Tag: Damieon George

Suspensions given to offensive linemen, tight end after late-game scrum

Late-game fight with Tennessee turns into three suspensions for the Florida Gators.

Suspensions have been handed out by the SEC to three members of the Florida Gators offense after a late-game scuffle.

Linemen Damieon George, Micah Mazzccua and tight end Dante Zanders are suspended for the first half of Florida’s matchup against the Charlotte 49ers on Saturday.

Quarterback Graham Mertz and the Florida Gators were ready to snap the ball from the victory formation and seal the upset over the visiting Tennessee Volunteers.

Mertz started to play and realized he had time to kill, so he started to stall in the backfield while the Vols defense gave a half-effort getting to the quarterback.

Volunteer defender Omari Brown was a tad too late and took a shot on Mertz, even though the quarterback was already attempting to end the play. The Gators immediately jumped into action and confronted Brown, but he was trying to play innocent.

Tennessee defensive back Kamal Hadden jumped in to challenge the Gators to a brawl and the end of the game was about to get ugly. Mazzccua was the first to start swinging while other action happened near the Gators’ bench.

The SEC Offices released an official statement on Monday afternoon.

“The suspensions were determined after further video review and consultation between the Southeastern Conference Office, the University of Florida and the University of Tennessee,” the statement read.

“Offensive lineman Damieon George, offensive lineman Micha Mazzccua and tight end Dante Zanders of Florida will be suspended for the first half of the Gators’ game with Charlotte on Saturday in Gainesville. Defensive lineman Omarr Norman-Lott of Tennessee will be suspended for the first half of the Volunteers’ game with UTSA on Saturday in Knoxville.”

Head coach Billy Napier also said there will be internal punishment for the players involved in the late-game scrum.

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Former Tide OL makes bold statement comparing talent levels at Alabama, Florida

Former Alabama offensive lineman Damieon George transferred to Florida this offseason and he did not mince words when comparing the two programs.

Florida offensive tackle Damieon George did not mince words when comparing the talent levels of his current and former teams. According to Nick de la Torre of GatorsOnline, George recently said that the talent level is the same at Florida as it is at Alabama.

That is quite a bold statement considering the fact that the Gators have finished 6-7 in each of the last two seasons. George comparing the talent levels of both programs could be used as ‘rat poison,’ or bulletin board material, for the Alabama football program in 2023.

George spent the past three seasons at Alabama before transferring to Florida during the offseason. He played in 17 games with 12 of them coming during his sophomore season in 2021. George made a total of three starts at right tackle for the Crimson Tide.

Florida and Alabama will not face each other for at least the next two seasons. If that were to happen, George would be a fifth-year senior if he elects to stay in Gainesville until then.

Roll Tide Wire will continue to follow the Alabama football program.

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San Diego State transfer OL sets May official visit date with Florida

Florida’s looking to add some more pieces to its offensive line and former San Diego State lineman Josh Simmons might be a name to keep an eye on.

The Gators are looking to add to their offensive line room during the spring transfer portal period, and San Diego State’s [autotag]Josh Simmons[/autotag] is one of the top targets for Florida, according to Swamp247.

Billy Napier’s recruiting staff has been working to get Simmons on campus for a while, and now he’s locked in for an official visit May 5. The spring portal is open from April 15-30, so that means he’ll be in town after it closes. He could still commit and transfer sight unseen, though.

Simmons started all 13 games for San Diego State a year ago and finished the season one snap shy of 800. That’s enough of a sample size for draft experts to consider him a potential prospect, and getting reps in against the SEC would be the best way for him to keep his draft stock on the rise.

Florida added guard [autotag]Micah Mazzccua[/autotag] and tackles [autotag]Damieon George[/autotag] and [autotag]Kiyaunta Goodwin[/autotag] during the winter portal period, but it became apparent during spring practices and the Orange and Blue Game that Napier needed to add another player or two to the trenches.

Simmons fits the bill perfectly. He doesn’t necessarily have to step into a starting role right away, but he has the experience to do so if the team needs him to.

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Five incoming Florida transfers make 247Sports top-150 rankings

247Sports updated its transfer rankings on Wednesday and five incoming Gators are ranked inside the top 150.

The Florida Gators brought in 10 players through the transfer portal over the winter and four of them made the final update to the 247Sports Top150 transfer rankings.

Defensive lineman [autotag]Caleb Banks[/autotag] is the highest-ranked Gator on the list. The Louisville transfer is No. 82 overall on the Top150 with a transfer grade of 91. Kentucky offensive tackle transfer [autotag]Kiyaunta Goodwin[/autotag] is next up at No. 96, and Memphis defensive line transfer [autotag]CamRon Jackson[/autotag] is just outside the top 100 at No. 110 overall.

