Three under-the-radar Florida players Miami needs to pay attention to
![Florida Gators wide receiver Tank Hawkins (10) makes a catch during spring football practice at Heavener Football Complex at the University of Florida in Gainesville, FL on Tuesday, April 2, 2024. [Matt Pendleton/Gainesville Sun]](https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/c_crop,w_4648,h_2614,x_0,y_0/c_fill,w_1080,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto/images%2FImagnImages%2Fmmsport%2F200%2F01j6anajfkg6c2f2rm7j.jpg "Florida Gators wide receiver Tank Hawkins (10) makes a catch during spring football practice at Heavener Football Complex at the University of Florida in Gainesville, FL on Tuesday, April 2, 2024. [Matt Pendleton/Gainesville Sun]")
Benjamin Henderson the expert for Canes Warning's partner site, Hail, Florida, Hail wrote up Three Under the Radar players Miami needs to pay attention to in the season opener in Gainesville on Saturday. Florida and Miami have yet to release their depth charts for Miami on Saturday. Henderson's thoughts are below.
Ja'Kobi Jackson (RB)
To be honest, Ja'Kobi Jackson is under the radar for most Gator fans, too. With the status of running back Montrell Johnson still up in the air, it is safe to assume that Treyaun Webb is going to get snaps against Miami.
Behind him is a bit of a mystery, and most would have assumed coming out of the spring game that true freshman Jadan Baugh was next in line after Webb after looking shifty and dynamic and catching the eye of many.
But based on reports coming out of camp, it is Jackson, a former JUCO transfer who had zero stars coming out of high school, who is in line to get snaps if Johnson can't go. Jackson is a big back at 5'11" and 210 pounds. And while it is easy to write him off, one thing Napier has excelled at during his time in Gainesville has been running back evaluations and picking out diamonds in the rough.
Here is a fun fact:
— Hail Florida Hail (@HailFloridaHail) August 27, 2024
Tank Hawkins as a junior in high school was literally faster than the entire Miami Hurricanes track team from 2024. pic.twitter.com/aMUF93xBRb
Tank Hawkins (WR)
A true freshman who may or may not actually see the field, Hawkins is a burner. During his junior year in high school, he ran 10.37 seconds in the 100-meter dash. For context, the fastest member of Miami's track and field team in 2024 ran 10.44 seconds.
Hawkins is a receiver but would probably only get used for a gadget play or two. His name is also being floated as a candidate to return kicks. Even though he was quiet during the actual spring game, reports have indicated he is a nightmare to guard in practice and a number of Gator fans are wanting to see him unleashed on Saturday.
Justus Boone (DE)
One of the downfalls of Florida's 2023 campaign that doesn't get brought up a ton was the preseason injury to Justus Boone. It left Princely Umanmielen on an island, and there was no one to clean up the mess, even if Umanmielen had flushed the QB away.
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When we profiled Boone earlier this month and what his return meant for the Gators, we said: "And when comparing him against the rest of the country in 2022, Boone more than held his own. He had a "win rate" on pass rush attempts of 11.2%. Of the 481 defensive ends nationally with at least 100 pass rush attempts in 2022, Boone was 172nd, good for 65th percentile in the country. Among sophomores from that year with the same criteria, he was 52nd out of 190."