LINEBACKERS

Jeremiah Moon

How good an athlete is sophomore linebacker Kylan Johnson? He played quarterback and safety in high school.

The Series

* Part 6(6-0, 244, Sophomore);(6-1, 231, R-Sophomore);(6-1, 226, Sophomore);(6-1, 231, R-Senior);(6-0, 226, R-Sophomore);(6-4, 248, R-Junior).(6-4, 218, R-Freshman);(6-1, 233, Freshman);(6-2, 220, Freshman);(5-11, 222, Freshman);(6-1, 213, Freshman).The Gators lost both starting linebackers,and, in the Nov. 5 loss at Arkansas. Davis, with a severely sprained ankle, returned to play sparingly in the Southeastern Conference Championship Game, but was shut down after that. Anzalone broke his arm and was done. Both are in the NFL now. Davis was a first-round selection by Detroit and Anzalone a third-rounder by New Orleans. Losing them last November, though, meant battlefield promotions for a couple newbies in Reese and Johnson, who definitely answered the bell. In hindsight, it was a good thing for this team because this is a very, very young and mostly inexperienced group that needs to grow up in a hurry. Johnson (39 tackles, 5 tackles for loss, 1 sack, 1 fumble recovery) started the last five games. Reese (49 tackles, 2 tackles for loss) started four straight before giving way to Davis in Atlanta and suffering a wrist injury that kept him out of the Outback Bowl, as well as spring practice. Garcia is a walk-on who proved himself enough to start in the win over Iowa in the bowl when he tallied six tackles, And remember when the Gators needed Joseph at LSU and he provided one of the hits of the year on the Tigers' quarterback at the goal line? Most of the others returnees who saw action last season mixed it up on special teams. That's what young linebackers do. Of the newcomers, Moon gave a nice little preview of what he can do in the spring game, while Houston was the lone early enrollee among the true freshman, so might be a step ahead. Smith's status for the season is in doubt following an injury during preseason workouts.New linebackers coach, who moved over from the offensive side and coaching running backs, probably has the second-toughest assignment among the staff as far as hastening the development of his room. Look for Reese and Johnson to be UF's Day 1 starters, with Joseph and Garcia at the ready, followed by a bunch of hungry youngsters playing for pecking order.Reese will be in the middle of it all. Barring injury, put him down for a hundred tackles. Johnson was an elite athlete in high school, where he played both quarterback and safety. It might be a wild hair, but think about the latter part of that previous piece of information in the event the Gators need help replacing fifth-year senior safety, who suffered a season-ending Achilles injury last week.Part 1: Quarterbacks Part 2: Running Backs Part 3: Wide Receivers and Tight ends Part 4: Offensive line Part 5: Defensive line