Sports | Football - The Independent Florida Alligator

Coach Jim McElwain addresses players following the conclusion of the Spring football game on April 7, 2017.

SPORTS | FOOTBALL

Winners and losers from Florida’s spring scrimmage

By IAN COHEN | Apr. 7, 2017

Winner: Feleipe Franks, quarterback

Quarterback Kadarius Toney evades a defender during Florida's Spring football game on April 7, 2017.

SPORTS | FOOTBALL

Column: With Toney in the mix, is the QB battle over?

By Patrick Pinak | Apr. 7, 2017

Sure, Feleipe Franks is ahead in Florida’s quarterback race.

UF quarterback Feleipe Franks drops back to pass during Florida's Spring game on Friday night at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium.

SPORTS | FOOTBALL

Franks establishes himself as favorite in Spring game

By Ethan Bauer | Apr. 7, 2017

Nothing about Friday’s Spring football game felt real.

UF quarterback Kyle Trask drops back to pass during a spring practice at the Sanders Practice Field on March 22, 2017.

SPORTS | FOOTBALL

The Underdog: Trask fighting to no longer be a backup

By Matt Brannon | Apr. 6, 2017

Kyle Trask is in his high school coach’s office, and he’s angry.

UF quarterback Feleipe Franks warms up prior to Florida's 30-3 win against Iowa in the Outback Bowl on Jan. 2, 2017, at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Florida.

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The Favorite: Franks ready to be UF's QB of the future

By Dylan Dixon | Apr. 6, 2017

When Feleipe Franks stepped foot on UF’s campus last Spring as an early enrollee, the level of hype and expectation surrounding his arrival was through the roof.

UF wide receiver Tyrie Cleveland runs with the ball during a spring practice at the Sanders Practice Field on March 22, 2017.

SPORTS | FOOTBALL

Cleveland, receivers looking for improvement in scrimmage

By IAN COHEN | Apr. 6, 2017

The Florida Gators football team hasn’t produced a 1,000-yard receiver since 2002.

UF Jim McElwain walks between rows of players during a spring practice at the Sanders Practice Field on March 22, 2017.

SPORTS | FOOTBALL

Notebook: Unnamed quarterback beginning to separate himself from the pack

By Dylan Dixon | Apr. 3, 2017

In the late 1980s, Jim McElwain was starting to get his feet wet by coaching as an assistant at Eastern Washington. Around the same time, he was approached with an opportunity that could have altered the course of his career.

UF cornerbacks Jalen Tabor and Quincy Wilson (left) walk off the field following Florida's 40-14 win against Missouri on Oct. 15, 2016, at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium.

SPORTS | FOOTBALL

Pro Day hurts Tabor, helps other UF defensive backs

By Patrick Pinak | Mar. 28, 2017

As Jalen Tabor fielded questions from reporters Tuesday, he smiled.

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Football turns focus to red zone offense, pass defense

By Dylan Dixon | Mar. 27, 2017

Growing up in Missoula, Montana, Jim McElwain fantasized about two sporting events he — one day — hoped to attend.

SPORTS | FOOTBALL

Another season, another QB competition

By IAN COHEN | Mar. 22, 2017

Standing in Florida’s Indoor Practice Facility, Feleipe Franks a few feet to his left, Kyle Trask realized something.

UF defensive tackle Taven Bryan looks toward the crowd before Florida's 32-0 win against North Texas on Sept. 17, 2016, at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium.

SPORTS | FOOTBALL

Offensive line, defensive tackle Taven Bryan impressing early in Spring practice

By Dylan Dixon | Mar. 20, 2017

As Jim McElwain took to the lectern Monday morning for his weekly press conference and began to field questions about his football team, he looked on incredulously at the group of reporters sitting in front of him.

UF quarterback Luke Del Rio rides the bike during Florida's 13-6 win against Vanderbilt on Oct. 1, 2016, at Vanderbilt Stadium in Nashville, Tennessee.

SPORTS | FOOTBALL

Notebook: Del Rio to have shoulder surgery

Mar. 14, 2017

The most interesting thing Jim McElwain said at his press conference on Tuesday came toward the end. UF’s third-year coach had already been asked about the team’s injuries, its quarterback battle and every other pertinent thing when a question came up about why he liked to use athletes — like receiver Dre Massey and true freshman Kadarius Toney — at quarterback.

Coach Jim McElwain speaks during a press conference on Aug. 3.

SPORTS | FOOTBALL

Notebook: Not much to report on from first Spring football practice

By Ethan Bauer | Feb. 28, 2017

Jim McElwain had little of importance to say following Florida’s first day of Spring practice, but he still said plenty when reporters asked him questions on Tuesday.

Quarterback Feleipe Franks drops back to pass during the Orange & Blue Debut on April 8, 2016, at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium.

SPORTS | FOOTBALL

Florida football: the quarterback question

By Matt Brannon | Feb. 23, 2017

Jim McElwain knows what he wants.

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UF’s Torrian Gray hired by Redskins, Gators hire two new assistants

By Matt Brannon | Feb. 4, 2017

Defensive backs coach Torrian Gray is leaving UF for the NFL.

Wide receiver CJ Worton runs into the end zone for a touchdown after recovering a fumble from running back Mark Thompson (not pictured) during the Orange & Blue Debut on April 8, 2016, at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium.

SPORTS | FOOTBALL

Notebook: Gators to add assistant coach, lose receiver

By Ethan Bauer | Feb. 2, 2017

When addressing reporters on Wednesday, coach Jim McElwain said he’d be hiring new assistant coaches “shortly.”

UF coach Jim McElwain discusses his 2016 recruiting class on Feb. 3, 2016, during a press conference at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium.

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Florida football finishes strong on signing day

By Ethan Bauer | Feb. 1, 2017

Jim McElwain strolled into his scheduled press conference 10 minutes late, passing through a tunnel of streamer-waving fans and strutting to the Florida fight song.

Tyrie Cleveland (89) runs toward the end zone during Florida's 40-14 win over Missouri on Oct. 15, 2016, at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium.

SPORTS | FOOTBALL

Recruiting notebook: Florida still looking for top-tier talent

By Ethan Bauer | Jan. 31, 2017

A year ago, it was Tyrie Cleveland. The year before that, it was Martez Ivey and CeCe Jefferson. Those were the headliners Jim McElwain managed to snag on signing day in his first two seasons at Florida. With Ivie and Jefferson, it was expected. With Cleveland, it was considered a moderate surprise.

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National Signing Day: Florida’s top targets

Jan. 31, 2017

Jim McElwain is hoping to make major moves. His team’s recruiting class currently ranks 19th in the nation, but he’s hoping to vault up the list with some big commitments today. Here, alligatorSports writers Ethan Bauer, Matt Brannon, Ian Cohen and Patrick Pinak break down some of Florida’s top targets for National Signing Day.

Senior linebacker Jarrad Davis leads his team out of the tunnel before Florida's 32-0 win against North Texas on Sept. 17, 2016, at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium in Gainesville.

SPORTS | FOOTBALL

DECISIONS, DECISIONS: A look at Florida's potential NFL Draft picks

Jan. 4, 2017

With football season having ended, several Florida juniors have announced their intentions to leave school early for the NFL Draft. Other underclassmen have yet to announce but are expected to leave, while some seniors are expected to be high picks as well. Here, we take a look at all of Florida’s potential draft picks.