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Photo: Rashad Torrence II and Jason Marshall Jr.; Credit: Zach Goodall
The Florida Gators defensive backs group was oft-criticized during the 2020 season with good reason, the team's defense was one of the worst in the nation against the pass and needed a rebuild in order to get back to good form.
In 2021, the expected rebound occurred with added talent and a couple of different pieces moved around to form a better unit. While it wasn't perfect, the progression was encouraging, and moving forward the team will look to build off of a more optimal season as a whole on defense.
By comparison, the Florida pass defense by yards allowed in 2020 was ranked No. 100 in college football. This season, the program ranked No. 25 in yards allowed. That's a marketable difference, albeit not the ultimate end goal for the secondary.
That difference was due to a couple of key additions, along with a couple of players that moved around to form a more cohesive unit, even under the guidance of fired defensive coordinator Todd Grantham.
Still, the pass defense struggled at one crucial point - forcing turnovers. As a whole, the Gators only forced nine interceptions on the year, with eight coming from its secondary.
Last year's secondary was ravaged before it could even take the field. Expected starting CB Jaydon Hill tore his ACL prior to the season starting and STAR/safety Kamar Wilcoxson also suffered a knee injury that ended his campaign prior to the start of the regular season, though he wasn't expected to start right away.
These injuries, though, forced Florida to rethink its starting secondary with just weeks to go until Week 1 against Florida Atlantic. To do so, the Gators went with a couple of options: Redshirt freshman CB Avery Helm and true freshman Jason Marshall Jr opposite of top-tier CB Kaiir Elam.
At safety, the team was moving on from three veterans in Donovan Stiner, Brad Stewart and Shawn Davis. That left senior safety Trey Dean and sophomore Rashad Torrence as the two leaders in that room.
At STAR or nickel, the team utilized sophomore Tre'Vez Johnson along with transfer freshman Jadarrius Perkins primarily in that role, something that will be worth watching as the team moves forward into 2022.
Essentially, those were the team's most-played defensive backs throughout the year. Still, the team improved even with a transition to essentially a brand-new secondary.
Safety
According to Pro Football Focus, Torrence graded out as the team's best coverage player (74.3), allowing 17 receptions on 26 targets for 275 yards and two touchdowns. But, what helped his grade the most were his plays on the football - three interceptions (team lead) and a pass breakup.
At safety opposite of Torrence, Dean was hit or miss at times but was one of the key defenders against the run for Florida last season with 14 stops. He was credited with 10 missed tackles by PFF, however. In coverage, though, Dean allowed just 14 receptions on 30 targets for 193 yards and two touchdowns. Although turnovers weren't there, Dean was dependable against the pass.
Though the team had a couple of other players rotating at the positions such as freshman Donovan McMillon, they didn't play nearly as many snaps as Dean and Torrence did on the year.
Cornerback
Among the players that played the most in the secondary, Marshall was the team's best boundary cornerback, grading out at 72.3. We broke down Marshall's freshman season, here. But, the young defensive back was among the best in the country at completion percentage allowed at 36.8%.
As for Elam, while he wasn't graded as positively by PFF, he allowed just 19 receptions on 36 targets for 191 yards and two touchdowns. It should also be noted that he missed three games due to injury last season, affecting his game throughout the season. Elam was also among the best in the run-defense department, forcing three stops with 12 tackles on the year against the run.
Elam is expected to be a first-round or early day-two selection in this year's draft.
Opposite of Elam and splitting time with Marshall, Helm didn't grade out well in coverage last season by PFF but showed plenty of ability throughout the season. His five penalties are likely an issue that hurt his grade, however, he allowed just 23 receptions on 47 targets for 217 yards and zero scores on the year.
STAR
Perhaps the team's most inconsistent position came at STAR last season for the Florida secondary. It also should be noted that the position requires a player to put on multiple hats throughout a different game, playing as a hybrid of linebacker/safety and nickel, covering receivers, tight ends and running backs throughout a given game.
Still, the Gators didn't quite find a real answer at the position splitting up both Perkins and Johnson throughout the season.
According to PFF, Johnson allowed 27 receptions on 38 targets for 310 yards and three touchdowns. He graded out with a 45.2 grade in coverage, according to PFF's analysts.
His run defense, on the other hand, was just fine, grading out at 64.8 with eight tackles, four stops and just two missed tackles throughout the year.
As for Perkins, he showed a bit more during the year, grading out at 56.4 in coverage, per PFF. Still, he allowed 20 receptions on 27 targets for 225 yards and one touchdown. His run-defense grade left much to be desired with two missed tackles, six tackles and four stops against the run all season.
Stay tuned to AllGators for continuous coverage of Florida Gators football, basketball and recruiting. Follow along on social media at @SI_AllGators on Twitter and Florida Gators on Sports Illustrated on Facebook.
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