Football Notebook: Rumph a strong addition, QB outlook, a British influence, more tidbits
Saturday, February 7, 2015 | Women's Basketball, Football, Scott Carter
A look at new Gators DL coach Chris Rumph at work. (Video: Longhorn Network)
GAINESVILLE, Fla. -- The newest addition to Jim McElwain's inaugural staff at UF, defensive line coach Chris Rumph, was on McElwain's radar from the moment he took over the Florida program.
The two worked together at Alabama in 2011 and developed a mutual respect for one another.
Rumph has a reputation as an excellent X's and O's coach and equally important, he is a proven recruiter who has deep ties in the Southeast after stops at Memphis, Clemson and Alabama.
While McElwain hired Terrell Williams to be his defensive line coach with Rumph having just completed his first season at Texas, when the Miami Dolphins convinced Williams to return to the NFL following his one-month stay at Florida, McElwain focused on hiring Rumph away from the Longhorns.
A deal was struck this week and on Friday, Florida officially announced the hiring of the 43-year-old Rumph.
In Texas, Rumph's departure was perceived as a big loss. In Florida, another victory for McElwain in the wake of a strong finish on National Signing Day on Wednesday.
"He joins a group of like-thinkers on our staff and is someone who will positively affect our players' lives – both on and off the field,'' McElwain said.
It's understandable why Texas fans were disappointed in Rumph leaving. The Longhorns are in a similar situation as Florida, trying to rejoin the nation's elite after a leaner-than-normal stretch.
Both programs are 29-21 in their last 50 games, well below the expectations of their fan bases.
Like McElwain, Texas coach Charlie Strong knows Rumph is one of the country's top assistants. A year ago Strong hired Rumph away from Alabama after Rumph spent three years on Nick Saban's staff.
In his only season at Texas, Rumph played a critical role in accelerating the development of defensive lineman Malcolm Brown, who led the Longhorns with 15 tackles for loss and 6 1/2 sacks last season. He is projected as a first-round draft pick by most analysts following his breakout senior season under the tutelage of Rumph.
Rumph also played a significant role in a strong Texas recruiting class, which ranked the best in the Big 12 Conference on Wednesday. Rumph served as the chief recruiter for Texas signees Du'Vonta Lampkin, DeShon Elliott, Quincy Vasser and Charles Omenihu.
Rumph inherits a defensive line at Florida that includes Jonathan Bullard, Alex McCalister, Bryan Cox Jr., Caleb Brantley and Joey Ivie among regulars in the rotation a season ago.
Rumph has talent to work and a proven track record of producing results. In addition, Rumph has SEC playing experience, which never hurts in trying to connect with young players. Rumph was a four-year letterman at South Carolina and was a sophomore in 1992 when the Gamecocks joined the SEC.
That's a win-win combination for the Gators.
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Needless to say, it's been an interesting couple of days after Wednesday's National Signing Day. You folks know why. As an employee of the University Athletic Association, I am not permitted to write about recruits until they are officially signed.
Want to get that out there for those of you who have emailed with questions. As of now, Florida's 2015 signing class includes 20 players, including a pair of early enrollees in tight end Daniel Imatorbhebhe and receiver Kalif Jackson.
Under the circumstances, McElwain and his staff deserve a tremendous amount of credit for salvaging what was a minimal-impact class a month ago and turn it into a top 25 class.
Florida coach Jim McElwain discusses the Gators' haul on National Signing Day. (Photo: Tim Casey)
SportsIllustrated.com ranked Florida as one of the "winners" on National Signing Day, and they weren't the only ones. SBNation.com writer Andy Hutchins, who writes about Florida for AlligatorArmy.com, offered more insight into a class that came together late, but came together nicely.
Of the 20 players currently signed, 14 played offense in high school, including a pair of players listed as athletes -- D'Anfernee McGriff from Tallahassee Lincoln and Kylan Johnson of Skyline High in Texas.
With an offensive background, McElwain has a lot of new weapons as he revamps that side of the ball, although there is always the potential for position changes as coaches begin to evaluate the team's needs and each player's strengths through spring practice and fall camp when the newcomers arrive.
The biggest takeaway McElwain offered was how the program built much-needed momentum.
"We still have a couple of [scholarships] that we will hold for some possible late additions as we move forward, and then obviously look for guys in next year's class as we get into possible early enrollees,'' he said. "We are already looking towards the 2016 class. That was kind of the plan going in. I thought we executed our plan very well.
"And you know what, there are a lot of positive things for the Gators."
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With the departure of Jeff Driskel to Louisiana Tech, Florida currently has three scholarship quarterbacks on the roster: Treon Harris, Will Grier and Skyler Mornhinweg.
The Gators would like to add at least one more. While they didn't sign a quarterback on Wednesday, there is always the possibility of a late addition or transfer over the summer.
Two quarterbacks the Gators tried to swing in recruiting, Lamar Jackson (Louisville) and Deondre Francois (Florida State), opted to honor their original commitments.
Still, McElwain had no need for a Kleenex.
"I really feel good about our quarterbacks,'' he said. "Obviously it's a position you recruit every year. You don't settle. You try and go out and get what there is. There may be some that are still out there as this kind of goes forward."
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In an off-the-record, get-to-know-you meeting with Florida beat reporters last month McElwain may have become the first Gators football coach to promote the mindset of a British economist who has been dead for more than 70 years.
John Maynard Keynes once championed the thought that "the difficulty lies not in the new ideas, but in escaping the old ones.”
McElwain called on the knowledge of Keynes once again this week in an interview with Pat Forde of Yahoo.com in a story about his quest to rebuild the Gators.
In his short time on campus, it's obvious McElwain arrived with a plan that he strongly believes in and one he is confident will produce the kind of success the Gators are accustomed to.
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Offensive lineman Tyler Jordan (6-foot-4, 275 pounds) out of Bishop Kenny High in Jacksonville earned a special distinction when he committed to the Gators soon after McElwain took over the program.
Imatorbhebhe was the first player to commit to McElwain and enrolled in school soon afterward. Meanwhile, Jordan became perhaps the Gators' most prominent recruiter on social media among commitments, promoting the program and the new coaching staff to other players over the past month.
"I've got to tell you, Tyler, Kalif, Bhe-Bhe, those young guys were the first to jump in,'' McElwain said. "Those guys were fantastic. And Tyler, in particular, he was real positive on his visit that he made up here and did a good job of staying in touch. They were recruiting teammates."
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They work behind the scenes but play as vital a role in recruiting as the coaching staff.
Drew Hughes, Florida's director of player personnel under former head coach Will Muschamp, and Kevin Barbay, the former director of player personnel under McElwain at Colorado State, received some public recongnition from McElwain this week.
"I thought Drew did a really good job,'' McElwain said. "He's a guy that was able to hold it together. We were able to add Kevin [too]."
Barbay (photo, left) comes to Florida after a season at Colorado State. Prior to that, Barbay spent two seasons as receivers coach at Lamar and two years as athletics director/football coach at Warren (Texas) High.
As McElwain continues to revamp the program from the inside out, building a deeper player personnel department is one of the goals.
"We are still in the process of adding some people that have a lot of experience in those areas that are going to help us,'' he said. "That's part of the infrastructure change that we are getting ready to make."
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QUOTE OF NOTE: "The guy is a great ball coach and he had obviously some insights that I'm sure they were able to use. Yet, it's never about anybody else. It's about what we have and who we are. We are very secure in that and know we are going to move forward and be successful in what we are trying to accomplish.'' -- McElwain on impact of recruiting against Muschamp, now defensive coordinator at Auburn
