The Gators have several injured players, and coach Will Muschamp ruled three of them out for Saturday’s game against Louisiana-Lafayette at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium (12:21 p.m., SEC Network).
Andre Debose, a receiver and return man, missed last week’s game due to a hyper-extended knee and will not play this week. Backup running back Mack Brown (ankle) and defensive tackle Leon Orr also are not expected to be in action. Orr was hospitalized with a case of the flu last week and has not fully recovered.
On the offensive line, injured starters James Wilson, Jon Halapio and Xavier Nixon are on track to play.
NFL could take defensive stars: Florida has one of the top five defenses in the country but could lose some of its standout juniors to the NFL.
Defensive tackle Sharrif Floyd is projected as a first-round pick if he decides to leave early. Safety Matt Elam, from Dwyer High School, and linebacker Jelani Jenkins are strong candidates to go in the first three rounds. Defensive end Dominique Easley also might consider leaving.
“That’s something that we haven’t talked about with them, so I certainly plan on them being here,” defensive coordinator Dan Quinn said. “We know what we have in store for the next three weeks and have to take care of business. That’s where our focus is at. Not a lot of discussion in that way.”
ESPN analyst Todd McShay called Jenkins the best pass coverage linebacker in the country and believes many NFL teams will be interested.
“That’s always been my dream to go to the next level, but I’m just trying to win these next three games,” Jenkins said. “That’s obviously a dream of mine, but that’s something that I can deal with when I have more time toward the end of the season.”
Pass happy: The Gators threw more than 20 passes in just two of their first seven games, but have done it in each of the past two weeks.
“We realized we need to do a little bit more vertically throwing the football,” Muschamp said. “It’s been a little bit of a conscious effort, but more than anything it’s what the defense is giving us. People are loading the box.”
Florida opened last week’s game against Missouri with five passes on the opening drive, and quarterback Jeff Driskel finished 12-for-23 for 106 yards and a touchdown. The 23 pass attempts marked his third-highest total this year. In the previous week against Georgia, he threw a career-high 27 times.
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