The 2018-2019 Gators will have about 8 seniors and 24 juniors to watch for as potential entrants in the 2019 NFL Draft. Out of that group, these are the ones to keep an eye on:
- Jordan Scarlett - RB. 5'10" 213 pounds. In 2016 he carried the ball 179 times (#10 in SEC) for 889 yards (also #10 in SEC) while splitting the load with Lamical Perine (421 yards), Mark Thompson (399 yards), and Jordan Cronkrite (145 yards) at 5.0 yards per carry. In Dan Mullen's run-heavy offense, he should get near 200 carries, over 5 yds per carry, and 1,000 yards. These stats combined with 9+ wins and a good Pro Day should land him in the middle rounds of the draft.
- Chauncey Gardner-Johnson - CB. 5'11" 204 pounds. CGJ is our leading candidate to continue the DBU legacy. He made 58 tackles in 2017, 34 solo. He needs to boost his interceptions in order to stand out, but if he improves over 2017 he should also be a middle to late round draft pick.
- Jabari Zuniga - DL. 6'3" 245 pounds. In terms of size he may be cast as a tweener, but he is he adapts to the Grantham defense he could boost himself into the late rounds.
- Jachai Polite - DL. 6'2" 271 pounds. Mr. Polite has been making a name for himself as not being so polite in practice and in limited action on the field in 2017, which is a good thing for a defensive lineman in the Grantham defense. Jachai has the best opportunity to stand out in this defense, which appears to suit his aggressive playing style more than Randy Shannon's vanilla 4-3 defense.
- Jawaan Taylor - OL. 6'5" 305 pounds. Jawaan has the size to make it into earlier to middle rounds, but he needs to play more consistently. Perhaps with an upgraded coaching staff he will get that boost he needs in terms of coaching, as well as conditioning.
- Tyrie Cleveland - WR. 6'2" 196 pounds. If Tyrie can continue averaging 18.6 yards per catch (#5 SEC) he will certainly turn some heads, but he needs to earn more than 499 yards in a season (almost a third of the putrid passing yardage output). Scouts will like his speed and highlight reel deep catching ability.
