Florida Gators

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Three days earlier, defensive back Marco Wilson and linebacker Ventrell Miller were among the UF football players who joined a peaceful Black Lives Matter protest that proceeded from the corner of campus to Bo Diddley Plaza downtown.

Wilson and Miller are veteran upperclassmen on Florida's defense and leaders of a unit that lost six starters from a season ago. As they cooled down after Monday night's practice, both players spoke about an eventful summer heading into their redshirt junior seasons.

When they departed the field following Florida's victory over Virginia in the Orange Bowl eight months ago, no one could have envisioned how 2020 America would come to be defined by social unrest, political battles over the coronavirus pandemic, and a split decision by Power 5 conferences whether to play college football this fall.

Yet, with the Gators preparing to open the season Sept. 26 at Ole Miss, that is where we are.
 

And like thousands of college athletes around the country, Wilson and Miller felt compelled to participate in the BLM movement in hopes of raising awareness of the issue in their community. While they come from different backgrounds and have varied interests away from football, both players can relate to the cause as young African-American men.

"I've been stopped plenty of times, in a sense, [because] I was a black man and I may have fit a description,'' said Miller, who grew up in Lakeland. "There definitely needs awareness to be brought to that. I have empathy for all that's going on, I mean, it's not right. It's something that has been heavy on my heart."

"Driving while black" is a term often used – and supported by studies – to describe the increased likelihood of a black male being pulled over by police at a higher rate than other races.

While neither player said he has ever feared for his life in such a situation, they know the dangers are real based on what they have seen and heard.

"It's just a constant worry that something might happen,'' Wilson said. "That's just something that I don't think people should be walking around with, that feeling, because it can get overwhelming for some people."

Wilson grew up in South Florida and is the son of former Miami Hurricanes defensive back Chad Wilson. His brother, Jets defensive back Quincy Wilson, played for the Gators from 2014-16.

Wilson embraced the opportunity Friday to participate in the protest, which featured Gators men's basketball player Scottie Lewis as a speaker. UF head coach Dan Mullen joined players as did some of his assistant coaches.
 
"It's important because as a black man in this country, I know things aren't easy for us,'' Wilson said. "Because of the environment I'm in, around my team, racism isn't a thing, but in the outside world it is a thing. I know other people are facing it every day and it's a serious issue.

"At this point, I think it's something we shouldn't even have to deal with, but we do. It's important that people just educate themselves and realize that love is the way to go. They just need to learn how to take care of others and love each other because the hate towards others is not going to get us anywhere as people in this country."

While social unrest has erupted across the country at different times this summer, the coronavirus pandemic has been front and center in the sports world since mid-March when professional and college sports shut down.

For the Gators, that meant the cancellation of spring football and for many players, the added challenge of working out on their own away from campus while finishing spring-semester classes online. Miller said he remained in Gainesville throughout the past several months. Wilson went home and trained with his brother and father.
 

Unlike some of their teammates, they never considered opting out of the season. Still, that doesn't mean they are not taking COVID-19 serious or fail to understand the concern of others.

"It's a little concern on my mind,'' Miller said. "It's a different risk this year that's come on. But that's the thing, just trust your teammates and everybody be accountable and not doing things they shouldn't be doing."

The Gators have been able to maintain a strong defense against COVID-19 infections, operating in a system devised by UFHealth and the University Athletic Association sports medicine team. In the latest testing results released Tuesday by the UAA, of 298 tests administered to football players in August, none were positive. Since the players began returning to campus May 26 to participate in voluntary workouts, only 21 of 459 tests returned positive.

"The key to it working is just making the right decisions, making smart decisions,'' Wilson said. "As a team, we're handling business. At the end of the day, I don't want to get sick because I don't know what can happen out of that. But at the same time, I've just got to pray and make sure I'm doing the right things and keep myself safe and just focus on football and school."

The UF fall semester started Monday, which brought back a sense of familiarity for the players with more of their fellow students on campus than the past few months. Other signs point to fall as well. Miller discovered an unexpected surprise on Saturday night when he tuned into ESPN.

The first college football game of the 2020 season was on, a game between Austin Peay and Central Arkansas.

"I didn't even know football season had started,'' Miller said. "I was like, 'Is this live?' It was definitely a good sight to see."

Following a spring and summer of strife away from the game, the Gators are eager for an opportunity to get back to what they know and love. They want to play. They want to be tested. They want to win.

The clock can't tick fast enough until Sept. 26 at noon.

"I believe we can make it all the way,'' Wilson said. "We just want to make sure we stay focused with everything that is going on around us, just making sure that we keep our mind set on the task at hand, which is playing the first game and then winning and just continuing on and having a safe, healthy season and trying to win a championship."