By BRADY
ACKERMAN
Florida Gators Football Sideline
Reporter
Jan. 5, 2011
Charlie Weis has been hired to fix Florida's offense and return it back to the top of the SEC. Weis is a big-name hire who brings Super Bowl rings and head coaching experience with him to Gainesville.
In his new position, Weis will also coach quarterbacks and the first meeting he will have most certainly will be with John Brantley. Brantley will go from having Tom Brady's college quarterback coach to Brady's NFL coach. The difference this time is the guy working with Brantley will also be calling the plays.
This season, Weis directed the Kansas City Chiefs to the No. 1 rushing attack in the NFL and back into the playoffs with a 10-6 record. His quarterback, Matt Cassel, sported a nice touchdown-to-interception ratio of 27-to-5, and running back Jamal Charles will make his first Pro Bowl appearance along with two other Chiefs.
This week, the going will be tough as Kansas City faces the Baltimore Ravens in what could be Weis' final game as an NFL coach for the foreseeable future. In Kansas City, Weis has done a remarkable job of using a strong rushing attack and keeping his quarterback's mistakes down by managing the game.
In his first two years at Notre Dame, Weis' teams had a balanced attack that featured a big passing game. In New England they were a proven passing team with Brady and mostly journeyman receivers.
If there's one thing we know about Weis, it's that the guy can call plays and move the chains, something Florida needs in the worst way, and the fact that he does it in a pro-style manner is what has so many Gator fans excited.
Brantley has lost his confidence and regressed from Game 1 to Game 13. His mechanics are not as sound and will have to be broken down by Weis and built back up. The other quarterbacks will likely move to other positions like tight end for Jordan Reed and possibly defense or fullback for Trey Burton.
Tyler Murphy is the most likely candidate to stay at quarterback, alongside Brantley and incoming freshman Jeff Driskel. Florida will be under center more than the last five years combined, and will also implore a more vertical passing game.
Florida's running backs are not exactly "pro-style" with Chris Rainey and Jeff Demps being more like third down backs. Mike Gillislee and Mack Brown are the most likely candidates to emerge as the starting running back. I could see position switches for Rainey and Demps that would move them into the role of a specialty back.
Burton, another interesting athlete, may not be big enough to play tight end and physical enough to play fullback. It would not surprise me if Burton ended up on defense at safety.
Here's just one example of what the offense could look like come spring:
X-receiver: Frankie Hammond
LT: Xavier Nixon
LG: Jonothan Harrison
C: Sam Robey
RG: John Halapio
RT: Matt Patchan
TE: Gerald Christian
Z-receiver: Deonte Thompson
FB: Stephen Wilkes
Y-receiver: Andre Debose
TB: Mike Gillislee
QB: John Brantley
Not too bad, is it? The Gators also have two up-and-coming players, Ian Silberman and Chaz Green, competing at tackle when next season rolls around. Throw in James Wilson at guard and Nick Alajajian at guard or center and you have the making of a solid offensive line.
Gerald Christian, a true tight end, will benefit from the coaching changes and spring practice will also allow guys like Stephen Alli, Chris Dunkley and Quinton Dunbar to show what they can do at receiver.
Weis has plenty to work with, if you look at his resume and his teams' abilities to move the ball, you would have to say this hire was a no-brainer for Will Muschamp.
