Before the Gators will know if they can replace Brandon Spikes, they’ll have to decide who will try to fill his shoes.
The position battle is down to close friends Jelani Jenkins and Jon Bostic.
“We’re not even thinking about that really,” Jenkins said. “Every practice, we’re rooting each other on when we make a big play and trying to get each other better. I think our friendship really carries onto the field.”
With a thick 6-foot-1, 238-pound frame, Bostic looks the part moreso than Jenkins, who’s listed 15 pounds lighter. But bulking up too much would be a disservice to one of Jenkins’ best assets: his speed.
A standout at fullback and linebacker in high school, Jenkins said playing in the middle is his favorite task, as he has the best chance for action and can read the quarterback.
He’s gotten work at the strongside spot as well, part of linebackers coach D.J. Durkin’s plan to cross train his players and rotate them often.
“Any of those guys could see time anywhere,” Durkin said. “We’re going to find the best combination of three that we can. Jelani has a lot of great attributes about him, and I’d say he’s going to find a way onto the field somewhere.”
At times, Jenkins and Bostic have lined up side-by-side in the middle of a 3-4 formation, and while there has been speculation the Gators will use that set often this season, Durkin and his players repeatedly used “three” when discussing the number of starting linebackers at UF’s media day on Aug. 10.
Beyond the friendship between Jenkins and Bostic, the group of linebackers has bonded over dinner-and-a-movie dates. Well, make that lunch-and-game film.
The players received DVDs with their performance at spring practice, and they’ve made daily trips to UF’s film room to watch those clips and whatever else they could get their hands on, a practice often utilized by predecessors Spikes and Ryan Stamper.
“We were watching some stuff from like, I don’t even know what year — Brandon Siler was here and they were at Alabama,” Bostic said. “We just like watching film, watching the game of football and learning the game every day.”
