Tag: Asa Turner

Does Football Power Index get Florida Gators 2024 projection correct?

The FPI rankings appear to have Florida football’s 2024 outlook correct, according to the eye test.

ESPN recently released its Football Power Index — a power rating that tracks each team’s strength relative to an average Football Bowl Subdivision school — for all 134 FBS teams in 2024. In the data, programs are rated on offense, defense and special teams.

Among those listed are the Florida Gators, who landed at No. 20 overall despite a projected .500 regular-season record. However, the strength of schedule facing [autotag]Billy Napier[/autotag] and Co. is among the most formidable in the nation which earned the Orange and Blue the highest ranking for a 6-6 projection.

The Oklahoman’s Justin Martinez took a look at the Southeastern Conference’s status in the FPI rankings, in which Florida sits at No. 11 among its league peers. Much of the reason for the Gators’ strong strength of schedule is the brutal gauntlet that the SEC has to offer.

So do the numbers pass the eye test? Martinez thinks so, verifying the projections as accurate.

“Quarterback [autotag]Graham Mertz[/autotag] should be solid in his second season with Florida, and Arizona State transfer [autotag]Elijhah Badger[/autotag] will form a good receiver duo with [autotag]Eugene Wilson III[/autotag],” Martinez begins.

“The Gators should also improve defensively with numerous returners and transfer pickups such as South Carolina linebacker [autotag]Grayson Howard[/autotag] and Washington safety [autotag]Asa Turner[/autotag]. But Florida’s tough schedule will prevent it from cracking the top 10 of the standings.”

The SEC rankings are headed by the Georgia Bulldogs in the top spot, followed by the Texas Longhorns, Alabama Crimson Tide, Oklahoma Sooners, Tennessee Volunteers, Missouri Tigers, LSU Tigers, Texas A&M Aggies, Ole Miss Rebels and Auburn Tigers to round out the top 10.

Florida’s 2024 season opener

The Gators open up the 2024 schedule against the Miami Hurricanes on Aug. 31 in Gainesville, Florida. Kickoff time is slated for 3:30 p.m. ET and the game will be broadcast on ABC Sports.

Follow us @GatorsWire on X, formerly known as Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Florida Gators news, notes and opinions.

Pair of Gators on The Athletic’s All-‘Wait, They’re Still Playing College Football?’ team

The Gators have a pair of elder statesmen among their offensive and defensive ranks.

The COVID pandemic of 2020 still has lingering effects on college football after the NCAA granted student-athletes an extra year of eligibility following the pandemic-shortened season. Among the ramifications of the decision is extended collegiate careers for a few gridiron warriors.

The Florida Gators are one of the programs that have benefitted from this extension entering the 2024 campaign with a pair of former transfer portal acquisitions who look to make a mark in the twilight of their amateur eligibility.

Quarterback [autotag]Graham Mertz[/autotag], formerly of the Wisconsin Badgers, and safety [autotag]Asa Turner[/autotag], formerly of the Washington Huskies, are the two players The Athletic’s Stewart Mandel and Max Olson singled out in their All-“Wait, They’re Still Playing College Football?!” Team — both of whom started their collegiate careers in 2019.

QB Graham Mertz

“This October will mark seven years since the top-100 recruit filled Wisconsin fans with euphoria, becoming that program’s highest-rated QB commit since … ever?

“Unfortunately, his four-year career in Madison was filled with more mediocrity than glory, but given a fresh start in Gainesville, he improved dramatically last year (72.9% passing, 20 TDs, 3 INTs). Mertz is back for what will likely be his fifth consecutive season as a college starter.”

S Asa Turner

“Turner was a true freshman starter at Washington during Chris Petersen’s final season and started 28 of 43 games during his five seasons with the Huskies.

“He’s back for one more, this time in the SEC with the Gators, thanks to an interesting technicality: Turner played in four regular-season games in 2023 and was able to count it as a redshirt season — even though he returned from injury in time to play in the Pac-12 title game and both CFP games.

“Yep, that’s right, a seven-game redshirt. Don’t think we’ve ever seen that before.”

Florida’s 2024 season opener

Florida opens up its 2024 regular-season schedule in the Swamp against the Miami Hurricanes on Aug. 31. Kickoff time is slated for 3:30 p.m. ET and the game will be broadcast on ABC Sports.

Follow us @GatorsWire on X, formerly known as Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Florida Gators news, notes and opinions.

