Mike Peterson had a good thing going at South Carolina. He developed three All-SEC players during his six years at the school, including D.J. Wonnum, who finished his career ninth on the school’s all-time tackles-for-loss list.
He had survived the head coaching transition from Will Muschamp to Shane Beamer and built great relationships with his players.
Even with all of that, accepting the outside linebackers coach/alumni liaison position at Florida in January was a no-brainer for him. The Alachua native was a First Team All-American on the 1996 national championship team, and he’s a member of the UF Athletic Hall of Fame. Choosing to come home to Gainesville didn’t really take much thought.
“It was a real simple process,” Peterson said. “I think last year when everything went down, I kind of saw it happen. I can’t lie about that. I saw it happen. The crazy part about it is I had a great relationship with my guys up there. I had made a lot of friends up there. So, it’s kind of one of those moments where I hope I get a call, but, if I do, it’s going to be really, really hard because it’s going to be hard for me to say no.
“It happened quick. [Billy Napier] called, and we had mutual friends. I did my homework on him, and I’m sure pretty sure he did his homework on me. It was an easy, simple process. This is home. So, there wasn’t too much the other place could say or do to keep me. This is home.”
Peterson’s outside linebackers are referred to as JACK linebackers in defensive coordinator Patrick Toney’s scheme. From the way that the position has been described by Peterson and some players so far, it doesn’t sound like the position will differ much philosophically from what the BUCK position did under the previous staff. They’ll still be asked to rush the passer, stop the run and cover running backs at different points in a game.
Peterson likes the athleticism of the group, but, in what’s become a running theme among assistant coaches this spring, he’d like to see them play with an increased understanding of the nuances of the position.Brenton Cox was one of the few bright spots down the stretch of the 2021 season. He recorded at least one sack in each of the final four games, including four against Florida State, the most by a Gator since sacks became an official NCAA statistic in 2000. He used that late charge to finish with the team lead in sacks (8 ½) and tackles-for-loss (14 ½).
Now the goal is for Cox to play like that for an entire season.
“He was one of the first ones that came up to the meeting room,” Peterson said. “We sat, and we talked for a while. I wanted him to get to know me, and I wanted to get to know him as well. I’ve been watching him for a while. I actually recruited him when he was coming out. So, I was familiar with him. I’m excited to get out there on the field and let him do his thing.
“He has all the skills. This guy’s strong. He’s powerful. He can rush the passer. Right now, my thing is to kind of polish his game, to help him learn the game. There are so many things that go into football. Everybody thinks you get out there and just run around and make plays. No, it’s so many things. You can talk about taking care of your body away from football, building his brand up. ‘What do you want to be after football?’”
One of the biggest criticisms of Cox among fans is his tendency to disappear at times. He’ll make a sack early in the game, and then you won’t even notice that he’s on the field for the rest of the game. Other times, he’ll go multiple games without making an impact play.
Cox said that Peterson has worked with him on playing with a consistently high motor.
“[There’s] been a discussion that I don’t play hard,” Cox said. “So, he’s been preaching to me that if you’re not in the TV [picture] by the time the play is over, then it’s a loaf. You’re not running to the ball. So, that’s helped me turn the other way and get going when I’m done with my rush.”
Antwaun Powell was one of the higher-rated members of the 2020 signing class, but he hasn’t done much of anything in his college career outside of 1 ½ sacks against Vanderbilt last year.
“[Peterson is] a Gator Great,” Powell said. “That comes with an expectation already. We have to meet that expectation every day. Work hard, play hard, make sure we know what we have to do.”
Peterson is trying to get Powell to take on more of a leadership role this spring.
“He’s explosive, and he’s a great kid, real quiet,” he said. “I’m trying to get him to be a little more vocal. I kind of jumped on him a little bit [Tuesday] out there, so it was good for him.”
On the opposite end of that spectrum is redshirt freshman Chief Borders. He’s a high-energy guy who is highly athletic.
“That guy is full of energy,” Peterson said. “I love it. He keeps the group going, just the energy that comes with [him]. A guy that can run. He has a motor, and that’s one of the things I love. The energy he plays with, you can’t coach that. Right now, it’s just fine-tuning. I don’t know if he’s played much football, so I think it’s only going to get better with reps.”
Rounding out the group are Lloyd Summerall and David Reese. At one time, Reese was considered a potential rising star, but injuries have derailed his career. Summerall played in all 13 games in 2021 but only has 2 ½ tackles-for-loss to his credit in three collegiate seasons. Despite his lack of production, Peterson is excited about Summerall’s potential.
“A kid with all the talent,” he said. “Has the size, all the measurables, long arms, can rush the passer. Right now, he’s raw. Raw talent. He’s taking coaching probably like no other. He’s up in the meeting rooms. He’s up all the time and just wants to talk. So, he’s one I was real anxious to get my hands on. Another kid that I recruited and knew coming out of high school.”
While improving his players’ fundamentals is certainly a high priority for Peterson, football is far from the only thing that he wants to impart on his players. He’s developed what he calls a “coach’s creed” to serve as something of a mission statement for his career.
“The first thing, every kid I coach — and I’m 100 percent with this right now – is going to get their degree,” he said. “No. 2 is I’m going to turn them from boys to men. I’m going to teach them. We’re going to learn how to tie a tie. We’re going to learn how to save our money. We’re going to learn how to talk to girls. We’re going to learn how to be a husband. We’re going to learn how to be a boyfriend.
“No. 3 is I’m going to teach you football. We’re going to learn ball. We’re going to learn the game of football. So, that’s kind of my little coach’s creed. That’s kind of my three things of what I stand on, and I have fun with it. My last thing is I tell them ‘Play hard and have fun.’”
While Peterson enjoys coaching now, coaching wasn’t always part of his plan after he retired from the NFL. He just thought he’d stop playing and do something else for the remainder of his life.
However, during his final few seasons in the NFL with the Atlanta Falcons, his playing time decreased, as his age began to catch up with him. So, a big part of his job was to mentor some of the Falcons’ younger players and get them ready to replace him. Peterson enjoyed that role so much that he decided to go into coaching.
“I just looked at it more [as] I’m just giving back to the game,” he said. “This game, it’s blessed me along the way and helped me be able to bless a lot of people in my life, whether it be family, friends and neighbors. You always want to give back to the game, and I think coaching, being able to affect college kids is kind of the ultimate way of giving back to the game.”
He started his coaching career as an assistant in the strength and conditioning program at UF from 2013-15. Then, when Muschamp was hired as South Carolina’s head coach, Peterson left Florida to accept his first on-field coaching job in Columbia.
His success with the Gamecocks led Napier to make the call that Peterson had been waiting for earlier this year. He’s enjoyed his time back at UF so far.
“Coach Napier has a plan, and that trickles down to everybody on staff,” Peterson said. “If you’re not pushing this way and trying to make the program better or get back to the top, you almost stand out. You stand out like a sore thumb because everybody’s recruiting, everybody’s wanting the best and pouring so much into the university. It gets kind of contagious, and you always want to do a little more.”