Coming off an injury that can be described in essence as a broken back, place-kicker Caleb Sturgis exemplifies the unknowns surrounding Florida at nearly every position.
After suffering a hairline fracture to one of his vertebrae before the Alabama game, Sturgis dealt with physical pain due to his injury and emotional agony over his status with the team and whether he’d be able to play again.
“One of the hardest things was getting to the point where I didn’t feel like I was helping the team out anymore,” he said. “It just got to the point where I couldn’t sleep at night, so it was really hard. I never really saw it happening to me.”
He missed the final nine games of the season and spent the offseason interning at Mark Bostick Golf Course instead of splitting uprights.
But now, finally healthy, Sturgis is being counted on to anchor a special teams unit missing several key pieces from a season ago.
The redshirt junior said he’s about 10 pounds lighter than his pre-injury weight and isn’t doing the same workouts anymore, including eliminating squats. But Sturgis feels great and is kicking with the same power as before.
While Sturgis was a preseason second-team All-Southeastern Conference selection, there will always be concerns about making a full recovery from such an injury.
Additionally, the Gators must find a new punter after the departure of 2010 Ray Guy Award Winner and first-team All-American Chaz Henry, who recently signed with the Philadelphia Eagles as an undrafted free agent.
“You can’t replace Chaz,” Sturgis said. “He’s the best punter in the country.”
Freshman Kyle Christy and Buchholz High School graduate David Lerner are the front-runners to replace Henry.
When Urban Meyer coached the Gators, he had a firm grasp on all aspects of his special teams.
While Sturgis and other players said they expect little deviation with the retention of unit coach D.J. Durkin, it won’t be known until games are played if Florida will be lacking in the oft-ignored third dimension.
The Gators ranked in the top 25 in both kickoff return and punt return defense last season, a constant under Meyer.
New coach Will Muschamp, whose background is primarily on defense, said he wants 10 yards on every punt return — one less first down for the offense:
“We feel very good about our team speed and very comfortable that we will be a good space team and generally that credits to special teams.”
ST Probable Depth ChartK — Caleb Sturgis
P — Kyle Christy
KR — Andre Debose, Jeff Demps, Chris Rainey
PR — Chris Rainey
Sturgis
