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UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA FOOTBALL MEDIA CONFERENCE

August 2, 2018

Todd Grantham

Gainesville, Florida

TODD GRANTHAM: Good afternoon. Glad everyone is here. I'll open it up to questions and get rolling.

Q. Coach, your 3rd down defense three of the last four years is 10th in the country. Just curious about your approach on 3rd down and how that's evolved over time.
TODD GRANTHAM: Yeah, well, first of all, I think you have to spend a lot of time on it from a 3rd down perspective, and you have to understand that 3rd down is a possession down, so there's a sticks element involved to the down, meaning 3rd and 3 to 6, there's going to be different routes, different protections relative to, say, 3rd and 7 to 8, 9 to 10, and then obviously you've got 3rd and say 13 or more.

So it's important that you kind of work that situation with guys to understand that here are the things that's coming relative to the down and distance. And then the next thing is having the ability to rush the passer and play tight coverage.

You know, we're more of a pattern match zone defense, so even though sometimes it looks like it's man-to-man, it's actually zone. I think that allows you to play tighter coverage, which forces the quarterbacks to make more accurate throws, and that can help you rush and also your turnovers.

Q. Do you think it's something you've got a better feel over time compared to when you started as a defensive coordinator?
TODD GRANTHAM: Oh, I don't think there's any doubt year one to now you would be better. I think as a coach you're always evolving to become a better coach. I would say the answer to that is hopefully we're better -- I'm a better coach this year than I was last year or three years ago because you're always working to -- you have to stay on track with things that are happening. You know, the offenses evolve, things change, people may attack you a different way relative to what they see. So you've always got to be, in my opinion, working the game to be the best coach you can be.

Q. What's the progress that you saw since you arrived from T.J. Slaton, and what are your expectations for him?
TODD GRANTHAM: Yeah, you know, T.J. is a little bit like our guys up front. We have some young players up front. T.J. has the size and measurables you look for in dominant linemen. He's a guy that can do a couple things. Number one, in the run game, he can hold a point. He can command double teams. He should win the one-on-one box. He also has the athletic ability that he can have range to the ball on the runs. And then when you get to the pass, because of his movement on the edge as well as his ability to collapse the pocket, I think a guy like T.J. will go well with Zuniga, CeCe, Polite, those guys coming off the edge because now the quarterback cannot step up in the pocket, because the biggest thing with pass rush is your ability to collapse the pocket outside in, and a guy like T.J. with his ability inside can do what we call push the pocket.

Q. He's got a guy, Khairi Clark, that he can kind of groom him somewhat. Do your foresee a scenario where they could be in the game at the same time?
TODD GRANTHAM: Absolutely. I think it's important that up front you cross-train your guys because you have to play a lot of guys up front, and the more things that they can do, the more flexibility you have. So as we go through training camp, like for example, the way training camp is now, the first third of it is really evaluating players, kind of like spring practice, but also trying to cross-train guys to play more than one position to just give you that flexibility based upon rotation or injury.

Q. Can you talk about CeCe Jefferson, how he's going to fit into your defense?
TODD GRANTHAM: I mean, so we're a 3-4 structure, but at the end of the day, we play three down, four down. With that, CeCe is really an end-of-the-line player for us, so a lot of characteristics or skill sets that he's had to use in the past, he'll continue to use. We'll just develop him more as an end-of-the-line player as a linebacker and doing those things which will be a little bit of coverage, not as much as other backers.

But CeCe has really embraced the change. I think when you look at his body type, he's made to be more of a linebacker at the next level as opposed to a defensive end, and with this, it's going to allow him to play in a system that allows him to utilize his skill set and the things he does best.

The thing about CeCe is he plays the game really hard. He has a passion for the game, and with his continued development and improvement in his techniques, we fully expect him to have a big year.

Q. What potential do you see in the two sophomore corners?
TODD GRANTHAM: Yeah, I think with those two guys, first of all, you look at their measurables as far as their length, their change of direction, their speed, those are things you really like. I think any time guys outside have the ability to play tight man coverage and play guys one-on-one, it can give you flexibility to maybe free up and double someone else or create a five-man rush where you're basically playing man free with a post guy. I think when you have the ability to cover outside one-on-one, it gives you flexibility within your system.

Q. And Chauncey, what do you like about him?
TODD GRANTHAM: Chauncey loves football. Chauncey is a guy that I consider one of the leaders of our defense. He's always working the game. He's always wanting to improve, ask questions. He is a guy that's kind of a -- he really can play corner. He could play safety. He's kind of played all over. As a nickel, you kind of do both and you have that flexibility. Sometimes things happen a little quicker as an inside defender as opposed to outside, so with his passion, he has developed a little bit of instinct for how those things can come, and he's done a good job with that. And really he's a guy that we'll continue to develop at our nickelback to give us the flexibility to say cover that guy, because like we were talking about on 3rd down, on 3rd down, that guy has to have the ability to cover.

The thing you like, and with CeCe's play strength, you also get a blitzer. If you're blitzing that guy, you've got to be able to win on backs. And with his play strength and his size and speed, I think he's a guy that can do all of that.

Q. A lot has been made about Florida's drop-off on defense last year, but one of the bright spots was their 3rd down conversion percentage. Where did that 3rd-and-Grantham nickname come from, and what is your mentality going into 3rd down?
TODD GRANTHAM: First of all, I'm not sure where it came from. You'd have to, I guess, research that. I think the biggest thing is systematically, we've been good on 3rd down, and you're good on 3rd down when you have guys that can rush and guys that can cover, and I think that with the guys that we have here, I fully expect us to continue to be good.

