HOOVER, Ala. — Whether it was saying Kentucky being the best road environment he’d experienced in the Southeastern Conference, lauding Jeff Driskel as the best quarterback in college football or admitting Bryan Cox, Jr. actually has the best fade haircut on the team, Vernon Hargreaves III had a whirlwind experience at the 2014 Southeastern Conference media days.
The hotshot sophomore cornerback with the cool haircut and shining silver earrings settled into proceedings at The Hyatt Regency Birmingham much like he did on the field last season where he started 10 games in his freshman year. Looking back on 2013, Hargreaves said once the jitters of his first game were behind him, the confidence instilled in him by teammates and defensive backs coach Travaris Robinson was enough to spur him to do great things last season.
“Playing corner(back) you have to be confident,” Hargreaves said. “Confident in yourself and your abilities. That’s just how I am, I’m confident in myself and I know what I can do.”
As confident as he is, he’s not completely immune to feeling nervous. He calls Alabama running back Derrick Henry “a load” and hopes he doesn’t have to tackle him much when the Gators face the Crimson Tide in October. He also got cold feet when lining up opposite one of the SEC’s best receivers last season.
“The toughest receiver I had to cover was Odell Beckham from LSU,” Hargreaves said. “He’s a great player obviously, first round draft pick. … It was tough, I was kind of nervous covering him.”
Hargreaves becomes the de facto veteran in a very young secondary that could conceivably start three freshmen alongside him. The wealth of knowledge Hargreaves acquired from former Gators Loucheiz Purifoy and Marcus Roberson will be integral in the way Hargreaves will lead his position group moving forward. He says his major task is getting the young players to learn the playbooks and need to be brought up to speed.
“It doesn’t matter if I was ready (to be a leader) or not,” Hargreaves said. “I have to do it. I’m going to do it.”
The biggest lesson he learned from Purifoy and Roberson was to stay focused, and shut out the outside world. He needed to be OK with getting beat once and awhile, and realize that football is a 60-minute game.
Florida lost eight of those 60-minute games last season, something Hargreaves admits he didn’t think was possible for UF to do, but it happened and not he nor his teammates have to right the numerous wrongs of last year.
“4-8 isn’t acceptable at Florida,” Hargreaves said. “It’s not a secret, everybody knows it. I played pretty well this year, I obviously have to get better. I have to bring the young guys along, I have a lot of young corners behind me. I’ve got to show them the ropes.”
Fowler maturing as defensive leader: Just three days after quarterback Jeff Driskel broke his right fibula, which sidelined him for the year, defensive tackle Dominique Easley tore his anterior cruciate ligament and medial meniscus in his right knee in a non-contact drill.
The absence of the senior from an already young defense left defensive coordinator D.J. Durkin without a leader to lean on throughout the rest of the season. This year, Dante Fowler, Jr. said he’s ready to fill Easley’s shoes and be the rock the Gators need in the middle of the field for 2014.
“With the injuries and guys having to step up and become leaders, it kind of betters you as a player even though you’re having a bad season,” the junior Buck linebacker said Monday. “It teaches you some things going into this season. We’re going to know some things just because of what happened last season. Everything that happened last year has just made us stronger.”
Coach Will Muschamp said Fowler has what it takes to be a leader on defense this year because the 6-foot-3, 261-pound linebacker will provide an example to the younger players with his performance on the field.
In 2013, Fowler led the Gators with 10.5 tackles for loss while tying Jaylen Watkins for the team lead in unassisted tackles with 31 in 12 games.
This year, Muschamp expects more.
“He’s a guy that’s matured over the years,” Muschamp said. “I think in order to be a leader, number one, you’ve got to be a productive player. He’s going to be a productive player and he has been a productive player for us. He has really good work habits. He’s a really good teammate from the standpoint he has a very positive attitude in our locker room and he affects people in a very positive manner.”
Vernon Hargreaves III intercepts a pass in the end zone during Florida’s 24-7 victory on Sept. 28, 2013, at Commonwealth Stadium in Lexington, Ky.
