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Post by Deleted on Oct 15, 2016 22:29:49 GMT -5
Gators take lead in SEC East after 40-14 rout of Mizzou and bama's woodshed whipping of the vols in Knoxville:
GAINESVILLE, Fla. — If Florida was going to get back into the Southeastern Conference race, the Gators were going to need some help. And some wins.
My, how the tables have turned in the SEC East Division.
The UF defense set the tone against Missouri Saturday, getting interception return for touchdowns from star cornerbacks Jalen Tabor and Quincy Wilson on back-to-back possessions to ignite an eventual 40-14 victory before 88,825 at Spurrier/Florida Field. Meanwhile, up in Knoxville, top-ranked Alabama smashed Tennessee 49-10, handing the Volunteers a second straight defeat and jetting the Gators (5-1, 3-1) into sole possession of first place in the division by a half-game.
"We're number one in the East again and control our destiny," Tabor said. "That's how we wanted it."
The final statistics will be somewhat skewed, due to some oh-by-the-way late yardage from the Tigers (2-4, 0-3), but make no mistake: the UF defense set the table for this win by turning Missouri's offense away on three-and-outs its first six possessions. By the time the Tigers registered their first first down — with 2:52 left in the first half — the Gators led 20-0 behind those TD returns from Tabor and Wilson, plus a pair of field goals from Eddy Pineiro.
"It starts with defense," UF coach Jim McElwain said. "To see how the team was feeding off everything on the sidelines was just outstanding."
Fourth-year junior quarterback Luke Del Rio, out the last two games with a sprained left knee, was back under center in replacing Austin Appleby. Del Rio appeared rusty in hitting just 18 of 38 passes for 236 yards, one touchdown and three interceptions. He got help, though, from the UF defense, but also from a rushing attack that produced a season-high 287 yards, including 106 from true freshman Lamical Perine and 101 and a score from sophomore Jordan Scarlett.
That's good production from the backfield, but the guy doing the handing off -- despite 523 total yards of offense -- turned a finger at himself because of his miscues.
"Three picks," Del Rio said. "That's awful. You'll lose a lot of those games. Thankfully, we have a great defense."
If Del Rio's numbers looked shaky, consider what happened to Missouri's Drew Lock, who started the day ranked first in the league in passing at 336.5 yards per game. Lock went 4-for-18 for just 39 yards and his only touchdowns were to Florida defensive backs.
UF's pair of pick-6 TDs came on consecutive possessions in the second quarter, with the Gators clinging to a 6-0 edge after five offensive possessions that reached Mizzou territory produced just six points.
Tabor and Wilson soon made up for those shortcomings.
For Tabor, it was his second interception runback against the Tigers in as many seasons. It came with 3:25 left in the first half and one play after Del Rio was intercepted. Instead of Mizzou making a move late in the half, the Gators padded their 6-0 lead when Tabor stepped in front of running back Damarea Crockett and raced untouched to the end zone with Lock's fifth interception of the season.
On the ensuing possession, the Tigers were on the move. After failing to record a first down the first six times they had the ball, the Tigers worked for three straight and faced a third-and-7 at the UF 32 when Wilson stepped in front of Lock's sideline pass for tight end Sean Culkin and raced 78 yards for the score and 20-0 lead with 1:14 to go before intermission.
"Florida took away the the passing game in every area," Mizzou coach Barry Odom said. "If we can't pass, we need to make adjustments in order to get first downs."
By the time the Tigers did that -- gaining 160 yards on their last two possessions -- the Gators had emptied their bench. That made for a quite the end to a homecoming date that began with a motivational pre-game chat from icon former player/coach/field namesake Steve Spurrier.
"Coach Spurrier talked about how one guy can affect the whole team," Tabor said. "I just wanted to be that guy today and I feel like any time you get a defensive score or a non-offensive score, it's a momentum shift for the whole team."
It was. And it was needed.
Pineiro kicked field goals of 53 and 24 yards to give UF its 6-0 lead, though he also missed a 32-yarder on Florida's first series. His makes came on a couple second-quarter drives, including one when the Gators had a first-and-goal at the 5, but a false start (one of eight on the day) and three unproductive plays put the field-goal unit on the field, instead.
