Florida’s chances of upsetting Michigan in the two teams’ season openers took a hit over the break when UF announced seven Gators are suspended for the game.
The most notable is junior receiver Antonio Callaway, Florida’s leading pass-catcher each of the past two seasons. The others are defensive linemen Jordan Smith, Keivonnis Davis and Richerd Desir-Jones, linebackers Ventrell Miller and James Houston along with offensive lineman Kadeem Telfort.
Smith is also involved in a criminal investigation, the Gainesville Police Department confirmed last week. A report from the Read Optional says Smith, a redshirt freshman, is accused of using stolen credit card information to pay rent.
Spokesman Officer Ben Tobias said in an email that Smith’s case is being handled by the detective division, and there’s no timetable for how long it could take. He also said no other players “have been identified as being involved at this point.”
However, one source told Saturday Down South that one of the other six suspended players reportedly is a “person of interest” involving the case against Smith.
As for how those missing bodies will affect Florida on the football field, Callaway is the biggest blow. UF will likely turn to sophomores Josh Hammond and Freddie Swain to fill that void.
While none of the other players are starters, losing Davis hurts the depth along Florida’s defensive line, where he was expected to rotate in regularly. Luckily for the Gators, they have plenty of capable bodies at defensive end, including CeCe Jefferson, Jabari Zuniga, Jordan Sherit, Jachai Polite, Antonneous Clayton and Zachary Carter.
Losing Miller and Houston, both true freshmen, also hurts Florida’s depth at linebacker, where an injury could force inexperienced veterans, walk-ons or a less-touted freshman — Lacedrick Brunson, UF’s only two-star recruit in its 2017 class — onto the field.
The loss of Telfort also hurts Florida’s offensive line depth. Junior Tyler Jordan is expected to be UF’s main backup at any position, but if two injuries occur, Telfort was likely next in line at tackle and possibly at guard.
Multiple outlets have reported that the suspensions stem from misuse of player funds, though the school hasn’t confirmed that. But coach Jim McElwain also didn’t deny it when confronted with those allegations.
“Obviously, any time there’s, you know, choices made,” McElwain said, “you’ve got to make up for whatever happened.”
The seven suspended players haven’t returned to practice since the incident, although McElwain said while they will be missing the Michigan game, they can return as soon as the issue is “resolved.”
You can follow Ethan Bauer on Twitter at @ebaueri, or contact him at ebauer@alligator.org.
Jordan Smith was one of seven players suspended for the Michigan game on Sept. 2.
