Percy Harvin is the most electrifying player on the Gators roster and a Heisman candidate, but the leader of UF's receiving corps is Louis Murphy.
While he goes largely unnoticed on a team that features two certifiable rock stars in Harvin and Heisman Trophy winner Tim Tebow, the senior caught 37 passes for 548 yards and five scores in 2007.
On nearly any other team, he would be a featured player and on a myriad of watch lists. At UF, he's another guy who runs a sub-4.3 40-yard dash, and that's just fine because his concerns lie with issues greater than himself.
"I, like my teammates, want to win games," Murphy said. "We would all love to win awards, but our first priority is to win, not pad our stats. My goals are to be in Atlanta (for the Southeastern Conference championship) and play for the national championship."
Murphy has taken the mantle of leadership among the wide receivers in the same fashion Andre Caldwell and Dallas Baker did in each of the previous two seasons. Coach Urban Meyer and the Gators coaching staff had this in mind long ago, which is why they suggested that Murphy room with Caldwell last season. Murphy took advantage of the opportunity to pick Caldwell's brain and the result is that, despite what outside observers may think, Murphy is the go-to guy in Meyer's mind.
"It's hard for me to say he's not the go-to guy," Meyer said. "Of course you've got Percy Harvin and Tim Tebow, two of the finest players in college football, but Louis Murphy is going to be the go-to guy."
With an offense as deep and talented as UF, that is the highest praise most receivers could hope to receive.
The Gators do have some obvious concerns in the passing game, though. Harvin is slow to recover from off-season ankle surgery, and tight end Cornelius Ingram will miss the season with a torn ACL. Harvin is expected to be fully recovered by the season opener against Hawaii. And if he is, UF has an embarrassment of riches - such as Riley Cooper and Deonte Thompson - it can throw at opposing defenses to create mismatches.
"The basis of the offense is to find advantages in matchups," offensive coordinator Dan Mullen said. "The more diverse our playmakers are, the more mismatches we can find.
"The Chris Raineys and the Percy Harvins, when they line up in the backfield, the defense better have a linebacker on them. But all of a sudden they motion out, and now you have mismatches on those players."
Junior transfer Carl Moore has been impressive at the start of fall practice after a disappointing spring session. Wide receivers coach Billy Gonzales attributes his improvement to his growing comfort with the offense and no longer having to think his way through plays.
Freshman Frankie Hammond, Jr. also received rave reviews from Gonzales. Hammond Jr. has made several acrobatic catches thus far and has caught the coaching staff's eye because of his maturity.
"One thing about Frankie is that he's extremely smart," Gonzales said. "He's a hard worker. Any time you come into a system with multiple sets you have to be a smart guy. He is an extremely fast learner and he will have the opportunity to make plays."
