about talent. It's about discipline and toughness -- two areas that drew criticism from fans and media under the former coaching staff.
So while it certainly excited Saturday's crowd when Leak threw four consecutive pass attempts deep down the field, the other scene in the stands might have just as appropriately depicted the plans for a new direction of Florida football.
"You can paint it however you want to paint it, but we're not a tough football team," Meyer said. "But it's March, so we've got a long way to go."
Jeff Darlington can be reached at
[email protected].