Del Rio's first-half struggles, as in two interceptions and several underthrown balls, carried over into the second half when he threw a quick third pick on the second play of the third quarter to set up Mizzou for its first score. The Tigers turned the turnover into a four-play, 46-yard drive, capped when 6-foot-4, 355-pound defensive tackle Josh Augusta dove into the pile for a 1-yard touchdown run that put Mizzou on the board.
The Gators helped cancel that score out when Del Rio hit true freshman wideout Tyrie Cleveland (3 catches, 79 yards) on a wide-open crossing route that Cleveland easily took in for his first career touchdown with 3:47 left in the period.
A 33-yard Scarlett scoring scamper came early in the fourth period after the Gators recovered a fumble by Lock. That made the score 33-7.
Missouri scored again midway through the fourth on a 99-yard drive — its offense totaled 160 of its 363 yards in the final period, with all those 160 after linebacker and leading tackler Jarrad Davis left the game with a left leg injury — that closed the gap to 33-14. The Tigers ensuing onsides kick was taken cleanly on the left flank by UF's Antonio Callaway, who zipped untouched 44 yards for the touchdown.
That made three TDs by units other than the offense.
"They got some cheap yards at the end, but that's OK," McElwain said. "We were able to play a ton of guys from our scout team. To be able to put them in a game, in a place like the 'Swamp,' that just puts a smile on my face."
Put the Gators back atop the SEC East, too. Also worth smiling about.
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Post by Deleted on Oct 15, 2016 22:47:37 GMT -5
Color analyst and ex-Gator QB didn't do his homework. He kept talking about UF being without 2 DL starters, Joey Ivie and Jordan Sherit. However, Caleb Brantley played sparingly with his injured hand and Bryan Cox Jr. didn't play at all as mentioned by Mac after the game. Cox supposedly hurt his thumb in pregame and couldn't play.
The DL that dominated Mizzou was our baby Gators who got experience at Vandy and today against Mizzou. Enough can't be said about how well these guys played:
Keivonais Davis - sophomore Antoneous Clayton - true freshman CeCe Jefferson - sophomore Jabari Zuniga - redshirt freshman Jachai Polite - true freshman
Redshirt sophs Khairi Clark and Taven Bryan ably manned the DT positions along with CeCe Jefferson. Caleb Brantley didn't play at all in the first half and played very little in the second half.
Two weeks is going to turn the DL into an absolute monster as I'm expecting everyone to be back for the poodles.
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Post by Deleted on Oct 15, 2016 22:57:17 GMT -5
Starting MLB Jarrad Davis went out in the second half with an injured leg. He had an X-ray which was negative for anything broken. It's not believed to be a knee issue. He had an MRI, but the result of which is not yet known. However, several teammates have said they think Davis is going to be okay.
True freshman MLB David Reese played very well in relief of Davis recording 6 tackles.
Baby Gators are getting experience all over the field. True freshman WR Tyrie Cleveland got his first TD as a Gator. This kid has special written all over him.
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Post by Deleted on Oct 16, 2016 8:36:53 GMT -5
UF is in control of its own destiny. The Gators will likely have to win out in SEC play to go to Atlanta, but this team is good enough to get there. The current SEC East standings:
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Post by Deleted on Oct 16, 2016 15:25:27 GMT -5
Excellent news on Jarrad Davis. He may not feel like it today, but I doubt he misses more than this off week:
GAINESVILLE, Fla. — There’s more good news on Florida’s Jarrad Davis. The senior linebacker suffered a left ankle sprain Saturday against Missouri, a source told SEC Country. The source spoke directly to Davis, who said it was not a high-ankle sprain. The Gainesville Sun’s Pat Dooley reported Sunday that Davis has a bad sprain, but did not specify the location of the injury. UF coach Jim McElwain said X-rays showed there was no fracture. The results of Davis’ MRI and a timetable for his return are unknown at this time. “He was in pretty good spirits,” McElwain said of Davis after his injury. Florida has a bye this week before its rival game on Oct. 29 against Georgia, Davis’ home state. He leads the Gators with 48 tackles this year and was a first team All-SEC preseason selection.
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Post by Deleted on Oct 16, 2016 16:13:35 GMT -5
Tyrie Cleveland - From SEC Country by Zach A.
