For a 6-foot-4, 211 pound wide receiver, catching a screen pass and taking it eight yards isn’t normally a big deal.
But for Ahmad Fulwood, it’s a small sign of progress.
The junior and former four-star recruit only hauled in two passes for 15 yards on Saturday, but it was his second catch that drew the attention of his head coach.
On the play late in the second quarter, Fulwood secured a quick sideline pass from quarterback Treon Harris, darted upfield and proceeded to bulldoze the oncoming defender as he went out of bounds.
While it was only a modest gain, the effort and tenacity impressed head coach Jim McElwain, who more than two weeks ago called out the junior for not playing up to his physical potential.
"When he took that thing and really said, ‘I’m not going to be denied,’ he really took it to the defender," McElwain said.
"It was great. And we need him. We do. And so, there again, I think that was proof."
For the last two years, Florida has been looking for some form of proof that Fulwood can live up to the high expectations he came out of high school with.
He failed to do so in his first two seasons, only managing to catch 29 passes for 326 yards — a low number even if it were just for one season.
And while 14 different receivers caught passes in Florida's season opener against New Mexico State, Fulwood was not one of them.
Instead, he dropped a sure-fire touchdown pass from quarterback Will Grier near the end of the first half.
But McElwain believes the coaching staff can bring more out of him this year, and he’s made it clear to Fulwood that he expects to see results.
"Me and coach Mac have talked about it," Fulwood said.
"I took it to heart just because of the simple fact that I know where he’s coming from. He wants the best out of me and he wants every single weapon I have to offer.
"So I took it to heart and I said, ‘I have to do better.’ That’s what I was trying to do in Game 2 and from now on."
With more weapons being utilized this season in McElwain's offense, Fulwood said he realized he needs to make effort plays like Saturday’s screen pass to stand out.
"The big play ability, every receiver that comes here has that big play ability," Fulwood said.
"So the coaches know that. They are looking for that guy who can fight for those extra yards.
"You can’t coach effort. It’s just a simple fact of want to. When they see someone like that who wants to get it, from all our guys, it just excites them."
At this point in his career, Fulwood isn’t trying to live up to expectations anymore.
Instead, he just wants to experience the feeling of making plays and getting hit again.
It's a feeling that has eluded him during his struggles.
Plowing into the defender Saturday night was his first chance to seek real contact in a long time, he said, and he hopes he doesn’t have to wait as long for the chance to do it again.
"I just want the ball in my hands," Fulwood said.
"I want to help my team win. Those are the two things I want the most. The past is past and I can only change what’s going to happen in the future."
Follow Graham Hack on Twitter @graham_hack24
UF wide receiver Ahmad Fulwood catches a pass from quarterback Will Grier (not pictured) during practice Aug. 8, 2015, at Donald R. Dizney Stadium.
