Swampcast talks Final Four, Florida basketball, spring football
The Sun’s Kevin Brockway and David Whitley talk great Florida basketball teams of years past and spring football with Edgar Thompson of the Orlando Sentinel.
Florida football starting defensive lineman Cam Jackson had a different impression of new defensive line coach Gerald Chatman when they first talked on the phone.
“He was quiet, so I was like, ‘OK, I’ve got one of those quiet, cool coaches’,” Jackson said.
Then came the first day of spring drills, and Jackson learned the different side to his new position coach.
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“He just got loud all of the sudden,” Jackson said. “He had me fooled .. You can hear Coach Chatman a mile away.”
Chatman’s intense coaching style has rubbed off on the Florida Gators defensive linemen through the first three weeks of spring practices. In accepting the job from Tulane to replace Sean Spencer, Chatman has brought a no-nonsense approach with an emphasis on attention to detail.
“I’m intense caring about the guys.” Chatman said. “I love these players. I would say authentic personality – I am who I am, and that’s what I expect them to be. I want them to be authentic. I want them to be who they are.”
The 36-year-old Chatman led a Tulane defensive line that totaled 52.5 tackles for loss, 27 sacks, 15 quarterback hurries, five forced fumbles and four pass breakups last season.
“I coach them the way I want them to play – intense, with detail, discipline, relentless mentality, effort, urgency,” Chatman said. “So, if I expect them to play that way, then I have to coach them that way. I have to be detailed with our progression and drills and technique and fundamentals.”
After stints at Division III Wisconsin-Osh Kosh, Ball State and Butler, Chatman gained NFL experience through the Bill Walsh minority coaching program, landing summer internships with the Green Bay Packers and Denver Broncos. From 20192-20, Chatman was a defensive assistant coach with the Cincinnati Bengals, working with edge rushers.
“At the professional level, those guys they still want detail, they still want to be able to work their craft,” Chatman said. “Just because they’ve made it to that level or their income is different, obviously, those guys they all still want to be coached, they all want to work their craft so they can sustain playing at a high level.”
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UF’s defensive lineman combined for just 13 sacks last season, which led to Spencer’s ouster. So far, the Florida defensive linemen have embraced Chatman’s tough love.
“His energy is making us more physical,” Florida defensive lineman Caleb Banks said. “We’ve been doing some real good stuff based on his energy, so I feel like it’s gonna be a great year. We’re gonna have a lot of pressure on the quarterback, a lot of sacks, a lot of TFL’s, a lot of excitement, a lot of energy going around, sideline, yeah, it’s gonna be nice.”
Banks said if Chatman dresses him down during a drill, he’s not taking it personally.
“I don’t take anything to heart, don’t take anything serious,” Banks said. “I understand it’s all business, it’s all work, at the end of the day he wants me to be great, he wants me to be successful in life.”
Chatman said to this point, UF’s defensive linemen have met the challenge of intense repetition. Playing time, Chatman said, will come down to consistency on a day in, day out basis.
“They want to be challenged,” Chatman said. “They want to be pushed, they want to learn, they really want to get better. And I think, when I sat down and just had different conversations with guys, you know, and the work that they do every day, I know hands down and I can tell you that they want it, they want to be good.”
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Chatman said he turns off the intensity when he goes home to his wife and four children.
“I have four kids, but God blessed me with three daughters and then we had a son on fourth down,” Chatman said. “I say that we finally got off the field. But maybe God knew I was intense and whatever the case may be, so boom one daughter after the other. So, I’m definitely not as intense with them as I am on the field but that’s a good balance there.”
Off the field, Jackson said Chatman can be funny.
“He’s quiet and cheerful,” Jackson said. “But when we’re on the field, you’re goanna know he’s there.”
2024-04-05 08:12:58
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