Q. Obviously you weren't here last year, but you know that this defense struggled and had one of its worst years in a long time. What gives you confidence kind of big picture that this can be a championship level defense?
TODD GRANTHAM: Well, first of all, I'm not really concerned about what happened last year. I'm more concerned about moving forward. And the only thing I can grade guys on is what I see. And since we've been here in January, the guys have really embraced the changes and the things that we have asked them to do from a strength and conditioning standpoint, from an effort standpoint. The biggest thing we always talk about on defense is playing to our identity, which we say is fast, physical and aggressive. And really, coaching is a part of developing that identity, because really it gets down to habits.

I've been very pleased with our guys, and we're not where we need to be yet, but our guys have embraced trying to develop the habits we need to be that kind of defense, because if you do play to that identity, you have a good chance to win the game. You know, we always talk to our guys about competitive toughness. We always give them a CT grade. In other words, every day we give them a CT grade on their competitive toughness in practice. And if you can develop that mindset of having to play to that identity with competitive toughness, I mean, you have a chance to be a good defense and be hard to score on and create turnovers, and if you do that, you've got a chance to be in every game.

Q. Speaking of grades, actually we've seen several Florida defenders pop up on these analytic sites over the off-season for how they graded out. As those analytics become more and more engrained in the game, are you able to use them for yourself and for your own advantage?
TODD GRANTHAM: I mean, internally we have things that we evaluate. We do a self-scout on our defense structurally. We can also do it individually on players as far as allowed completions, pass deflected, things like that, batted balls. I think the biggest thing comes from watching guys in practice and watching how they play. Then you get into the games, it's all about match-ups, relative to the people you're playing and what they're trying to do.

So we're always going to try to work to take away the best players that we face and force the team to beat you left-handed. So really, you kind of rank your guys, and then from that ranking, you try to find ways to match your players up against theirs.

Q. I know it may be a little early to assess, but how much pressure would you like to bring this season?
TODD GRANTHAM: Well, the biggest thing you want to do on defense is first of all, you don't want to let people run the ball, because once you make them one-dimensional, it dictates a little better for how you can play. And then once that happens, you want to find ways to make the quarterback play bad. It's as simple as that, how can we make this guy play bad. So as far as pressure, you always want to try to put the quarterback under duress. Just because you're bringing -- you play with 11 guys, okay, so when you rush four, you're in a four-man rush with seven guys covering. Well, just because you bring a DB doesn't mean you can't play the same coverage. In other words, it gets into what we call a zone replacement from that standpoint.

So just because you have the illusion that a guy is coming doesn't mean it's always man-to-man because at the end of the day, you can bring four, you can bring five or you can bring six. That part of it is really game-by-game relative to the match-ups and how you feel about how you can affect the quarterback.

Q. You've got a guy in T.J. Slaton who's really impressive. Do your eyes light up when you think about the potential he could have for this team?
TODD GRANTHAM: Yeah, I think just like a minute ago when I was talking about T.J., T.J. is a young player that has embraced the things we've asked him to do. He's obviously a talented guy that can play multiple things for us. He's what I consider a three-down player from the sense that he has the ability to stop the run on early downs, 1st and 2nd, but he also has some pass rush ability, ability to push the pocket, and give you those things in the pass.

So from that standpoint, we'll just continue to work him with our other guys to create a rotation where those guys can play to the identity that we want them to play with.

Q. Where does Adam Shuler look to fit into this defense?
TODD GRANTHAM: Yeah, I mean, Adam is a guy that we're really excited about being here. He's a guy that can play multiple positions for us. He can play end, he can play tackle. So what we'll do is we'll continue to evaluate him, get him up to speed on those positions and really just let him, you know, learn our system and then get a rotation going. To me, he's a talented player that has starts at this level and will give us added depth in a very competitive conference.

Q. The linebackers, how would you assess just their -- the play making ability there? Davis Reese made a ton of plays between the tackles -- he said at Media Day in Atlanta, he wants to expand his game. What do you see with him and the group?
TODD GRANTHAM: I think David is a guy that has all the intangibles you look for in a player. He's obviously the quarterback of the defense, can be a settling effect to other players because of the way he makes calls and communicates, so that part of it is really a positive. He was a very productive player for them last year, and you can see why based upon the tape and the things he's done in the spring, and we'll continue to develop him.

Vosean Joseph is a guy -- you talk about the linebackers inside, he's got really good athletic ability. He's got ability to play in space and do those kind of things, which you need because of the spread formations and things like that.

And then honestly behind them, we've got a bunch of guys that we're going to continue to work and develop. We've got young guys coming in like David Reese, also, the young David Reese, and we'll really continue to try to develop all those guys inside to give us a rotation that allows us to maybe free some guys up to not play as many snaps to keep guys fresh, and then when you look outside, obviously you've got CeCe, you've got Jachai, Jeremiah Moon. I mean, those guys honestly can play either outside backer position, and they will learn to play both just to give you the flexibility to be able to have two of those three guys on the field as we move forward.

Q. (Indiscernible).
TODD GRANTHAM: Yeah, so Colin is a guy that can play either Mike -- what we call Mike or Mo or Mack and Money. It's an inside backer position. He can play either one. He does bring a physical presence when he's in there. He has good play instincts, and he'll certainly be in a competition, and that's the good thing when you look at our team. I think there's going to be a lot of competition on our team, and that will be one of the battles that we'll let guys compete to make plays and earn the right to play.

FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports

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