GAINESVILLE, Fla. — Tyrie Cleveland showed Saturday why he was the prized recruit of Florida’s 2016 class. The true freshman wide receiver caught three passes for 79 yards and a touchdown the Gators’ 40-14 win over Missouri. His 46-yard grab on the offense’s opening drive of the game was the third-longest pass play for UF this season. “He worked on it all week and he did a great job,” quarterback Luke Del Rio said of Cleveland’s deep ball. It was a glimpse of the big-play potential Cleveland has. He was ranked the nation’s No. 2 wide receiver and came to Florida with high expectations because of his combination of size (6-foot-2, 196 pounds) and speed (4.36 40-yard dash). However, a lingering hamstring injury caused Cleveland to miss most of fall camp and two games in September. He was also suspended for the season opener for his offseason BB gun incident. But Cleveland has come up with catches in the last three games and scored his first career touchdown against the Tigers.
“It was good to see him,” UF coach Jim McElwain said. “He’s a talented guy, he’s a great person, he’s a great kid. Struggling with those injuries and then the learning curve being behind a little bit. You know, this is gonna be a really important (bye) week for him as well as he continues to just kind of grow into that offense and really get another true, big-time threat on the other side from Antonio (Callaway). … But I was excited for Tyrie and he’s a guy that really cares and he’s really glad to be here.” That’s evident every time Cleveland makes a big reception, because those Gator Chomps follow. Del Rio said Cleveland’s skill set has always been there, but he’s starting to make up for his lack of practice time and game experience. “Tyrie’s done a great job just at developing his mental side of the game,” Del Rio said. “He came in and we saw the athleticism and talent he had and were like, ‘Woah, he’s going to be really good.’ But he’s learning all the nuances, the splits, when to convert things, when we audible or check out of a play what he has to do. “Really, really proud of him. I thought he played great tonight. And he is competitive, man. He wants the ball every play.”
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Post by Deleted on Oct 17, 2016 8:52:07 GMT -5
I guess we'll know the severity of the sprain by the amount of time Jarrad Davis misses. Here is to hoping for a grade 1 ankle sprain:
Grade 1 ankle sprain: 5-14 days (slight stretching and damage to the ligaments) Grade 2 ankle sprain: 4-6 weeks (partial tearing of the ligaments) Grade 3 ankle sprain: 8-12 weeks (complete tearing of the ligament)
Source: National Athletic Trainers Association
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Post by Deleted on Oct 23, 2016 8:16:09 GMT -5
SEC Nation at Florida/Georgia game for the first time:
Next week, SEC Nation is heading to a new venue.
On Friday, the SEC Network announced its weekly kickoff show will be live in Jacksonville, Fla. on Oct. 29 ahead of the Georgia-Florida matchup. The Bulldogs and Gators have played their yearly matchup in Jacksonville since 1933. The teams reached an agreement earlier this year to keep the series in the city through at least 2021.
SEC Nation, however, has never hosted its show in Jacksonville since it began in 2014.
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Post by Deleted on Oct 26, 2016 8:49:48 GMT -5
UF exchanges RBs: Adarius Lemons decommitted after being suspended from school. He hasn't passed his ACT and he's going to have issues with qualifying grades. He clearly doesn't have his act together. He reopened his recruiting, but he wants back in the class if he can get his act together. UF replaced Lemons with Malik Davis, Hillsborough County all-time leading rusher. His mid-year senior tape is outstanding. He's 190 now, but is expected to grow up to 210 while retaining all of his speed and shiftiness when he gets into UF's strength and conditioning program. This from Gator Country: Written by Andrew Spivey, October 26, 2016 A quick search of new Florida Gators running back Malik Davis (5-11, 190, Tampa, FL. Jesuit) shows that he has piled up quite the stat sheet in high school football. Just two weeks after Davis broke the Hillsborough County rushing record that was held by now Clemson Tigers athlete Ray Ray McCloud and before that Davis broke the scoring record in Hillsborough. Everyone knows by now that Davis is a great athlete but Gator Country spoke to Jesuit head coach Matt Thompson and to Big County Preps founder Preston Jackson to get a more in-depth take on Davis. Thompson who coached at Armwood High School before taking over at Jesuit compares Davis to some of the great players to ever come out of the Tampa/Seffner area. “On the field, he’s a humble kid, he has all of those attributes that you find in a once in a lifetime player,” Thompson said of