Florida Gators
Wake Forest
Gators vs. UAB: A tale of two offensive lines
Thursday, September 8, 2011 | Football, Women's Tennis, Scott Carter
Gators coach Will Muschamp had done his homework when he stepped to the podium on Monday to discuss the Gators' game against UAB. One of the first things he pointed out about the Blazers was their veteran offensive line.
“All five are back this year,'' he said. “They moved the ball on everybody they played last year and have had a lot of success offensively.''
If UAB has a clear-cut advantage over the Gators, it's experience on the offensive line. The Blazers have six players on the line who have combined for 118 career starts, which ranked third in the country coming into the season behind only SMU (158) and Northwestern (137).
Meanwhile, Florida's starting offensive line of LT Xavier Nixon (14 career starts), LG Dan Wenger (20), C Jonotthan Harrison (2), RG Jon Halapio (8) and RT Chaz Green (1) own a combined 45 career starts. If you take away the 19 Wenger made at Notre Dame, the disparity between the two lines grows even greater.
The uncertainty of the Gators' line remained until the day before the season opener.
“We had no idea [what the starting line was],'' Halapio said. “It changed every day. We all trust each other. Whoever starts is going to be a good offensive line. I feel like we all connect together.''
Muschamp was pleased with the way the unit performed in the opener, a rotation that included reserves Kyle Koehne and Matt Patchan.
“The offensive line we feel pretty settled in,'' Muschamp said.
Green's emergence has helped solidify the unit. He struggled in the spring while Patchan and Nixon – the other two tackles who played against FAU – battled injuries.
“He was like a man in his own country,'' offensive coordinator Charlie Weis said. “Once he got into that rotation with those other guys and competition started getting better and better. He's a very competitive person and I think the competition made him play better.”
Green earned the start ahead of Patchan in the opener and also took snaps at left tackle to give Nixon a breather. He enjoys being the tackle called on by offensive line coach Frank Verducci to play both sides for now.
He also likes to battle for playing time.
“It's good competition. It keeps us right in practice,'' Green said.
Meanwhile, Wenger's addition has played a very important role as well. A sixth-year senior from Notre Dame who missed all of last season due to concussion issues, he has added a veteran presence the Gators sorely needed up front after losing four starters from last season's line.
“He's the wise man of the offensive line,'' Halapio said. “He knows every call there is, and we feel really comfortable with him out there calling all the calls and just running to the ball and being a leader out there.''
As for the Blazers, RG Terence Edge (32) and LT Matt McCants (31) are the most-experienced of the veteran group. The most talented could be center Darion Smith, a senior who is on the Rimington Award Watch List.
