Teammates unfazed by quick emergence of Gators freshman receiver Antonio Callaway
Friday, October 2, 2015 | Football, Scott Carter
GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Antonio Callaway arrived on campus over the summer to little fanfare compared to notable 2015 Florida signees such as CeCe Jefferson, Martez Ivey and Jordan Scarlett.
Callaway was a just a ragamuffin three-star recruit, the kind of guy who signs and then watches ESPN do live interviews with the nation's top recruits.
Besides recruitniks and those who follow Miami-area prep football closely, Callaway was likely an unknown to many Gator fans until they saw him catch a fourth-down pass from Will Grier, turn up field and race to the end zone for a 63-yard game-winning touchdown in last week's victory over Tennessee.
If Callaway never catches another pass, his place in Florida football lore is secure.
But talk to those who know Callaway best, and nothing about what he has done in his first four college games surprises them. Callaway has nine catches and is averaging 19.1 yards per reception. He caught five passes for 112 yards against Tennessee, becoming UF's first true freshman receiver to eclipse 100 yards in a game since Reidel Anthony in 1994.
“Since he stepped on here man, I say he Amari Cooper in the making,'' senior linebacker Antonio Morrison said. “Just watch that. Remember I said that. Amari Cooper from Bama, that's him.”
Morrison's praise perhaps borders on hyperbole at this early stage, but his words reveal how much Callaway's teammates respect him.
A freshman receiver who played his senior season at Booker T. Washington High in Miami, first-year Florida receivers coach Kerry Dixon first crossed paths with Callaway during Callaway's junior season at Homestead High.
“I've known Antonio for a while,” Dixon said. “I was actually his second offer when I was at FIU and he was at Homestead.”
As running backs coach at FIU last season, Dixon recruited heavily in South Florida and Callaway instantly jumped onto his wish-list.
Callaway instead signed with the Gators and shortly after National Signing Day in February, Dixon was Jim McElwain's final hire to round out his coaching staff.
Dixon then turned into teacher as Callaway began to impress his new team.
“Everyone was surprised initially with his athletic ability and how well he plays the game,'' Dixon said. “That was something I saw on his junior film. It's starting to show up. Now that he's starting to understand the game, starting to understand the importance of route running and how to get separation, it's helping him to really grow and become what I saw from him as a [high school] junior.”
When Callaway joined the program and started to work out with the players over the summer, Florida sophomore cornerback Quincy Wilson knew exactly what to expect.
He told his teammates in Florida's talented secondary to watch out.
“I played against him my senior year of high school when he was at Homestead,'' Wilson said. “He had a long catch on us. Going against him in the summer, I knew he was going to be something special. I knew he could play.”
Callaway impressed his teammates with his serious approach. He looked like a freshman but didn't play like one.
“He's hungry,'' Wilson said. “He looks to get open. He wants to catch the ball and get yards. He is really about business.”
Callaway has started all four games and has at least one catch in three of them. He has also flashed an ability to be a dangerous punt returner, including a 37-yarder at Kentucky.
Callaway's locker is next to junior tailback Kelvin Taylor's. Unlike Wilson and Dixon, Taylor had never heard of Callaway before they became teammates.
Now he looks at him as a little brother.
“He is going to be great. He's got all the intangibles the great receivers need,'' Taylor said. “He's a fast learner in how he processes stuff. And he's fast. No one really gives him credit for his speed.”
Callaway studies a lot of film on his own and Taylor said in offensive meetings, Callaway usually has a notebook out jotting down reminders.
That's when Taylor knew Callaway wasn't your typical freshman.
“He is very mature. He don't act his age at all,'' Taylor said. “He'll walk around the stadium and he's like a grown man in everything about the way he prepares. He's always focused when it's time to focus and he can play around when it's time to play around.
“I think that's what makes great.”