Davis. “I’ve been coaching for 24 years and I can count on one hand the number of guys that are like Malik. He’s right up there with the Leon McQuay’s, Eric Stricker’s and Matt Jones’ that I’ve coached in the past.” Davis is the guy at Jesuit and he knows just like the rest of his team but he never shies away from crediting his teammates or taking the extra step for his team. “He gives credit to his offensive line every chance he gets,” Thompson said. “He’s not a real flashy kid that does a whole bunch of stuff in the endzone, he just does his business. He’s a work horse and you can’t tire him out. Last year he ran the ball 51 times in one game and after about 30 carries, I asked him if he was all right and he just wanted to keep going. He ran for 357 yards in that game.” With multiple county records, what more can Davis do in high school you might ask? Well he’s not afraid to listen to his coaches to improve for the next level according to his coach. “Dave Moore is one of my coaches that played in the NFL for 20 years or so said that the one thing about Malik is not only is he extremely talented but he’s the most coachable kid,” Thompson said. “He takes all of that knowledge in no matter what coach tells him.” Listening to coaches is something that also help Davis improve off the field according to Big County preps as this offseason the running back spent a lot of time in the weight room. “With Malik is his willingness to improve in the weight room,” Preston Jackson of Big County Preps said. “That has helped him avoid injuries, get bigger and faster and even more explosive. He’s dedicated to the weight room so he can take the load and carry the ball.” Right now Davis is 190-pounds but after being in a college weight room with his work ethic he will get bigger, but Jackson believes he doesn’t need to get too big. “I think for him to be productive at Florida, I think he needs to stay at about 210 and under,” Preston Jackson said. “He’s got the body size to put on really good weight and it will be all muscle but for him to keep his speed and explosiveness I think he needs to stay at 210 or less.” All of the on the field stuff shows that Davis is a heck-uva of an athlete but his coach says he’s even a better person off the field. “Off the field, he’s the most likeable kid on campus,” Thompson said. “Everybody, even the freshmen like him. He’s not a big time guy, you wouldn’t even know that he was the county record holder for rushing. He’s a great kid that everyone is going to like.” Davis has two more regular season games and then his team will enter the playoffs and with those games, the running back should break the 6,000-yard mark. Davis only needs a little more than 200 yards to break that feat. Hudl mid-season senior film: www.hudl.com/video/3/2998513/57e17ae911fa7f0db47359ec
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Go Bucks!
Now THIS here...is a member
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Post by beuycek on Oct 26, 2016 8:53:45 GMT -5
Gators just got a commitment from Jesuit RB Malik Davis this morning. While most recruiting news means very little to me, this one had a few connections. First, Malik is the nephew of my point guard in high school so that's pretty cool. Second, Davis recently broke the Hillsborough County rushing record and career touchdown record. #5 of the rushing list was former Buckeye Lydell Ross and #8 was Kalvin Bailey, who also owned the TD mark Davis broke. Bailey went to my alma mater (Armwood) but he is also the older brother of Alvin Bailey, who played for the Gators and was teammates at Armwood with former Gators Josh Grady and Matt Jones. How's that for 3 degrees of separation? Anyway, Davis was a heavy lean to UNC until Florida offered him on 10/21. 5 days was apparently enough time for him to decide where he wanted to play college football.
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Post by Deleted on Oct 26, 2016 9:43:55 GMT -5
Gators just got a commitment from Jesuit RB Malik Davis this morning. While most recruiting news means very little to me, this one had a few connections. First, Malik is the nephew of my point guard in high school so that's pretty cool. Second, Davis recently broke the Hillsborough County rushing record and career touchdown record. #5 of the rushing list was former Buckeye Lydell Ross and #8 was Kalvin Bailey, who also owned the TD mark Davis broke. Bailey went to my alma mater (Armwood) but he is also the older brother of Alvin Bailey, who played for the Gators and was teammates at Armwood with former Gators Josh Grady and Matt Jones. How's that for 3 degrees of separation? Anyway, Davis was a heavy lean to UNC until Florida offered him on 10/21. 5 days was apparently enough time for him to decide where he wanted to play college football. It helped that he grew up a Gator fan. UF offering was his dream offer.