Where The Athletic ranks Florida football among in-state FBS programs

Florida finds itself in the middle of the pack among in-state FBS competition ahead of the 2024 season.

The Sunshine State has long been one of the epicenters of college football but in recent years, the in-state programs have not been quite as impressive as in years past.

Nonetheless, Florida boasts a robust rotation of seven Football Bowl Subdivision schools traditionally headlined by the Florida Gators, Florida State Seminoles and Miami Hurricanes. However, the collegiate gridiron landscape is in constant flux and this triumvirate of teams does not have the stranglehold it once held over the rest of the state.

The Athletic’s Manny Navarro took a look at the seven Florida FBS programs and ranked them from best to worst ahead of the 2024 campaign. FSU came out on top, while Miami is right on its tail followed by the UCF Knights.

In fourth lands the Gators, who have posted three-straight losing seasons and missed out on a bowl game last winter for the first time since 2017.

“Billy Napier faces an incredibly tough schedule, and his program is reeling after five consecutive losses to end the 2023 campaign,” Navarro notes.

“The Gators lost eight quality players via the portal: running back [autotag]Trevor Etienne[/autotag] (Georgia), left guard [autotag]Richie Leonard IV[/autotag] (Florida State), right guard [autotag]Micah Mazzccua[/autotag] (Nebraska), edge rusher [autotag]Princely Umanmielen[/autotag] (Ole Miss), outside linebacker [autotag]Scooby Williams[/autotag] (Texas A&M), cornerback [autotag]Jalen Kimber[/autotag] (Penn State) and safeties [autotag]Jaydon Hill[/autotag] (Texas A&M) and [autotag]Miguel Mitchell[/autotag] (Arkansas).

“Florida, though, did add the Ivy League Defensive Player of the Year in defensive lineman [autotag]Joey Slackman[/autotag], a quality veteran safety in [autotag]Asa Turner[/autotag] from Washington and beefed up at receiver with Arizona State’s [autotag]Elijhah Badger[/autotag],” he continued.

“Getting back to a bowl game is going to come down to whether or not the offensive and defensive lines have improved. Right now, it’s fair to be skeptical.”

Navarro lists the passing game and experience in the secondary as the Gators’ strengths while pointing to the run defense and the pass rush coaching as their Achilles heels. He also noted four key games on Florida’s schedule: vs Miami, at the Tennessee Volunteers, vs the Georgia Bulldogs, at the Texas Longhorns, at FSU.

Florida’s 2024 season opener

Florida opens up its 2024 regular-season schedule in the Swamp against the Hurricanes on Aug. 31. Kickoff time is slated for 3:30 p.m. ET and the game will be broadcast on ABC Sports.

Follow us @GatorsWire on X, formerly known as Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Florida Gators news, notes and opinions.

Twitter reacts to Florida’s commitment from transfer safety Asa Turner

Here’s how the Gator Nation is feeling about the football program’s big snag from the transfer portal.

Billy Napier and Co. scored a big win in the college football transfer portal on Thursday when former Washington Huskies defensive back [autotag]Asa Turner[/autotag] decided to move across the country to join the Gators.

The 6-foot-3-inch, 200-pound safety originally out of Carlsbad, California, played in the final three games for the Huskies Washington but still missed enough time to earn a medical redshirt in 2023, playing in only four total. Subsequently, he used his redshirt status to retain one final year of eligibility which he will cash in on with the Orange and Blue.

The Gators have a steep hill to climb when it comes to getting back to respectability — or at least over the .500 hump — so predictably, the Gator Nation was pretty amped about the commitment. Take a look below at some samplings from social media after the big news.

Gators land commitment from Washington transfer safety

The Florida Gators earned a commitment from former Washington Huskies safety Asa Turner on Wednesday.

Florida’s secondary lacked a guy who could consistently force a turnover in 2023, so Billy Napier grabbed one from the transfer portal in former Washington Husky [autotag]Asa Turner[/autotag].

Although Turner finished the season on the field with Washington, he missed enough time to earn a medical redshirt last year. The super senior will spend his final season of eligibility with the Florida Gators, following a commitment announcement on Thursday.

Turner has logged nearly 1,800 defensive snaps over his five-year career, totaling 146 tackles (95 solo), seven tackles for loss, six interceptions, two pass deflections and a fumble recovery. Last season was the only one of Turner’s career where he failed to pick off a ball, but he had broken bones in his hand for most of the year.

