GAINESVILLE — The ninth in a position-by-position preview of the UF football team leading up to the opening of fall camp.
TODAY: CORNERBACK
What to expect
The Gators’ longstanding claim to DBU, the fictional Defensive Backs University, has become empty words. A program that churned out three NFL first-rounders at cornerback and four second-rounders from 2016-22 has sent one to the NFL in three years — fifth-rounder Jason Marshall Jr. in 2025.
UF corners did make some statistical strides in 2024, finishing with 4 interceptions after managing just one in ’23 and cutting the average yards per completion to 7 yards, down from an SEC-worst 8.3. To become an elite unit again, the Gators will need to stay healthy and receives contributions from talented, unproven players. Florida aims to do it while welcoming back former analyst Deron Wilson to replace Walt Harris, who returned to the NFL.
Senior Devin Moore has All-SEC caliber tools but battled injuries since his 2022 arrival, limiting him to 19 of 38 games while at UF. Long, instinctive and athletic, the 6-foot-2 ¾, 198-pound Moore had built up his body and was poised for a breakthrough season when a shoulder injury against Georgia ended 2024 with career-highs of 17 tackles, 2 interceptions and 4 defended passes. During his career, 247Sports states Moore had yielded just 18 catches on 36 targets for an impressive 50% clip.
Junior Dijon Johnson is a former top-100 recruit who changed his commitment from Ohio State. Yet, the 6-foot-1, 196-pound Tampa product had not been much of a factor until Marshall’s season-ending shoulder injury put Johnson in the starting line, where he recorded 27 tackles, 2 of them for loss, 2 pass breakups and a 52% completion percentage in 25 targets.
A January shoulder surgery and his May 2 arrest in his hometown have complicated his offseason. Tampa Police charged with Johnson with two felonies and two misdemeanors, but prosecutors have yet to proceed, the 21-year-old’s attorney Tim Taylor told the Orlando Sentinel June 26.
Coach Billy Napier said Johnson remained with the team. Meanwhile, some promising young Gators push for bigger roles.
Most intriguing is redshirt sophomore Cormani McClain, a former 5-star prospect from Lakeland who transferred in the spring of 2024 after playing a season at Colorado. The 6-foot-1 ½ McClain possesses length, is up to 182 pounds from the 165 he weighed upon his arrival and was a ballhawk in Lake Gibson High. He recorded 9 interceptions as a sophomore in 2021 and added 6 picks in 2022.
During mop-up duty last season in the Swamp against Kentucky, he had a 29-yard pick-six. But it was a rare highlight in an otherwise lackluster season showing both McClain’s promise and exposing his shortcomings.
Moore, Johnson and McClain are UF’s top options among returners.
Redshirt freshman Jamroc Grimsley was an Alabama transfer in 2024 who arrived with high hopes. Yet he logged just 37 defensive snaps and had offseason knee surgery. Sophomore Teddy Foster, a 3-star prospect from Sarasota, managed 4 tackles and allowed a 24-yard reception on the only target he faced.
Highly touted freshman Ben Hanks III could capitalize on the injuries and a lack of proven cornerback depth. The son of a former UF linebacker in the 1990s, the 6-foot-1, 180-pound Hanks set a Miami-Dade County last season at Booker T. Washington High with 13 interceptions. In 2023, he had 3 pick-sixes.
Southern Miss transfer Micheal Caraway Jr. brings five years experience, including two at the junior college level, to a group lacking veterans. The Gators hope for production, too. The 6-foot-1, 184-pound Caraway totaled 70 tackles, 7 passes defended passes and a fumble recovery in 35 games, including 15 starts at Southern Miss.
UF also picked up 4-star cornerback Onis Konanbanny, a former Tennessee commitment, on the eve of February’s National Signing Day. The 6-foot-1, 180-pound Konanbanny did not join the Gators until this summer, taking a unique path to Gainesville. He was born in France, grew up in London, England, and spent the past two seasons at Heathwood Hall Episcopal School in Columbia, S.C., where he had 56 solo tackles, 3 fumble recoveries, 2 pass breakups and an interception in 2024.
What they’re saying
“We have a really good problem in the room: Whoever goes out there, it doesn’t matter. We have a standard, which the standard, no matter who it is, is to go out there and take care of business.” — first-year position coach Deron Wilson.
Returnees
Teddy FosterJamroc GrimsleyDijon JohnsonCormani McClainDevin Moore
Departures
Ja’Keem JacksonJason Marshall Jr.
New arrivals
Micheal Carraway Jr. (Southern Miss), redshirt seniorBen Hanks (Miami), true freshmanOnis Konanbanny (Columbia, S.C.), true freshman
Projected depth chart
QB1 — Devin Moore | Cormani McClainQB2 — Dijon Johnson | Micheal Carraway Jr.
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Edgar Thompson can be reached at egthompson@orlandosentinel.com