Jon Harrison has seen a lot of changes during his time at Florida.
Since he arrived on campus in 2009, he has had two head coaches, three offensive line coaches and played with two Pounceys. And on Saturday, he will begin his final season at UF.
“It’s really just all the blood, sweat and tears, all the hard work that’s been put into this program,” Harrison said. “I’ve been here five years now, gone through the ups and downs, good, bad, ugly, coaching changes, whatever, you name it and I’ve experienced it.
“It really just helps me reflect on all that’s been put into this program and how great my desire is to have a great outcome at the end of the year.”
Harrison will be surrounded with more new faces when Florida plays Toledo on Saturday. Guard Jon Halapio (partially torn pectoral muscle) and tackle Chaz Green (torn labrum) will both miss the game. Halapio is expected to miss two weeks, while Green is out for the entire season.
“The fact that (Jon) Halapio and Chaz (Green) aren’t out there for the last first game of the season, it does bother me some,” Harrison said Tuesday. “But I can only control so much, and we have to focus on the team and keep moving on.”
Florida released its two-deep depth chart for Toledo on Monday. Redshirt senior Kyle Koehne, junior Max Garcia and sophomores D.J. Humphries and Tyler Moore will start alongside Harrison. Garcia and Moore will be making their Gators debut after transferring from Maryland and Nebraska, respectively.
Despite the injuries, offensive coordinator Brent Pease said he is confident in the line’s ability to push the offense forward.
“We still feel good about where we’re at,” Pease said.
But the offensive line still has a lot to prove.
Florida’s running game is already ailing. Starting tailback Matt Jones (viral infection) was scratched for the season opener and is questionable for the Gators’ Week 2 matchup with the Hurricanes.
Pease said the strategy is still the same with backup Mack Brown getting the majority of snaps, putting pressure on the offensive line to open holes for the junior runner.
“Those are two people that are hard to replace, but I feel like the guys behind them will do good,” Brown said in reference to Green and Halapio.
The line will get some help on the edge from tight end Clay Burton. Pease praised the newly appointed starter for his consistent blocking in camp.
“I think he’s grown in that tremendously, size and strength,” Pease said.
The line will also need to show it has improved in pass protection. Last year, quarterback Jeff Driskel was sacked 36 times.
“We’ve gotten a lot bigger and strong on the offensive line,” Driskel said.
Said Harrison: “Driskel’s more comfortable in the pocket because he’s understanding the offense more. From January to now, going over the O-line calls, what this means to him, what linebacker is his in pass protection. Just that knowledge alone increased his confidence level in the pocket.”
Florida will have the opportunity to show their improvement against a weaker Toledo defensive unit. The Rockets finished 2012 with the 113th-ranked defense in the nation and ended the season ranked 119th in pass defense.
“You have to approach every game the same way if you want to be successful,” Harrison said. “You can’t go out there thinking about everything you have that could possibly hinder your success. That’s a self-inflicted wound.”
Follow Adam Lichtenstein on Twitter @ALichtenstein24.
Redshirt senior center Jon Harrison prepares to snap the ball against Tennesee on Sept. 15 in Neyland Stadium. Florida scored 24 unanswered points to win the game 37-20.
