Florida Gators

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Nearly 11 minutes into Dan Mullen's press conference Thursday at Florida's annual Media Day, a reporter asked a question that reflected the tone of the day.

"May I ask a football question?'' Edgar Thompson of The Orlando Sentinel tossed Mullen's way.

Bombarded early with a variety of questions focused on topics far from the field -- former UF coach Urban Meyer's troubles at Ohio State, questionable decisions by some of his players recently, his program's policy on owning guns – Mullen appeared bemused for a moment.

"Yeah,'' he said.

Mullen then flashed a nervous smile toward the group of more than 40 media members as he was asked about the Gators' quarterback dilemma as they open preseason camp on Friday afternoon, uncertain whether Feleipe Franks, Kyle Trask or Emory Jones will start the season opener Sept. 1 against Charleston Southern.

"You ask if Megan is involved in the program. I get this question from my her quite a bit too,'' Mullen responded, alluding to his wife. "Can we get this resolved? Can we get a starter we feel good about? I would love to get that done. I don't have the timetable."

The exchange was as light-hearted as it got for Mullen during his 46 minutes at the podium, the polar opposite of his trip to the SEC Media Days in Atlanta two weeks ago when Mullen and his custom-made Jordan sneakers shared the spotlight at the league's preseason kickoff.



By Thursday night, Mullen was in the team's meeting room at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium addressing the players as they reported for the start of camp. Following a week of non-football headlines around the program and a bombshell report that led to Meyer, Mullen's former boss at Florida, being placed on administrative leave by Ohio State, the Gators' task now is to rediscover some normalcy as they start practice.

Receiver Tyree Cleveland, one of a dozen players mentioned in a recent incident report from late May that included an on-campus confrontation with a local man that included a pair of airsoft rifles, isn't concerned about any lingering effects from unwanted headlines.

"Conflicts happen every day in life,'' said Cleveland, a junior receiver who led the team with 410 yards in receptions a season ago. "We are just going to stay focused and worry about the season and not let outside noise distract us."

Mullen gathered the players for a meeting recently to discuss a myriad of topics related to good decision making.

Cleveland said Mullen's words resonated with the players.

"I feel like we got the message from him,'' Cleveland said. "He tells us every day to make good decisions and think about your brand and how it affects you, your teammates and your family. I feel like everybody is trying to come together and make smarter decisions off the field. We are working really hard toward it."

Coming off a 4-7 season that included the departure of head coach Jim McElwain following a 42-7 loss to Georgia and a 1-3 record under interim coach Randy Shannon, the Gators are picked to finish third in the SEC East behind Georgia and South Carolina by the league's media.

Junior defensive back Chauncey Gardner-Johnson is convinced the Gators can surprise in Mullen's first season.

"This team is talented, that much I know,'' he said. "Realistically, we just have to improve on everything that went wrong. We struggled as a whole last year. We're going to prove them wrong."

First, the Gators must find some answers in camp, starting at quarterback.

While Mullen said there is no timetable to name a starter, the best-case scenario is for someone to gain separation early and make it an easy decision.

"I hope it's a clear-cut decision that we know this person's going to give us the best chance to win games and lead this program into the future,'' Mullen said.

Under normal circumstances, the ongoing quarterback battle would have headlined Thursday's festivities.

However, following nine months of a relatively smooth transition into Mullen's tenure, the Gators take the practice field Friday under the microscope for non-football reasons.

Senior defensive tackle Khairi Clark tried to put everything in perspective for outsiders wondering how focused the Gators are with the season on the horizon.

"What it all comes down to, every program is going to have adversity,'' Clark said. "You have to overlook it and stay focused and worry about the main common goal — which is to win.

"It's not that hard. It's just adversity. I've been here a long time, and seeing some of the things that have happened has motivated me to stay positive and let everything be. You have to adapt to the adversity, then overcome it."

Cleveland understands the concerns. Still, he said the team's mindset is on the field despite whatever perceptions swirl outside the locker room.

"There's great competition right now,'' he said. "You are going to see a new attitude and a new swag."

-- FloridaGators.com senior writer Chris Harry contributed to this report.