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Post by Deleted on Oct 27, 2016 9:37:05 GMT -5
Needs to gain weight, good vision, decent speed, where have I heard that before? Oh, a young Emmitt Smith. This kid has some shake and bake moves:
GAINESVILLE, Fla. — The recruitment of Malik Davis completely changed course last week. The 3-star running back from Tampa, Fla. was all set to commit to North Carolina on Oct. 17, but then a phone call came from Florida. The Gators were in need of a back following Adarius Lemons’ suspension and set their sights on Davis. So he postponed his decision and received an offer from UF on Friday. Less than 12 hours after Lemons’ decommitment Tuesday night, Davis was a Gator.
“Malik was kind of disappointed when Adarius flipped to Florida (in July),” said Matt Thompson, Davis’ coach at Jesuit High School. “I told him you never know what’s going to happen because this recruiting process is pretty crazy. “He was all set last week and then Florida kind of blew him away with the offer. He was really happy with it, and that’s where his heart was. Florida has been his dream school since he was a kid.”
On Oct. 14, Davis set the Hillsborough County career rushing record of 5,783 yards, surpassing Clemson’s Ray-Ray McCloud. Davis has 1,227 rushing yards and 21 touchdowns this season leading Jesuit to a 7-0 start.
Despite his impressive numbers and highlights, Davis has a consensus 3-star rating and doesn’t hold many big offers (Louisville and Miami are among them). “I don’t understand it,” Thompson said. “We’re considered a small school that doesn’t face competition, but we play good teams like Jefferson and Robinson. Malik can’t control the district he’s in. “He used to wonder why he didn’t get more recognition, but all that did is make him work harder. Looks where he’s at now. That doesn’t matter anymore.”
Thompson said Florida’s stacked depth chart at running back didn’t deter Davis. Barring attrition, the Gators will return all four players at the position next year. “He’s so competitive that if you tell him something is hard, he’ll try to prove you wrong,” Thompson said of the 5-foot-10, 188-pound Davis. “He needs to gain weight, but he’s got the commitment level to do it. This is a determined kid. “Malik is extremely talented, but the best thing about him is that he’s so coachable. He doesn’t question what you’re saying. He doesn’t pout. That type of attitude is infectious.”
A scout’s take on Davis:
Davis competed in Friday Night Lights, Florida’s annual recruiting showcase, on July 22. He posted times of 4.43 seconds in the 40-yard dash and 4.03 seconds in the shuttle. Derek Tyson, an SEC recruiting analyst for ESPN, watched Davis’ workout in The Swamp and has also evaluated his tape. “His film is solid,” Tyson told SEC Country. “I know Coach Thompson well and in his three years as the coach of Jesuit, Davis is the only kid he’s called me about. He just raves about him as a player and person. He said he will be a star wherever he goes. Good vision, decent speed. Solid get for Florida in my opinion. There have been a lot of talented backs come out of Tampa and he’s the all-time leading rusher. That’s impressive.”
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Post by Deleted on Oct 27, 2016 10:38:07 GMT -5
I think UF will be fully loaded for UGALY except Jarrad Davis will be a game-day decision. I'm not expecting Davis to play as he isn't ready to go. UF can't afford for him to tweak his progress and start his recovery time over again. My guess is he'll be ready for at Arkansas next week.
Lost this week is Tyrie Cleveland moved into a starter WR role opposite Antonio Callaway and Brandon Powell moved into the slot WR. Cleveland and Callaway on the outside is quite the playmaker combo.
