As usual, there is a long list of local players ready to collide in the annual Gators-Seminoles showdown.
When No. 6 Florida and No. 10 Florida State meet at Doak Campbell Stadium on Saturday (3:30 p.m., ABC), the schools will have a combined 16 players from Palm Beach County, the Treasure Coast and other nearby areas.
The Gators have the more experienced stars in safety Matt Elam (Dwyer) and middle linebacker Jon Bostic (Palm Beach Central), and FSU has several high-potential young players such as Dwyer tight end Nick O’Leary and Glades Central receiver Kelvin Benjamin.
Benjamin, a red-shirt freshman, is second on the Seminoles with 479 receiving yards and four touchdowns, which are higher totals than any wide receiver on Florida’s roster. At 6-foot-5, 242 pounds, he presents a conundrum for opposing defenses.
“He can run for a guy that size,” UF defensive coordinator Dan Quinn said. “You generally say, ‘OK, is that the tight end? No, this is a receiver.’ He certainly had our attention.”
O’Leary, who won a state championship with Elam and Gators back-up quarterback Jacoby Brissett in 2009, is a sophomore with 16 catches for 206 yards and two touchdowns.
Lonnie Pryor, a fullback from Okeechobee High School, is averaging 5.9 yards per carry and has scored six times for the Seminoles (10-1). Glades Central product Greg Dent, whom many schools considered too short (5-foot-11) and slow to play receiver, is proving them wrong with 23 catches for 308 yards and two touchdowns as a junior.
Defensive end Giorgio Newberry (Fort Pierce Central) and defensive back Keelin Smith (Treasure Coast) have played nearly every game as red-shirt freshmen.
At Florida, Bostic and Elam are at the center of a defense that has carried the Gators to a 10-1 record and the No. 4 position in the BCS standings. Bostic and Elam are tied for second on the team with 58 tackles. Elam, a junior who appears bound for the NFL Draft, has nine tackles for loss and three interceptions.
Bostic has been a rock for Florida throughout the coaching transition and is having the best season of his four-year career. He has three sacks, two interceptions and a forced fumble.
“I don’t know if there’s a guy playing better inside linebacker in the country than Jon,” Gators coach Will Muschamp said. “He’s instinctive, tough. Everything we’ve asked him to do, he’s answered.”
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