Rivals.com rated Torrey Davis as the best player in the Florida top 100 last season and No. 2 nationally among defensive tackles behind only North Carolina's Marvin Austin. Florida is looking for a rotation at defensive tackle and Davis is starting to work his way into the discussion.
When starter Clint McMillan went out with a shoulder injury last week against Kentucky, Davis stepped in and played well. He broke into the backfield a few times. The 6-foot-4, 285-pound freshman finished with four tackles (one for loss) and most importantly he's starting to understand what it takes to excel at the college level.
"You just watch him during practice, how hard he's going," freshman defensive end Duke Lemmens said. "It's almost like a fire went up under him. He has a drive I haven't seen in him. If he keeps working the way he has been working nothing can stop him.
"He's one of the most freak athletes I've seen. Just how big and fast he is. You look at him and say this guy can't move. He moves like a defensive end almost. When he gets going I've never seen anything like it. He's so strong. You don't even realize how strong he is. When he's motivated and he wants to go, he's as fast as anybody."
Getting Davis, who starred at Seffner Armwood, to understand just how much effort is needed to be a consistent contributor has been one area of focus for Florida's coaching staff.
Effort level and getting him in shape have been the two things defensive line coach and co-defensive coordinator Greg Mattison have been working on with Davis, who has six tackles (two for loss), one sack and a forced fumble this season.
"He gives us a great first step, and he's giving us a little penetration that we haven't had," coach Urban Meyer said. "He just continues to improve. He's got a good coach working with him. His biggest thing is getting in shape and his effort level, so every day after practice coach Mattison is killing him, running him and running him and running him. It's starting to show up, and he made a difference in that game."
Said McMillan: "It was really exciting. He hasn't gotten a lot of opportunities. Once he had to go in I was more worried about the defense because that's a real important position. When I saw him go in and do well I was probably more excited than him."
More on Harvin, Tebow
Sophomore quarterback Tim Tebow works with sophomore wide receiver Percy Harvin every day in practice. Tebow, who has emerged as a legitimate Heisman Trophy frontrunner, has seen Harvin get better all the time.
After battling through numerous injuries earlier in the season, Harvin has delivered in recent weeks. He leads the team with 34 receptions for 563 yards and three scores and has also rushed for 232 yards and two touchdowns on 33 attempts.
"He shows it every day when he goes out there," Tebow said. He's becoming better and better not just as an athlete but as a player with everything he does. He's becoming a very good player.
"He's so fast and explosive and sometimes he can get ahead of his blockers just by pure athleticism and making people miss but he's done such a great job of being patient and letting his blocks develop and then following them and then making people miss and scoring. It's nice having him on our team."
More Georgia-Florida quotes
McMillan on Georgia quarterback Matthew Stafford: "He's a real good quarterback, a good athlete, a pretty smart athlete so he won't give you too many turnovers. He's your typical Georgia quarterback. He's going to be a great matchup for us."
Lemmens on looking up to Tebow: "The fact that he gets harassed by so many fans, there's never a time when he won't go out of his way to make a little kid feel good, give autographs. One thing I noticed, one time we were at Outback (Steakhouse), me and him, Mr. Brantley and John Brantley. We're kind of being low key and a dad just came over and brought his kid, the biggest fan.
"Instead of just saying, 'Hi,' he actually started asking the kid questions and started having a real conversation with him. I know that probably made the kid's whole year. Something if I ever make it big like that, that's something that I want to learn to do."