Kat Williamson could use a breather.
In six straight matches, the Gators’ starting center back hasn’t so much as sniffed the sideline or seen the bench until the final whistle has been blown. She has played 547 consecutive minutes.
Ever since fellow redshirt junior Katie Kadera’s season-ending ACL injury on Sept. 30, this has been Williamson’s role. She is described as the team’s anchor on defense and the emotional leader of the Gators. Now, she is needed more than ever.
But with a three-game road trip on the horizon, and Williamson’s own history of injuries to worry about — she suffered an ACL tear as a freshman — UF coach Becky Burleigh is trying to lighten the workload for her All-America defender this week.
“We would love for her to get some rest because, obviously, that’s a demanding job,” Burleigh said. “But at the same time, she’s a tough person to take off the field, especially in tight games.”
Though it’s painful to play Williamson for anything less than a full 90 minutes, Burleigh is looking for one of the team’s non-starters to emerge as a reliable substitute.
At every other position group the No. 11 Gators (12-3, 5-1 Southeastern Conference) are one of the most bench-friendly teams in the league.
“We’ve been working on it,” Burleigh said. “We’ve been playing some different people at different positions in practice, and we’re going to continue to do that this week, too.”
The Gators generally allow their two defenders on the flanks, Maggie Rodgers and Jazmyne Avant, to flow freely up the field as an offensive possession progresses. Rodgers was a forward her freshman year before switching positions this offseason.
“We need more depth in our entire back line,” Burleigh said. “Even Jazmyne and Maggie playing as many minutes as they’re playing is a lot. Especially with the way we play our outside backs, that’s a big role.”
Before Kadera’s injury, her fourth ACL tear since high school and second at UF, the Gators enjoyed an ideal three-player rotation at center back, with freshman Annie Bobbitt coming off the bench.
“[Katie] hasn’t started most of her career; she [was] starting this year and has worked hard to get that done,” Burleigh said. “She’ll still be able to contribute to our team in different ways…but it’s really a tough injury for her and for our team.”
Burleigh said Kadera has taken on a mentoring role and is trying to help Bobbitt adjust to life as a full-time starter.
The first-year defender had a trying performance Friday against Auburn, with two turnovers deep in Florida’s defensive third. The Tigers were able to take a 1-0 lead in the 34th minute off an errant pass by Bobbitt that was intercepted by AU midfielder Katy Frierson
Two days later, though, Bobbitt rebounded nicely with 83 mistake-free minutes in Sunday’s match with Alabama, helping hold the Crimson Tide scoreless in the second half.
Contact John Boothe at jboothe@alligator.org
Florida center back Kat Williamson has played all 547 minutes of the No. 11 Gators’ last six games.
