Gators Still Searching for No. 3 Running Back

Despite his limited work last year, Daniels has continued to put his head down and work this summer. It seems to be catching his coach's attention, too. 

“He's doing really good,” Napier said. “I think he's trusting his eyes. His eye discipline is improving. His footwork is more consistent. I think the protection component, he's becoming more of a student of the game - and I think he's doing a better job.”

Additionally, Baugh believes that with the progression he has seen from Daniels, the redshirt freshman will play a part in the upcoming campaign. 

“I feel like his growth and, you know, his mindset, especially, he's grown a lot. And a lot of people are going to see this year,” Baugh emphasized. 

Clark is in a similar situation to Daniels. He has had to make the most of the team’s offseason camps to impress his peers, but it sounds like he has accomplished that. 

“Duke's doing great,” offensive lineman Bryce Lovett said. “From what I've seen, he's going to be a very good running back. He's got vision, patience, and as he gets stronger, he's going to have more power.”

Meanwhile, Louis had less time than his freshman teammate to showcase his abilities after not enrolling at Florida until this summer. Despite his late arrival, the work he put in during camp has caught the eyes of his teammates and coaches. 

“Even though he was one of the last running backs to get here, he still came in, he's eager to learn, and he gets to work. He's very coachable,” Jackson said of Louis. 

Baugh, while talking highly of him, also gave some advice on what he needs to work on moving forward. 

“I can definitely say Byron had a lot of good runs (Wednesday),” he shared. “But with him, it’s not trying to get him to overthink sometimes. You know, coming in as a freshman, you want to impress a lot of people. You know, you want to impress the coaches. But he definitely has good vision when it comes to running the ball, understanding what's going on.”

Unfortunately for these players, all three can’t be No. 3 on the depth chart. Only one will be named. However, that does not mean it is set in stone when the season begins on Aug. 30 against Long Island.

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