The Southeastern Conference doesn’t have much of a scouting report for Tennessee junior quarterback Matt Simms, who transferred to UT from El Camino (Calif.) Community College after beginning his college career at Louisville.
But Florida defensive end Justin Trattou knows exactly what to expect.
Trattou grew up down the street from Simms — son of former New York Giants quarterback Phil and brother of former Texas Longhorns and Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Chris — in Bergen County, N.J., where the two were teammates at Don Bosco Preparatory High School.
“I know his style of play, but obviously he’s playing in a system at Tennessee so he’s going to do what they tell him to do,” Trattou said. “Matt’s a really talented quarterback. He has a great arm, and he can throw with the best of them so we’re going to have to watch out for that.”
The Gators expect the Volunteers to try to run the ball down their throats with tailback Tauren Poole, who rushed for 162 yards on 23 carries last week against Oregon. But defensive line coach Dan McCarney said Simms could still be a factor.
“They’re going to take a lot of shots downfield,” McCarney said. “Simms has got a really strong arm, and we’ve got a good inside scouting report there with Justin Trattou being his high school teammate. It’s not only what we see on tape, but we know the strength of his arm, the talent and the unbelievable family tradition of success at quarterback.”
Mum’s the word on Rainey: Only offensive coordinator Steve Addazio commented on wide receiver Chris Rainey’s arrest for aggravated stalking Tuesday.
“Chris Rainey is not a part of our team right now, and that’s really all I have to say on that,” Addazio said.
Addazio refused to say anything else about how the situation is being handled and asked that all questions be directed toward the Tennessee game.
When asked if freshman Robert Clark would be the player to receive an increased role in the offense in Rainey’s absence, Addazio again kept it short.
“Right now we’re getting ready for our Tuesday practice. ... All those things would be premature right now,” he said.
When Rainey left Saturday’s game against USF with a concussion, Clark subbed in and had one catch for 15 yards, a crossing-route play that drew praise from teammates and coaches.
“He’s just a hard worker,” running back Jeff Demps said of Clark. “No matter what coach tells him to do, he’s going to do it. No arguing, 100 percent, and you know he’s going to work really hard.”
Nixon back to 100 percent: The Gators may finally have the pieces of their offensive line in the right places. Tackle Xavier Nixon said he’s fully recovered from the knee injury that caused him to miss the season opener. He played sparingly last week as a blocking tight end.
“It felt like a sense of knocking the dust off, getting back right,” Nixon said. “I really haven’t played full-contact ball since the spring, so it feels good to get back.”
If Nixon starts at left tackle, Marcus Gilbert would likely move back to right tackle and Maurice Hurt would slide inside to guard. That was the expected lineup before Nixon’s injury.
