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SEC football coaches accept tradeoff of youthful mistakes to keep talented freshmen involved

AP photo by John Raoux / Florida receiver Eugene Wilson III looks for a way around Vanderbilt safety Savion Riley on Oct. 7 in Gainesville, Fla. Wilson is among the freshmen making regular appearances in SEC games this fall as coaches seek to keep talented young players involved and away from the transfer portal. AP photo by John Raoux / Florida receiver Eugene Wilson III looks for a way around Vanderbilt safety Savion Riley on Oct. 7 in Gainesville, Fla. Wilson is among the freshmen making regular appearances in SEC games this fall as coaches seek to keep talented young players involved and away from the transfer portal.

By MARK LONG / The Associated Press October 18, 2023 5 min read

GAINESVILLE, Fla. — Florida coach Billy Napier didn’t want to risk keeping receiver Eugene Wilson on the bench.

Wilson, a four-star recruit from nearby Tampa and the shiftiest player on the roster, had shown enough during preseason camp for Napier to realize the freshman could help the Gators right away.

So Napier and his staff summoned Wilson to the field for a punt return early in Florida’s nonconference season opener at Utah. What happened next was a strange and costly error: Wilson forgot to switch jerseys and was penalized for wearing the same number as defensive teammate Jason Marshall. Utah retained possession and scored a few plays later, a significant swing in a 24-11 victory for the Pac-12’s Utes.

It’s the kind of youthful mistake Southeastern Conference coaches are enduring on a regular basis in hopes of keeping newcomers involved at their current stop — and out of the NCAA transfer portal.

“The more players that you can keep engaged,” Napier said, “the better.”