UF's depth chart for the UGALY game - Joey Ivie isn't on the chart at NT, but he's is definitely going to play:
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Post by Deleted on Oct 29, 2016 6:45:59 GMT -5
Mark Thompson made a selfish decision - he won't go to or play in the WLOCP - Jordan Cronkrite gets to step up after playing sparingly due to injury - this from SEC Country:
Florida RB Mark Thompson initially denied possessing marijuana when he was stopped by police Thursday morning, but later said the substance police found in the car did belong to him. Police pulled Thompson over in a black SUV at approximately 12:36 a.m. Thursday morning for failing to stop at a stop sign, according to the University of Florida Police Department report obtained by SEC Country. When the officer approached the vehicle, the report says he smelled “raw cannabis.” The officer asked Thompson and the other passenger, Tiffany Tawfic, who said she the car was hers, if they had marijuana with them. Both said they did not. The officer searched the vehicle and found a bag containing 0.03 grams of marijuana. The officer read Thompson and Tawfic their rights. After that, Thompson said the marijuana was his. The officer gave Thompson a notice to appear in court for possession of marijuana. He also issued a written warning for failing to stop at a stop sign and failure to provide proof of insurance. Thompson did not make the trip to Jacksonville for the Gators’ game against Florida as a result of the incident. Florida’s third-leading rusher this season, collecting 262 yards and two touchdowns on 57 rushes in 2016. He has been splitting carries with sophomore running back Jordan Scarlett (375 rushing yards, 5 touchdowns) and freshman Lamical Perine (300 yards, 1 touchdown).
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Post by Deleted on Oct 30, 2016 0:30:59 GMT -5
Hopefully, Mark Thompson will be back after his one game suspension for at Arkansas. UF went with 2 RBs against UGALY as Jordan Cronkrite is presently off the team. He has been unhappy with his playing time as he apparently doesn't want to share the rock with his stablemates. I suspect he is a quit or a transfer even though the door is still open for him. UF will probably look to take 2 RBs in the 17 class instead of 1.
Everybody played today including Jarrad Davis who was a game-time decision. As far as I know, there were no impactful injuries against UGALY. The Gators will likely be better physically next week at Arkansas.
The UGALY game and SEC standings. UF effectively has a 2 game lead with 3 to play due to owning the head to head tiebreaker over Kentucky:
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — No one is going to accuse the Florida Gators of being flashy. When it comes to fireworks, they don't light up the skies. They don't bombard teams and leave a lot of carnage and in their wake. And it was just five weeks ago a very proud defense was humbled in Tennessee.
They're not perfect. Far from it.
But the Gators are ranked 14th in the nation, have won three in a row, control their fate atop the Southeastern Conference East Division, and Saturday added a 24-10 thumping of rival Georgia to their resume in front of 84,681 at EverBank Field.
"People pick this team apart quite a bit," UF coach Jim McElwain said after the program's third straight win in the storied series that dates more than 100 years. "The Florida Gators are a good team. I'll go with these guys against anybody and we'll figure out a way to get it done. That's the way they are in that locker room and I love that about their mentality."
The Gators (6-1, 4-1), of course, thrive on a defense-first mentality, as the Bulldogs (4-4, 2-4) and true freshman quarterback Jacob Eason found out. Georgia came in averaging 402.9 yards of offense per game, including 195.6 on the ground, thanks to a pair of running backs in Nick Chubb and Sony Michel who each have tallied 1,000-yard seasons. When the Dogs were done banging their collective heads into the UF defensive wall, they had 164 total yards, just 21 on the ground (via 19 carries) and eight first downs. "We definitely know we're a good team,'' said senior linebacker Jarrad Davis, who soldiered through for seven tackles (two for loss) despite a severely sprained ankle that made him questionable for the game. "There's a lot of things that we can do to elevate our game. And this run that is coming up, we've got to really, really take the time out to put in the extra effort to really make ourselves that team that we are, that team that we can be. We're the Florida Gators. We need to prepare like the Florida Gators. That name holds a lot of weight and a lot of respect in this country and we need to demand it throughout the week so we can show up on Saturday and really impose our will."
Eason's first exposure to that will was pronounced. The nation's top-rated dropback QB prospect from the 2017 signing class went 15 of 33 for just for 143 yards yards, one touchdown, was sacked twice. The goal for UF coming in was to thwart the dangerous Georgia running attack and dare Eason, the rookie, to take aim at the league's top secondary.
It worked … for the Gators, that is.
"It's hard any time [defenses] make you one-dimensional," Georgia coach Kirby Smart said. "It's frustrating because I really thought we'd be able to run in this game. There were glimpses, but nothing consistent."