Baylor offensive guard transfer [autotag]Micah Mazzccua[/autotag] is No. 138 on the list and former Wisconsin quarterback [autotag]Graham Mertz[/autotag] rounds things out at No. 150. Both have a transfer grade of 90, meaning Florida is bringing in five players of the caliber or better.

On the other hand, Florida lost two players ranked in the top 150, offensive guard [autotag]Ethan White[/autotag] (No. 131) to USC and defensive back [autotag]Donovan McMillon[/autotag] (No. 143) to Pittsburgh.

The hope is that White’s departure will be offset by Mazzccua, but there’s no clear replacement for McMillon. Fortunately, the Gators focused heavily on defensive backs in the most recent recruiting cycle.

Although they didn’t make 247Sports’ list of the top transfers, Florida is counting on guys like linebacker [autotag]Teradja Mitchell[/autotag], running back [autotag]Cameron Carroll[/autotag] and offensive tackle [autotag]Damieon George[/autotag] to contribute. There was a ton of roster turnover during the offseason and there are several starting spots up for grabs.

It’s too early to tell how well Florida did in the transfer portal this offseason, but the early returns seem good.

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Florida has one of college football’s 12 most lethal rosters in 2023

Florida has a ton of talent on its roster heading into the 2023 season, but that doesn’t guarantee success.

The Florida Gators finished tied for 12th in 247Sports’ recent list of the most lethal rosters heading into the 2023 season.

247Sports’ Brad Crawford used the site’s team composite ranking to rank the teams. He took the average position of the team’s finish over the past five years and Florida finished with a 12.4 average, the same as Michigan.

Florida finished 14th in the country during the most recent cycle. Losing five-star quarterback Jaden Rashada hurt a class that had a chance to break the top 10. Florida’s first class under Billy Napier in 2022 ranked No. 18 overall, and Dan Mullen brought in the No. 12 class in 2021 and the No. 9 class in 2019 and 2020.

“When Florida is winning national titles, the Gators are one of the nation’s elite recruiting teams,” Crawford wrote. “And while this program has a top-12 roster based on talent heading into coach Billy Napier’s second season, there are certainly depth concerns that the coaching staff must contend with following a disappointing 6-7 finish under the new regime.”

The problem with using this metric to rank teams is that transfers come and go, and the bulk of the Mullen classes has moved on from the program in one way or another. The class of 2020 features some team leaders, such as receiver [autotag]Xzavier Henderson[/autotag] and linebacker [autotag]Derek Wingo[/autotag], but much of the class has transferred out or declared for the upcoming draft.

Florida also added a ton of transfer over the past two offseasons. Quarterbacks [autotag]Graham Mertz[/autotag] and [autotag]Jack Miller[/autotag], running backs [autotag]Montrell Johnson Jr[/autotag]. and [autotag]Cameron Carroll[/autotag], receiver [autotag]Ricky Pearsall[/autotag], offensive linemen [autotag]Damieon George[/autotag], [autotag]Kiyaunta Goodwin[/autotag] and Micah Mazzccua, defensive linemen [autotag]Caleb Banks[/autotag] and [autotag]CamRon Jackson[/autotag], linebacker [autotag]Teradja Mitchell[/autotag]  and cornerback [autotag]Jalen Kimber[/autotag] could all play significant roles for the team next season.

Florida could end up playing like a top-12 in the country by the season’s end, especially if the transfers help make up for the talent lost over the past few years, but it’s unwise to think of the Gators as a top-12 program in terms of actual talent heading into the season.

There’s been too much turnover in the program over the past couple of years for this metric to work for the Gators. A team like Michigan has a much better chance of living up to the expectations created by this list.

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Former Kentucky offensive lineman transferring to Florida

Florida lost four-fifths of its offensive line at the beginning of the offseason, but a third addition from the transfer portal has the position room restocked and ready to go.

Florida landed former Kentucky offensive lineman [autotag]Kiyaunta Goodwin[/autotag] from the transfer portal on Tuesday.

Goodwin recently took a multi-day trip to the Swamp and quickly made his decision to join the Gators after spending just a year in Lexington. He’ll have three years of eligibility remaining in Gainesville after spending most of his freshman year as a special teams blocker for Kentucky.

Goodwin checks in at 6-foot-8-inches and 351 pounds, so he’s got the size to develop into one of the dominant bodies in the SEC trenches. Florida presents plenty of opportunity for him with four of five spots on the line being up for grabs.

Coming out of high school, Goodwin was a five-star prospect and ranked the No. 33 overall recruit in the 2022 class by 247Sports. Scouts have said that he has first-round potential, but he still has plenty of developing to do before he reaches that point.

Goodwin is the third offensive lineman to transfer to Florida this offseason along with former Alabama tackle [autotag]Damieon George[/autotag] and Baylor guard [autotag]Micah Mazzccua[/autotag]. Only center [autotag]Kingsley Eguakun[/autotag] returns as a starter on the line, and tackle [autotag]Austin Barber[/autotag] has some significant playing time too, so there’s plenty of room for all three transfers to find significant roles in the offense.

