Geoff Collins must’ve thought he walked into one of the best job opportunities in the country when he was hired to be Florida’s defensive coordinator.
It’s a defense that is loaded, and when head coach Jim McElwain decided to bring Collins on board back in December, Collins got his first chance to see how skilled the defense was.
And right away, Collins was impressed by the defense’s drive and hunger.
"The biggest thing, and I didn’t know this when I was first hired, it might be the most competitive group of kids I’ve ever been around," Collins said.
"If you put a ball down or say there’s a winner or loser or some kind of competitive situation, these guys just thrive and shine.
"They’re highly intelligent, hard workers and they compete every single day."
Nicknamed the "Minister of Mayhem" during his time at Mississippi State, Collins brings an attitude to Florida different from that of previous defensive coordinator D.J. Durkin.
Durkin took a more laid-back approach under previous head coach Will Muschamp, but Collins has a more fiery personality and it rubs off on his defense.
Last season at Mississippi State, Collins coached a defense that ranked 20th in the nation with 37 sacks while UF had just 30 in 2014.
The Bulldogs defense was also the best in the country last season in redzone defense, allowing their opponents to score just 63.64 percent of the time.
Meanwhile, the Gators ranked 35th in the same category, allowing opponents to score on 78.38 percent of their opportunities.
But last year’s Mississippi State defense doesn’t compare to what Collins now has with Florida’s depth.
The Gators have an abundance of playmakers on different parts of the unit, and even though they will be without three starters for the first game — safety Keanu Neal (leg injury), safety Marcus Maye (suspension) and defensive lineman Alex McCalister (suspension) — Collins said he doesn’t use a depth chart to determine who will come in and take their place.
Whoever is available to help the team is the only thing Collins worries about.
The team's mindset can't focus on who's missing.
"We talk about here there’s no depth chart on defense around here. If you’re above the line, you’re going to play. If you’re not, you still have some work to do," Collins said.
"We don’t worry about who starts or who’s not starting or who’s playing."
Now, with the first game on Saturday night against New Mexico State, the players on the defense have their first chance to showcase to Collins what he has at his disposal.
Collins doesn’t want his defense to sit back and be complacent against a team like the Aggies.
He’s been preaching to the Gators to prepare like New Mexico State is a Top 25 opponent.
"Just to go out and practice as hard as we can, just because our opponent might not be a big name, don’t come out and sit on it," senior defensive lineman Jon Bullard said on Tuesday.
Collins also isn’t afraid of setting high expectations, and the one he’s placed on the shoulders of the defense is a big one: Be the best defense in the nation.
"The kids have those expectations in themselves. Why shy away from it? We want to do our best every single day to try to personally be the best we can possibly be," Collins said.
"We talk about that every single day. Whether we’re going against the scout team or the first-team offense or the second-team offense, it doesn’t matter we’re competing to be the absolute best we can be."
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Jon Bullard participates in the Florida football team's first Spring practice of 2015 on Monday at Donald R. Dizney Stadium.