Those glimpses were minuscule, at best — and they weren't much bigger for the Florida offense. The Gators, though, got 131 yards and a touchdown passing from Luke Del Rio, who engineered a unit that managed to sustain key drives by converting nine of 18 third-down opportunities. UF tallied just 231 yards, with 100 of those coming on the ground, but got a couple rushing touchdowns from tailback Jordan Scarlett and wideout Antonio Callaway, plus a fourth-quarter field goal from Eddy Pineiro, to finish as many drives as they needed.
The defense did the rest.
"We dominated, as you could see," nickel back Duke Dawson said. "A feeding frenzy."
After surrendering a field goal and touchdown on Georgia's first two drives — the former set up by a Del Rio interception and 30-yard return — the next 10 possessions against the UF defense ended like this: punt, punt, punt, end of half, punt, punt, punt, punt, downs and downs. Six of those drives were three-and-outs; the last two were four-and-outs.
"It's hard," junior linebacker Alex Anzalone said when asked what it must be like to stare down the UF defense. "You see the speed. There aren't a lot of holes, from the DBs down to he linebackers to the defensive line. There aren't a lot of places to pick at."
That's why the Gators can't take over a game despite an offense that is -- just calling it like it is -- still searching for consistent productivity. Two weeks after erupting for 523 yards against Missouri, UF started slowly, with the interception on the first series, but two of its three touchdown marches were for 10 plays, as the Gators dominated the clock (37:27) against a team that was second in the league in time of possession, mostly because of its rushing attack.
Down 3-0 after the Del Rio interception led to a Rodrigo Blankenship field goal, the Florida quarterback bounced back by finding tight end C'yontai Lewis for a 19-yard touchdown pass to give the Gators a momentary lead of 7-3. The UF score came two plays after Del Rio hit Lewis for a 17-yard pass down the left sideline that initially was ruled incomplete. After review, Lewis got a foot down before falling out of bounds to set in motion the four-play, 39-yard scoring drive that ended with Lewis wiggling through a tackle by safety Dominick Sanders and rolling into the end zone with 17 seconds left in the opening period.
Georgia reclaimed the lead when Eason flashed the skills that made McElwain call him "the future of the SEC." The six-play, 75-yard drive was boosted when Eason rolled right and roped a 38-yard strike to Terry Godwin to the UF 35. Three plays later, Eason was flushed to his left and soft-tossed a 14-yard touchdown to wideout Riley Ridley to put the Bulldogs up 10-7 at the 12:02 mark of the second period.
That was the score when Scarlett hit the end zone on a 2-yard run with 1:37 left in the first half to give the Gators the lead — for good, as it turned out. Scarlett, the sophomore, tallied a rushing touchdown in his sixth straight game when he ran through an arm tackle from linebacker Reggie Carter and finished an eight-play, 44-yard drive by the Gators, who benefitted from a poor Bulldogs' punt after UF forced Eason into a second consecutive three-and-out.
UF had a chance to give itself a cushion early in the second half, but Pinerio missed a 34-yard field on the Gators' opening possession. They made up for it on the second with a 10-play, 56-yard drive that ended when Callaway, on third-and-goal, came in motion and took a "jet sweep" handoff from Del Rio, zipped to the edge and followed a great block from Lewis to score untouched at the 3:11 mark of the third quarter. In doing so, Callaway became the first player in UF history to account for touchdowns five different ways in a career: receiving, throwing, rushing, plus kickoff and punt returns.
Pinero's 38-yard field goal with 4:24 to play — after a sensational fourth-down pass deflection of an Eason pass by Dawson — iced another 10-play drive.
And the game.
"It was a good team win," Del Rio said.
A really good and satisfying one. With 2:06 to play, Georgia called a timeout as UF faced a fourth-and-1 from the Bulldogs' 28. Out of the timeout, Scarlett bulled ahead for four yards, prompting a fired-up Del Rio to turn to his bench and do the Gator chomp.
Florida's overall performance wasn't overpowering, save the defense. That's OK with the Gators. They learned last year what elements of divisiveness can do to a locker room; how they can spill onto the field.
"I'm a guy who likes to think positively. I like to keep it real as well, but at the same time you can't sit back and dwell on the misfortunes [on the offensive] side of the ball," Davis said. "That's what we did last year. We sank. We saw exactly what happened. Instead of pouting about a bad situation, why not take the game into our own defensively. We're going to get tired. Things are going to go wrong. We've just got to keep doing us."
So far, "us" is working.
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