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He’ll join a secondary that started two freshmen at safety last year — Jordan Castell and Bryce Thornton — and needs to replace its STAR (nickel DB). Turner might be able to fit into that role, especially as a strong run defender. Pro Football Focus ranked Turner No. 42 among safeties in the country against the run.

The addition of Turner is just the latest move by Florida late in the 2024 cycle. The Gators have also added two players from the class of 2024 who signed elsewhere in December — defensive lineman D’Antre Robinson from Texas and defensive back Jameer Grimsley from Alabama.

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Veteran transfer portal safety visiting Florida football this weekend

The Gators are hosting this well-experienced transfer portal safety this weekend in the Swamp.

Florida football has a Herculean task ahead of it when it comes to the NCAA transfer portal. Currently sitting at No. 13 in 247Sports’ transfer portal rankings having lost 23 players while gaining just nine, there is still room for more additions to the 2024 roster.

The Gators need help at every position if we are being honest with ourselves. But the defensive backfield might be the area where Billy Napier and Co. could use the most improvement.

That is where former Washington Huskies safety [autotag]Asa Turner[/autotag] enters the picture for the Orange and Blue. The 6-foot-3-inch, 200-pound defensive back originally out of Carlsbad, California, will be making an official visit to the Swamp on the weekend of Jan. 20-21, according to Swamp247.

The Golden State product appeared in all four of Washington’s games during the pandemic-shortened 2020 season and followed that up with 10 appearances over each of the next two seasons. In 43 total games played over four years in Seattle, he amassed 148 total tackles (96 solo) along with seven tackles for a loss, eight passes defended, six interceptions and a fumble recovery.

However, he played in only four regular-season in 2023 games due to an injury hand injury. Subsequently, he used his redshirt status to retain one final year of eligibility, despite appearing in all three of the Huskies’ postseason games this season.

Turner has a connection to Florida’s football program through nascent secondary coach Will Harris, who spent the 2018-21 seasons with UW.

Last season’s Gators squad was abysmal when it came to explosive plays through the air, ranking at No. 125 nationally in passing yards allowed per attempt against FBS teams (8.5) and No. 87 in passing yards allowed per game (240.9).

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Anthony Brown and the Ducks prepare for Washington’s nation-leading pass defense

While Washington’s offense is struggling, the Huskies’ pass defense is the best in the nation and could pose a challenge for Anthony Brown.

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Scoring points hasn’t been much of a problem lately for the Ducks, as quarterback Anthony Brown has found his rhythm and chemistry with his receiving corps.

But that might change some on Saturday as the Ducks face the top-ranked passing defense in the nation with the Washington Huskies secondary.

The offense is a major issue with the Huskies, but they’re really good on the other side of the ball. Washington allows just under 150 yards through the air. That’s it. But they do allow 179 yards on the ground, which is 10th in the conference. Look for Oregon to exploit that weakness on Saturday. A good run game can set up the passing game.

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Washington head coach Jimmy Lake knows the first order of attention for the defense is to contain Ducks tailback, Travis Dye.

“He’s one of those guys and I know it’s one of those often-used phrases, but he a football player,” Lake said in describing Dye. “I bet you could line him up at safety, at linebacker, at nickel, you could line him out at receiver and he would have a bunch of catches.”

Lake doesn’t need Dye on his defense because he has plenty of defensive players on his own roster that are excelling. Washington has eight interceptions as a team with six different players picking off at least one pass. Defensive backs Asa Turner and Kyler Gordon have two each.

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“They have one of the top passing defenses in the country,” said Brown. They’re really physical and they play really, really hard. We have to create (mismatches) and execute. It’s going to be hard because it’s a rivalry game, but that’s what we live for.”

Washington’s second level of defense is led by linebacker Jackson Sirmon, the son of former Oregon standout Peter Sirmon, who leads the Huskies with 60 tackles. The sophomore is 6-foot-3 and weighs 235 pounds and it seems like he’s in on every play as is Oregon’s Noah Sewell.

Sirmon’s fellow linebacker, Edufuan Ulofoshio, is second on the team with 51 tackles. The 6-foot-1, 235-pound sophomore from Anchorage, Alaska was on several pre-season All-American lists and he’s living up to his billing through eight games.

Oregon and Washington is scheduled for a 4:30 PT kickoff and it will be televised on ABC.

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