Warren, English To Implement 'Gator Standard' in Secondary

Veteran coach Ron English, who was on Dan Mullen's staff at Mississippi State in 2017, is now safeties coach at UF. (Photo: Alex de la Osa/UAA Communications)

Warren, English To Implement 'Gator Standard' in Secondary

Tuesday, February 20, 2018 | Football

UF assistants Charlton Warren (cornerbacks) and Ron English (safeties) seek to win at the highest level while at Florida.

By: Ethan Hughes, FloridaGators.com correspondent

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Charlton Warren and Ron English were drawn to the University of Florida by the same thing – a track record of excellence and sky-high expectations for sustained success in all facets.

"Being a guy from the South, I've always admired the University of Florida," Warren said. "Obviously, the history and tradition of the players, being a secondary coach, you'd be blind to not see the amount of secondary players that have come out of this program and this state in general."

Added English: "[I] understand that this is one of the great programs in the country and a great opportunity for student-athletes both athletically and academically. When you talk about the No. 9-ranked public school in this country, a place that's won multiple national championships in all the sports. I think Florida can win a national championship. They've done it multiple times before."

UF head coach Dan Mullen hired Warren and English to coach the cornerbacks and safeties, respectively, and lead the Gators program back to a national championship level.

A new NCAA rule allowing programs to hire a 10th assistant coach allowed the Gators to split up the defensive back coaching duties. Warren (cornerbacks) and English (safeties) bring impressive track records and plenty of experience to the Gators' revamped coaching staff.

Warren joined the Gators following one season in Knoxville as Tennessee's defensive backs coach and special teams coordinator. He has demonstrated an ability to quickly turn around porous pass defenses, most recently inheriting a Tennessee unit that ranked 69th in the country in passing yards per game surrendered in 2016 and transforming the Volunteers' secondary into the nation's sixth-best pass defense in 2017.

Warren played defensive back at the Air Force Academy and spent the first nine years of his coaching career with the Falcons as well. He said his coaching style reflects his military background.

"I just think that discipline and accountability, that I sort of bring just as a human being on a day-to-day basis sort of spills over to my players in the meeting room, and then also when we're playing well, that's going to be on the football field," Warren said. "Because when you have discipline and accountability, you don't blow coverages. When you have discipline and accountability, you communicate effectively with your teammate, your squad mate, your brother next to you. You make sure everybody is on the same page.

"So, I think for me, just the way my structure is, just the way I fundamentally teach and how that then corresponds to their play, I think those two will be intertwined on a daily basis."

50585 — Gators cornerbacks coach Charlton Warren came to UF after spending last season at Tennessee. (Photo: Alex de la Osa/UAA Communications)

A veteran of more than 20 years, English followed Mullen from Mississippi State. English is best known for his five-year run as Eastern Michigan's head coach, during which he snapped the Eagles' streak of 15 consecutive losing seasons in 2011.

English says his time as a head coach and defensive coordinator benefited him when he returned to coaching defensive backs and helped him more fully appreciate the special bond position coaches have with their players.

"You just see the big picture -- you're kind of more aware of everything that's going on as opposed to living in your own little world," English said. "It is a blessing to get back into coaching [individual players] like that and learning about their lives and all the minute details and all that stuff. But the experience I've had, leading men as a head coach and a defensive coordinator at multiple places, will help serve me well."

English said that while he desires to climb the coaching ranks again, he believes every coach should have the same aspirations.

"I don't know if I would want to work with a guy who's in a place of comfort," he said. "I just don't think that's how the world works. I would want to work with a guy who wants to ascend back to where he believes he should be."

Warren and English inherit a nice mixture of front-line talent and experience. The group is headlined by 2017 Associated Press All-SEC Second Team sophomore cornerback CJ Henderson, sophomore cornerback Marco Wilson and junior safety Chauncey Gardner. Henderson and Wilson were named to the Coaches' Freshman All-SEC team a season ago.

Warren is impressed with Wilson and Henderson.

"I think they meet the mold of what you're looking for in a corner," he said. "They're long. They're athletic. They have good ball skills. They can run. I think as young guys playing in the SEC, they did a tremendous job. I think like every DB, they have a thirst and a hunger to get better fundamentally and technique-wise."

Every defensive back will be given a clean slate; playing time will be determined by what they do moving forward, not what they did for the previous staff.

"Being a new guy on a new staff, the one thing you can push to players is it's open competition," Warren said. "It doesn't really matter what you did last year from a standpoint of you've earned something. You have to come out -- you're earning it right now in morning workouts. You're earning it right now in the weight room. You have a chance to earn it in spring ball. I want ultra-competitors in the corners room because when it's third and 10, and you have to go press coverage against the best receiver in the SEC, you'd better be a competitor."

The challenge for Warren and English will be to define roles and develop quality depth, the lack of which plagued the Gators a season ago.

"I think what we've got to do is once we determine the guys that we're going to put at corner, at safety and star [a hybrid position], things like that, I think you want to get your best players on the field," Warren said. "So I think you also want to have enough depth in this league where you don't have to play a guy 70-80 snaps a game because you have guys that are pushing and have the ability mentally and physically to go out there and play and give guys relief so you can play you're fastest every time you're out on the field."

Versatility is also a major point of emphasis in the secondary.

"You want a guy who can play either safety," English said. "It was back in the day you had your old strong safety who was your bigger, more physical guy, drop in the box and all that. Free safety was more your cover guy and playing middle of the field. But now I really think those guys need to be interchangeable. With me coaching the safeties and the nickel -- last year we had a guy that played all three, which is great because now you have some flexibility."

When evaluating recruits, it all comes down to one question for English.

"Can we win a national championship with that guy?"

Warren and English are looking for players who give relentless effort, love competing, are driven to be great and are all about winning a national championship. They will demand it out of their current players.

In other words, they're searching for what Mullen calls the "Gator Standard."

"At another school when I recruited defensive backs, I never wanted to recruit a guy who, A) if I didn't feel you could play in the NFL, I didn't really want to recruit you," English said. "And B) if you were a defensive back and he couldn't come in and contribute right away, I always felt like I recruited the wrong guy. Because I don't think those guys have to get a lot bigger and stronger and all that stuff. They should be able to contribute right away if they're the athletes you think they are."

Warren and English hold themselves to the "Gator Standard" as well.

"I'm trying to be the best secondary coach in America because right now that's what I'm tasked to do," Warren said.

Warren and English understand what Gators fans expect – national championships. They embrace those high expectations and the opportunity to awake a giant that's been mired in a near decade-long slumber.

"I'm excited about the opportunity to help Florida get back where they should be," English said.