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What are the three key things that went right for Florida football this spring?

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It’s the second spring for Jim McElwain after a shockingly successful first season – even if it ended badly. There’s still plenty to work on, there are still plenty of concerns, and there are still a slew of issues, but what went right for the Gators in spring football?

Florida’s long national nightmare is over. The kicking game works.

Florida kickers last season were very, very bad at kicking footballs.

Austin Hardin hit just 5-of-14 field goals – his services were no longer required and he left the program – leading to an open casting call trying to find someone, anyone, who might be able to hit a reasonable kick. On the year, the Gators made just 7-of-17 field goals and did the equivalent of running around the backhand time and again to avoid having to kick.

Enter Eddy Pinerio, a JUCO transfer with the pressure of being the savior to fix the glitch and be more than just okay – Florida needs a guy who can hit the clutch kick to win the tight game for a team that played seven decided by seven points or fewer and survived a key 9-7 uggo against Vanderbilt.

Pinerio has a massive leg and the upside to be a difference-maker. While he missed his share this offseason, it didn’t appear to matter much, and at the very least, he proved he’s a massive upgrade over anything the Gators had last season.

The defensive front is going to be fantastic.

Florida has turned into a factory for talented defensive linemen – give Will Muschamp credit for something leaving the shelves stocked on D.

Last year the Gators lost Dante Fowler to the NFL and still finished eighth in the nation in total defense and 25th against the run. This year, Jonathan Bullard is gone – and a sure-thing top 50 draft pick – but the line could be even better with the emergence of CeCe Jefferson as a pass rushing terror this spring no matter where he lined up.

While he’s more of a 3-4 end, he’s built like a smallish, squatty defensive tackle with a terrific first step to get behind the line. He’s good, Caleb Brantley is better – he should emerge as an all-star candidate at one tackle spot after a dominant spring – and now the coaching staff has plenty of options to play around with. Finding the right combination for any situation won’t be an issue.

The pass rush will be devastating at times. And it’ll need to be because …

The secondary is going to be fine. Really. Eventually.

You don’t get better after losing Vernon Hargreaves III, Brian Poole and Keanu Neal, but the Gators still have plenty of talent in the defensive backfield.

There isn’t a Hargreaves, but Jalen Tabor is a terrific veteran at one corner gig, and Quincy Wilson should be able to more than hold his own at another spot.

Safety Marcus Maye is the leader of the revamped secondary, and the big-time hitter is a good one to work everything around. Now the job will be to decide on the other safety spot, but there weren’t a ton of worries throughout the spring with Nick Washington and Marcell Harris two good options to use in a rotation. Both have seen enough time to be more than fine.

So again, like the defensive line situation, Florida is losing NFL talent at a spot, and it reloaded.

MORE: What went wrong for Florida football this spring?