The Gators offensive line had one of the biggest leaps during the 2024 season both as a unit and on the individual levels
The Gators offensive line made major strides in 2024 / Matt Pendleton
In a season where the Florida Gators seemed to flip the script of Billy Napier’s tenure as head coach, quickly going from a team with no hope to a team with plenty, the Gators offensive line unit was a huge catalyst.
In the 2023 season, pass protection was a big struggle for the Gators. Florida’s offensive line was given a 66.0 pass-blocking grade by PFF, ranking 62 of 133 FBS schools. They allowed an average of 3.25 sacks a game, ranking 114th nationally, and starting quarterback Graham Mertz only saw an average time to throw of 2.46 seconds, ranking 113 out of 165 quarterbacks at the FBS level.
In 2024, that all changed. Florida was the 5th most improved unit in the nation in sack rate from 2023 to 2024, Improving their PFF pass-blocking grade a whole 14.2 points and moving from 62nd in the FBS to 11th. They average only 1.7 sacks allowed per game, up 66 spots nationally from the year before, and co-starters Mertz and freshman DJ Lagway had a combined average time to throw of 2.65, .19 seconds more than the previous season. Lagway alone saw a time to throw of 2.76, which ranked 32nd amongst 334 FBS quarterbacks with over 100 snaps.
The improvements weren’t just as a unit either. In the 2023 season, of the seven individual players to play in over 20% of snaps, only three saw a PFF passblock grade of over 65, while starting tackle Damieon George was graded a 56.7, ranking 75th out of 92 SEC players eligible. This year, Florida saw all but one player to play over 20% of snaps finish with a grade over 65, while four finished top 30 in the SEC, including George. George’s improvement was by far the most substantial, finishing with a 75.9 grade, 19.2 points higher than the year before.
Though pass protection showed the biggest improvement, Florida’s offensive trench play improved in the run game as well. Despite already ranking 26th in the FBS with a 69.8 PFF run-blocking grade in 2023, the Gators unit improved their grade by over 10 points in 2024, finishing with an 80.0 grade and as the 7th best run-blocking unit in the FBS. This year, rushers gained around 38% of their yards before contact, up 4% from the season before.
In the SEC, Florida had three players finish top 10 in PFF grade for run-blocking amongst players to play over 20% of snaps, Jake Slaughter, Brandon Crenshaw-Dickson and Kamryn Waites, as well as two more in the top 20, Damieon George and Knijeah Harris. If you were to remove the 20% snap minimum, Caden Jones and Roderick Kearney would enter the top 10 while Waites would drop to 12, making the top 12 graded players in the SEC over 40% Gators.
The Gators ended as one of only three teams with PFF grades in the top 12 for both pass and run blocking this season, together with 11-2 Memphis and 6-7 West Virginia, and the only team in the nation to have both grades over 80. Compared to the SEC, Florida’s 80.1 combined grade was the best of any team in the conference. Their improvement not only made them an impressive unit but one of the best in the nation.
Heading into a 2025 season with high expectations, Florida should be expected to continue their dominant offensive-line play as well. Of the eight players to start over 20% of the snaps in 2024, seven will return to Florida next season with only Crenshaw-Dickson graduating. As well, Florida will return to elite depth next year with 10 returning linemen earning PFF grades of 68.0 or higher, meaning they were close to or better than above average.
For the first time in a long time, Florida’s offensive line feels like a reliable unit and a huge strength for the Gators. With a Heisman hopeful behind it, the unit’s success seems to be a key factor in the Gators’ ability to reach high expectations next season. If momentum carries over, it may be time for a fraction of the fanbase to finally give props to a certain Oline coach on the staff, though the turnaround was clearly the result of many influences.
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