GAINESVILLE, Fla. — He had the speed and quickness and athletic frame that coaches look for in edge pass rushers. At 6-foot-6, Alex McCalister had the kind of upside that made Gators head coach Will Muschamp and defensive coordinator D.J. Durkin think big when imagining the possibilities.

There was one problem. When McCalister arrived at UF in 2012, he didn’t have a chance against Southeastern Conference offensive linemen.

They were sharks. He was chum.

McCalister was what coaches call a project, a label that took time for the former basketball standout from Clemmons, N.C., to accept.

ï¿¼"I mean, everybody wants to come in and play,” McCalister said. "Even my second year, my sophomore year, I still wanted to play but I was still ‘that project.’ I still had to develop. I still had to learn."

More than anything, McCalister had to eat. And eat. And eat some more if he wanted to crack the Gators’ lineup.

Fortunately he likes pizza. McCalister and his favorite go-to meal became hangout buds many nights. Still are if McCalister, who came to UF at around 215 pounds and is now listed at 246, is feeling light on his feet.

"If I feel down in weight, I still eat a whole pizza at night just to get back up,” he said.

2015 Gators football schedule The Gators will open their 2015 football season at home against New Mexico State.

While McCalister ate pizzas and received detailed eating plans from the team’s nutritionists to build weight and maintain it, he improved on the field and started to hold his own in some of those battles against offensive linemen.

The project is now a player.

McCalister leads Florida with four sacks and had the best game of his career in Saturday’s 30-27 loss to LSU, finishing with four tackles, 2.5 tackles-for-loss and 1.5 sacks.

"Alex continues to come on,” Muschamp said. "He’s a 10-foot broad jumper, close to over a 40-inch vertical leap, so he’s got really explosive power. He only played two years of high school football. He’s got great length, which you can’t coach, and you can’t coach some of his athleticism."

McCalister’s emergence gives the Gators another dangerous pass rusher to add to the mix with Dante Fowler Jr. and Bryan Cox Jr. at defensive end. The Gators have 16 sacks in five games, including 10 in the past two.

They hope to keep the pressure on Missouri quarterback Maty Mauk on Saturday when the Tigers visit in a key matchup in the SEC East race.

Back at West Forsythe (N.C.) High, McCalister dreamed of playing in big games like Saturday’s. And in blue uniforms: Carolina Blue.

McCalister garnered interest from schools for both football and basketball — he said Davidson, where NBA star Stephen Curry played, offered a basketball scholarship — but he envisioned Tar Heels coach Roy Williams stopping by practice and making his pitch to McAlister to play in Chapel Hill.

That never happened.

"No, he didn’t even know who I was,” McCalister said. "I had bigger and better opportunities in football."

North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, Georgia Tech and others offered McCalister an opportunity to play football. He chose Florida and Durkin, his primary recruiter, is glad he did.

"His opportunities have continued to grow because he’s done well with them,” Durkin said. "He’s a tough matchup one-on-one to block. So we’re expanding his role every week. He’s still got room to grow. He still looks skinny out there.

"His nickname used to be Zipper, but we can’t call him Zipper anymore."

Gators tight end Tevin Westbrook, who checks in 6-5, 257 pounds, occasionally gets matched up against McCalister in practice.

While they are around the same height and Westbrook has a distinct weight advantage, the assignment is never easy.

"He’s a different breed,” Westbrook said. "With his length and speed he brings a different kind of end to the game."

McCalister’s file in the team’s weekly game notes reflect what his coaches and teammates are saying.

Against Eastern Michigan made three tackles, including his first career sack … Totaled three tackles and a pass breakup against Kentucky … Made two tackles, a sack and one tackle-for-loss against Bama … Notched a half-sack at Tennessee.

Coming off the best game of his career against LSU, McCalister is ready to see what’s next.

After redshirting in 2012 and playing mostly on special teams in seven games last season, McCalister’s confidence is growing at a much faster pace than his weight did when he first got to UF.

"Really, really, really excited about the future,” he said. "I’m talking about the future here, [the] future wherever this takes me. Just keep working and grinding and wherever I end up, that’s where I end up."

Still, his love for hoops remains alive and well. McCalister enjoys a good pick-up game when he has time and considers himself the best basketball player on the football team.

"Definitely,” he said.

Asked who is second-best: "Marcus Maye, for sure."

If he has any regrets Williams never called, McAlister has moved on.

"I’m extremely happy I chose football,” he said.