2023 Florida Football Position Preview: Cornerbacks
Florida lost two cornerbacks to the transfer portal over the offseason, but the four strongest players in the position room — Jaydon Hill, Jalen Kimber, Jason Marshall Jr., and Devin Moore — are all returning for the 2023 campaign.
Marshall will lead the group as he looks to be the next UF cornerback drafted in the first round. The potential has always been there, but he’s had a relatively quiet career at Florida through three seasons. This could be the year he steps up and receives national attention.
Behind Marshall are seven other scholarship corners and two walk-ons. Hill and freshman Sharif Denson have spent the fall practicing with the safeties at the STAR position, so they’ll be previewed with that group. Hill’s position change has opened the door for several young corners to step up, though.
Here’s a look at every cornerback on Florida’s 2023 fall roster.
Starter: No. 3 Jason Marshall Jr. (Jr.)
Defensive Stats:
Year | GP | SOLO | AST | TOT | TFL | SACKS | INT | PD |
2021 | 13 | 15 | 8 | 23 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 4 |
2022 | 13 | 20 | 9 | 29 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 9 |
Total | 26 | 35 | 17 | 52 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 13 |
A five-star recruit out of high school, expectations have always been high for Jason Marshall Jr., who is beginning his second year as the leader of Florida’s cornerbacks room. Marshall’s sophomore campaign wasn’t exactly elite, though.
He ranked just inside the top 200 among cornerbacks who played at least 500 snaps last season with a 65.9 defensive grade, according to Pro Football Focus.
Tackling was also an issue at times, but one positive is that Marshall was only targeted 48 times. While that does lead the team, it’s a low number in the grand scheme of things. Twenty-one corners in the SEC alone were challenged more often than Marshall last season. Is that because he is feared or because Florida’s run defense is easier to exploit?
Starter: No. 8 Jalen Kimber (R-So.*)
Defensive Stats:
Year | GP | SOLO | AST | TOT | TFL | SACKS | INT | PD |
2020 (UGA) | 2 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 |
2021 (UGA) | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0 | 0 |
2022 (UF) | 13 | 8 | 5 | 13 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 1 | 1 |
Total | 16 | 11 | 5 | 16 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 1 | 1 |
Jalen Kimber is a Georgia Bulldog turned Florida Gators entering his second season with the Orange and Blue. Injury limited him as a sophomore before the transfer, but Kimber played through the pain last season with Florida. He now has the club cast off his hand, giving him a better shot at picking the ball off.
Kimber’s seniority and experience from playing all 13 games last year might give him the edge over sophomore Devin Moore, who ended his freshman campaign early to get surgery. Either way, Florida needs three solid corners in rotation, and Kimber figures to be one of them.
Starter: No. 28 Devin Moore (So.)
Defensive Stats:
Year | GP | SOLO | AST | TOT | TFL | SACKS | INT | PD |
2022 | 5 | 4 | 2 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Season-ending surgery may have cut Devin Moore’s first year in the Swamp short, but Florida coaches saw enough through five games to know that they have a talented defensive back on their hands. Getting back to 100% is most important, so Florida might be a bit cautious with Moore early on, but he absolutely has a chance to take over the No. 2 spot from Kimber.
Moore’s tackling grade a season ago was an astounding 83.4, according to PFF. That figure led all rostered cornerbacks at Florida in 2022.
The Freshmen: No. 2 Ja'Keem Jackson (Fr.), No. 27 Dijon Johnson (Fr.) and No. 13 Aaron Gates (Fr.)
Florida brought in four freshmen corners, and two of them have a chance to make an impact early.
Ja’Keem Jackson finished the fall taking second-team reps and has the highest ceiling of the group, but Dijon Johnson isn’t too far behind. Both should get snaps during blowouts and in certain pass coverage sets. Jackson is a former receiver and has the hands to force a turnover.
Aaron Gates will spend his first season with the Gators as a reserve cornerback unless there’s an injury to one of the players ahead of him on the depth chart. He could end up being a redshirt candidate if Florida doesn’t use him weekly on special teams.
Reserves/Walk-Ons: No. 25 Ethan Pouncey (R-So.), No. 37 Javion Toombs (R-Fr.) and No. 38 Sebastian Vargas (So.)
Ethan Pouncey redshirted last year after appearing in just three games for the Gators. Despite entering his fourth year of college, Pouncey still has three years of eligibility left and could see more action than Gates because of his seniority. Over 14 appearances, Pouncey has six total tackles.
Javion Toombs joined the Gators as a preferred walk-on last summer. He redshirted after sitting the entire season. He played high school ball at Centennial in Fort Pierce.
Sebastian Vargas spent 2022 at Laney College in California and joined the Florida football team as a preferred walk-on in the spring of 2023. He played his high school ball in state at Oviedo, just north of the UCF in the Orlando area.
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Check out the rest of our position previews:
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