GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Each one has aspirations of being
the guy. They should have a better idea of their chances late Friday after Florida's first scrimmage of preseason camp.
"Around this time, this is where coaches make their decisions in seeing who they want to trust for the season,'' sophomore running back
Jordan Scarlett said. "The downfall is it's only one ball. Four people can't get to one ball. Hey, it's the best man wins."
Scarlett is one of the entrants in the Gators' four-man race for carries in head coach
Jim McElwain's second season. Fellow sophomore
Jordan Cronkrite, fifth-year senior
Mark Herndon and junior-college transfer
Mark Thompson are the others.
Of course, there are no guarantees any of them will be
the guy.
While the Gators relied predominantly on
Kelvin Taylor a season ago as the featured back, Taylor had a clear advantage entering the season. Both Scarlett and Cronkrite were true freshmen and Herndon, a former walk-on who worked his way onto scholarship, was coming off a season-ending ACL injury suffered on special teams. Meanwhile, Thompson was at Dodge City (Kan.) Community College with an eye toward major-college football.
A year later, Taylor is in the NFL and Florida's backfield is loaded with potential and questions.
Has Scarlett moved ahead of Cronkrite on the depth chart? Is Cronkrite's versatility the perfect weapon in the offense McElwain envisions? Can Herndon surprise outsiders and live up to the praise he has received of late from McElwain and offensive coordinator
Doug Nussmeier? Finally, is the 6-foot-2, 242-pound Thompson the best option in the rough and tumble Southeastern Conference?
Or, will all four factor into the equation in a backfield-by-committee approach?
"I really see our running back position being as strong as anything on our football team,'' McElwain said. "I'm looking forward to see how they affect the people around them."
The first scrimmage of camp Friday offers the coaching staff a closer look at the position battle, and the players an opportunity to stand out.
Herndon's sense of urgency is at an all-time high.
"It will be big for every single one of us,'' Herndon said Thursday. "This is my best chance to play under Coach Mac. He really likes me right now, so I'm just trying to stay on his good side and just make plays and lead my group the best I can."
Cronkrite, who rushed for 157 yards and caught six passes for 89 yards last season, finished spring camp as the presumed front-runner on the depth chart. Cronkrite (5-11, 204) is perhaps the best receiver among the group.
His goal Friday is to avoid mental errors and run hard when his number is called.
"It's definitely a competition,'' Cronkrite said. "We push each other every day. It's a big week for us. We just want to go out there and execute."
The 5-foot-10, 213-pound Scarlett got to showcase what he can do in last season's win over Georgia. Scarlett rushed for a career-high 96 yards on nine carries, including a 60-yard scamper in the second half.
Scarlett considers his quickness on the edge one of his greatest attributes in the competition and where he can make a difference in the running game.
"I have a lot of burst-out speed that people don't know about,'' he said.
Scarlett has embraced the competition. Still, he won't be surprised if McElwain and Nussmeier spread out the carries once the season starts.
"We're in the SEC,'' he said. "Not just one running back can take all that load, so whenever one of us gets tired or injured, we have the next man up who can do the same thing or better. All of us run pretty hard. I think just for three yards you can give it to about any of us."
If the Gators need to turn to a power-run game to win, Thompson is the most likely to get carries. He has worked in the offseason to improve his ball security after showing a knack for fumbling during the spring.
Thompson was ranked the top junior-college running back available after he rushed for 1,298 yards and 18 touchdowns last season at Dodge CC. He is relatively new to the program, but Thompson realizes the importance of Friday's scrimmage.
"It's decision week. We're setting the standard,'' Thompson said. "You're going to see a lot of people step up and you're going to see a lot of people probably not step up. That's the way football is. You are going to find out who wants to play, who has the ability to play, and we're going to put it the field and put it on film."
And, who knows, perhaps even find out who
the guy is.