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Florida OL Kamryn Waites seriously injured during workouts

The Gators need to replace four of five starters along the offensive line before the 2023 season starts, and that job just got tougher thanks to a devastating injury.

Florida’s issues on the offensive line just got worse.

Over the offseason, the Gators lost four of five starting offensive linemen to the NFL draft and the transfer portal, putting the team in dire need of some more depth in the trenches. That need grew stronger on Friday when redshirt freshman lineman [autotag]Kamryn Waites[/autotag] went down with an Achilles injury, according to 247Sports.

An anonymous source said that the injury came during a non-contact workout and that Waites’ tore it while doing an agility drill. Many expected Billy Napier to hit the transfer portal hard, and he has, but now he needs to add at least one more offensive lineman than he expected.

Waites joined the team ahead of last season via the transfer portal, following his former coach to the Swamp. He saw action in all 13 games for Florida, getting his first start in the Las Vegas Bowl against Oregon State. Although nothing was set in stone for 2023, the expectation was that Waites would compete for a starting job.

Now, the Gators will have to lean on returning center [autotag]Kingsley Eguakun[/autotag], tackle [autotag]Austin Barber[/autotag] and transfers [autotag]Damieon George[/autotag] (Alabama) and [autotag]Micah Mazzccua[/autotag] (Baylor). Waites should be out for 6-9 months, according to UF Health‘s guidelines for an Achilles repair.

Perhaps Waites will be available toward the end of the season, but Florida will have to plan to be without him for most of the season following the devastating injury.

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Former Alabama OL Damieon George transferring to SEC rival

Former Alabama offensive lineman Damieon George announced that he was transferring to Florida.

Former Alabama offensive lineman Damieon George announced on Sunday that he was transferring to Florida. The Texas native spent three seasons at the Capstone.

George played primarily offensive tackle in his time with the team. In 2021, he started three games at right tackle. He took over as the starter in Week 10 and closed the season out at the position.

However, in 2022, he saw limited playing time. George played in just two games. Now, it appears that he will be transferring within the SEC to play for former Alabama assistant Billy Napier at Florida.

Roll Tide Wire will continue to cover Damieon George’s college career as well as other Alabama football news.

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UF hosting former Alabama OL on official visit

Florida needs to add some more offensive linemen through the transfer portal, so the Gators are hosting a former SEC tackle on an official visit over the weekend.

The Florida Gators are currently hosting former Alabama offensive lineman [autotag]Damieon George[/autotag] on an official visit, according to an Instagram story sent out on Friday.

George saw his role reduced in 2022 as part of the Crimson Tide’s offensive line reserve rotation after seeing over 250 snaps in 2021. He took over the starting right tackle job at the end of his sophomore campaign, so the expectation was for him to play more than 20 snaps in 2022. When that didn’t happen, Georgia hit the transfer portal.

Checking out Florida makes a lot of sense for George. He can stay in the dominant SEC and find immediate playing time with Florida if he chooses the Gators. The Gators need to replace four starting offensive linemen and at least one tackle spot with [autotag]Michael Tarquin[/autotag] and [autotag]Richard Gouraige[/autotag] leaving town.

George was a three-star prospect ranked No. 390 overall by the 247Sports composite when he signed with Alabama as a member of the class of 2020. He’s ranked No. 131 overall in 247Sports’ transfer rankings and is among the top remaining linemen in the portal. He will have two years of eligibility remaining wherever he goes.

George will fit in nicely to Florida’s right tackle spot with Austin Barber likely to take over for Gouraige on the left side. He’s a more polished pass blocker than he is a run blocker, so it’s sort of a match made in heaven. At 6-feet-6-inches and 333 pounds, he definitely has the size to get the job done in the Swamp.

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Former Alabama OL Damieon George recently visited Ole Miss

One of the few Alabama transfers that have not committed to a new program is Damieon George, who recently visited Ole Miss

There is speculation that former Alabama offensive lineman Damieon George may have taken a visit to Ole Miss over the weekend. George tagged Oxford, Mississippi in a photo on his Instagram story.

He entered the transfer portal back in early December. George also took a visit to Auburn as well according to reports.

The Texas native spent three seasons in Tuscaloosa serving primarily as a reserve offensive tackle for the Tide. He made three starts as a redshirt freshman at right tackle.

Now, it appears that he is looking to join another prestigious, power-five program. If he decides to transfer to a school in the SEC, there is a chance that he will get to face his former teammates. That remains to be seen at this time. However, Ole Miss and Auburn are two schools that we can confirm are in the mix.

Roll Tide Wire will continue to follow George’s college career as well as other Alabama players that have transferred elsewhere.