Florida's run of success at the tight end position

Since 2000, the Gators have actually put together a pretty good record of placing tight ends into the NFL. As for how well they've stacked up with other teams over that time frame, here's the list of college programs to have at least five tight ends drafted over the last 14 years:

Miami, (Fla.): 9
Notre Dame: 8
Iowa: 7
Florida: 6
Penn State: 6
Stanford: 6
Virginia: 6
Wisconsin: 6
Georgia: 5
Oregon: 5
Tennessee: 5

213 tight ends been selected in the NFL Draft between 2000 and 2013. Among the interesting trends and numbers to develop over that time period:

– Nebraska-Omaha (2) has produced more picks than Nebraska (1). On a similar note, Texas A&M and Texas A&M-Kingsville have both produced the same number of draftees (1).

– Florida State hasn't seen a single tight end drafted since 2000. In fact, you have to go all the way back to 1994 (Lonnie Johnson) to find a tight end from FSU who was drafted into the NFL.

– Idaho (3) and Rice (3) have been surprising fertile grounds for developing tight ends in recent years as well.

The six Florida tight ends to hear their name called since 2000 are as follows:

2000 Erron Kinney (3rd Round, 68th overall, Tennessee Titans)
2003 Aaron Walker (5th Round, 161st overall, San Francisco 49ers)
2004 Ben Troupe (2nd Round, 40th overall, Tennessee Titans)
2009 Cornelius Ingram (5th Round, 153rd overall, Philadelphia Eagles)
2010 Aaron Hernandez (4th Round, 113rd overall, New England Patriots)
2013 Jordan Reed (3rd Round, 85th overall, Washington Redskins)

Although Steve Spurrier was not known for going to the tight end much during his time in Gainesville (aside from Kirk Kirkpatrick's All-SEC campaign during Spurrier's first year as coach at UF in 1990), the first three tight ends drafted (Kinney, Walker, Troupe) were all brought in during his tenure as coach.

The success of this group is a mixed bag. Despite playing just three seasons, Hernandez is actually the most prolific of this group. Kinney lasted the longest at the pro level, playing all seven of his NFL seasons in Tennessee. Walker and Troupe bounced around with multiple teams, never really catching on with any one squad. Ingram never played in a regular season game due to lingering knee issues resulting from his days at Florida. Reed is off to a good start, just four games into his rookie campaign in Washington.

Certainly, the tight end position for UF is a weakness that will have to be corrected in the following months. However, the good news for the Florida staff is that the statistics above provide an easy selling point to the top recruits they are pursuing (Bryce Dixon and Deandre Goolsby among them) that Florida has done a good job in recent years of evaluating and developing players at the position, and getting them in a position to move on to the next level and be productive as well.

Recruiting News & Thoughts, D-Line edition

Today, a major focus on the direction Brad Lawing may consider going in the coming weeks, as Florida looks to headline their defensive line class with five-star Lorenzo Carter out of Norcross, Ga. But the real question is, even if UF can land the highly-prized recruit, who will they surround him with? Read on for some possibilities ...

– The failure of former UF signee Jarran Reed (Roseboro, N.C.) to get on campus this fall really didn't have a major bearing on Florida's defensive line rotation for the 2013 season (assuming the group remains fairly healthy.) Where it did hurt was in looking ahead to 2014. Reed could have gotten his feet wet with the Gators this year, seeing spot duty along the defensive front in a reserve role. When Dominique Easley and Damien Jacobs move on after this season, Reed could have stepped up and provided the Gators with another experienced group heading into next year, alongside Darious Cummings and Leon Orr. However, that plan was scuttled when the 6-foot-4, 305-pound tackle was unable to accumulate the required credits to graduate with his AA degree, and he is now playing for a second season at East Mississippi Community College this fall.

However, the need for a JUCO defensive tackle probably still remains for the Gators in 2014. While Orr and Cummings will provide Brad Lawing with a pair of seniors to roll out next fall, behind them will be a wealth of inexperienced (albeit talented) players in Jay-nard Bostwick, Caleb Brantley, Antonio Riles and current commitment Khairi Clark. Florida has already made a run at a pair of JUCO tackles in Davante Lambert (committed to Tennessee) and Abu Lamin (South Carolina.) With the way the board is shaping up, there aren't a ton of top high school prospects looking at Florida as it stands. Dipping into the JUCO ranks again might be a smart move. And right now, Reed looks to be as good of an option as any. I'll be curious to see if Florida doesn't end up re-signing Reed after all, once December rolls around.

Three other names I'm keeping an eye on at the defensive tackle position from the JUCO ranks in Mississippi: Steven Eddings (6-4, 285, Memphis, Tenn.) of Jones County C.C., Daniel Ross (6-4, 310, Louisville, Ky.) of Northeast Mississippi C.C. and Sherman Boyd (6-2, 315, Forrest, Miss.) out of Mississippi Gulf Coast C.C.

– One defensive lineman I'm surprised Florida hasn't made a move on yet is Fayetteville (N.C.) E.E. Smith star Arthur Williams. The 6-foot-5, 290-pounder could play on either side of the line, but he's really intriguing as a bigger option at the defensive tackle position. Blessed with a great first step and athleticism for his size, Williams is an Army brat who has lived all over the South, so distance probably won't be a major factor for him. 150 tackles and seven sacks over two previous varsity seasons isn't too shabby either.

Auburn, Florida State and Miami are the major factors here right now. Auburn hasn't offered. I have to wonder if academics may be an issue here. Or if Williams has just coasted under-the-radar so long that everyone is simply late to the party. In either case, this is a kid that should be getting more love than he has to this point.

– Florida isn't considered a major threat for Da'Shawn Hand, as Michigan is presumed to be the clear leader over Alabama and UF among his top three schools. However, Hand does plan to take an official visit to Florida. Originally scheduled for Arkansas weekend on Oct. 5, a scheduling conflict has moved that visit to a later date in the fall.

Nothing set in stone but potential visits for Da'Shawn Hand could be Bama vs Tennessee and then Florida vs Vandy, still deciding Nov. 14
— Tom VanHaaren (@TomVH) September 17, 2013

It is worth noting that Hand would elected to head to Gainesville the weekend of what figures to be a major tilt between Alabama and LSU, very possibly with National Championship implications on the line. Reportedly due to the majors all three schools offer, Alabama is slipping with Hand. Florida is the only school that can really offer the 6-foot-4, 260-pound blue-chipper the combination of academics and athletics he's looking for, aside from Michigan of course. The Gators on going to have to throw up a hail mary with Hand on his visit, since he would be making his final decision just a few days later. But getting a kid on campus is half the battle, so we'll follow this story with considerable interest over the coming weeks.