Dan Quinn’s shirt said it all Wednesday.
As Florida’s first-year defensive coordinator spoke of his unit leading up to Saturday’s season opener against FAU, he donned a grey shirt with the words “Ball Hawk” emblazoned across the front.
That’s what he expects of his unit this year: a relentless defense that’s both fast and physical for 60 minutes.
“I want you to see the tape and see these guys are really physical,” Quinn said. “You hope that after the tape comes off and after you watch the game, you say, ‘That’s a fast, physical team. They went after the ball; they’re tough, good tacklers.’”
With the season on the horizon, Quinn said the defense is still adjusting from a predominantly 4-3 scheme to a hybrid system that also runs 3-4 principles. However, he said he’s pleased with the progress he’s seen from the unit.
“[The system] may look harder at times than it is,” Quinn said. “When you combine both the 3-4 and the 4-3 packages it adds some value in how the offense will have to prepare against you. That’s one thing Will (Muschamp) and I have always believed in.”
Quinn said the transition to playing more 3-4 was difficult for some at first, but through a full spring and fall camp, the unit has adjusted nicely to the new principles.
In order to keep opposing offenses on their toes with the new system, Quinn has had the entire defense — and more specifically, the front seven — cross-training at every position.
The interior linemen (Omar Hunter, Jaye Howard, Dominique Easley and Sharrif Floyd) are switching between nose tackle and defensive tackle, or defensive tackle and defensive end.
Particularly, Quinn said Floyd, who was the No. 1 defensive tackle recruit in 2010 according to Rivals.com, will be playing end in the Gators’ base defense and tackle in their nickel package.
Cross-training allows each player to be interchangeable at several positions to fit the type of strategy the Gators want to implement based on the opponent’s offensive tendencies.
“Part of it is you wanted to put out the best guys,” Quinn said. “Sometimes it might just be for the opponent you’re playing. This is a really big run team and we’d like to have a bigger team on the field that time, and if there’s a nickel situation, you’d like to have more rushers.”
The Gators’ defensive coordinator went on to single out a handful of players as the team’s best pass-rushers: William Green, Lerentee McCray and Ronald Powell the best from the outside, and Easley and Floyd the most consistent inside.
Beyond strategy, Quinn said cross-training also helps in the event of an injury.
With Florida’s unproven depth in the front seven, if one player goes down, another can just slide into the position without having to worry about losing a step.
“We certainly are a work in progress,” Quinn said.
“But I’m encouraged with where we’re at and where we’re heading with that group.”
Contact Tom Green at tgreen@alligator.org.
Gators defensive coordinator Dan Quinn said sophomore Sharrif Floyd would play defensive end in the team’s base package and would slide inside to play tackle in nickel packages.
