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Post by Deleted on Sept 24, 2013 10:22:05 GMT -5
September 23rd, 2013 10:53pm
Garrett likes LB play at Florida
by Zach Abolverdi
Most eyes were on quarterback Tyler Murphy during Saturday’s game between Florida and Tennessee.
Clifton Garrett, however, was watching the other No. 3 on the Gators.
“I had my eyes on Antonio Morrison,” he said.
The South (Ill.) Plainfield product was in Gainesville for his official visit and liked what he saw from Morrison and Co.
“It was cool to watch him and the linebackers live,” Garrett said. “I was sitting in the back of the end zone, so I had a good view. Just watching those guys move and see how they’re used in the defense, they played the style I like to play.
“They play nasty, fast and downhill. They can also get out there and cover. It’s just a great scheme. Defense wins championships, like they say, so it was great to see Florida’s firsthand.”
Garrett went with the other three official visitors — DE Lorenzo Carter, DB Jamal Adams and TE DeAndre Goolsby — and ate dinner at Will Muschamp’s house after the game. On Sunday, Garrett watched film with defensive coordinator D.J. Durkin and toured the entire campus.
“This visit was a 10,” he said. “The whole trip stood out to me. There wasn’t really one specific thing. I had a good time from the moment I landed until my flight took off.”
Garrett enjoyed the time he was able to spend with Adams and Carter. UF is the only school that all three are considering, and they discussed the possibility of playing together.
“We hung out the whole time and got a nice little vibe going,” he said. “That would be great if we teamed up together at Florida. I think we could do damage in that defense.”
Garrett entered the weekend with LSU leading and the Gators in second place. Where do they stand now?
“All schools have an equal opportunity with me,” he said. “Florida definitely stuck out, but I still have four other visits to take. LSU is not the home-run school.
“At the end, I’ll go with the school I feel like is the best fit for me. I’m going to take my time and see which one I like the most. But I definitely can see myself going to Florida.”
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Post by Deleted on Sept 24, 2013 15:27:31 GMT -5
September 24th, 2013 11:00am
Grier impressed with UF offense
by Zach Abolverdi
Grier throws during a drill at the University of Florida's Friday Night Lights at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium in Gainesville, Friday July 26, 2013. (Brad McClenny/Staff photographer)
Florida quarterback Will Grier was on hand for Florida’s 31-17 win over Tennessee on Saturday.
It was his first visit to The Swamp since attending the LSU game last year, and he was happy to be back at his future home.
“It’s a great place to watch a game, much less play here,” Grier said. “I’m excited to get here. The crowd was unbelievable, it’s a college football town.”
The Army All-American was upset to see Jeff Driskel leave the first quarter with a season-ending injury, but the performance of Tyler Murphy and the offense impressed him.
“I think they performed well,” he said. “Sometimes you have to deal with adversity, and that sometimes shows you what your real character is. I think Murphy coming in, he did real well picking up where Driskel left off and I think overall the team did well. Putting up 31 points against another SEC school is a successful day.
“I hate it for Driskel, that’s tough. Prayers go out from me to him and his family and everybody else. Like I said, Murphy stepped in, did well and from now on it’s going to be his team and I think he’ll be alright.”
Grier also praised the play-calling of offensive coordinator Brent Pease. He has noticed receivers getting open for UF this season, but sometimes they’re not being found.
“I definitely see that,” Grier said. “I think Pease does a really good job. The chemistry between the quarterback and OC is huge, and then the chemistry between quarterback and receivers is huge. So I think all of that may have not come together. They’re still building and working on it.”
The 6-foot-3, 180-pounder from Davidson (N.C.) plans to officially visit for Florida’s football banquet weekend and attend the Arkansas and Florida State games.
He will be an early enrollee in January.
“Redshirt is the plan right now,” Grier said. “We’re kind of playing by ear, but redshirt would be best for me, so we will see.”
“I’m focused on school and working out first, just getting my body ready, getting prepared mentally, learning the playbook and just getting into the swing of things.”
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Post by Deleted on Sept 24, 2013 15:43:44 GMT -5
Head Coach Will Muschamp met with the media on Monday to preview the Gators’ upcoming game against Kentucky (7:00 p.m. on Saturday at Commonwealth Stadium in Lexington, Ky.).
Opening statement:
“Alright just to recap Tennessee a little bit, good team win for us, handled adversity in the game obviously with injuries and different things that happened, some of them self-inflicted wounds that we have to get corrected obviously. Explosives we were plus five as far as getting the ball vertically down the field, nice job of throwing it and catching it and creating some explosive runs as well. Turnovers we were plus three, which was good but we need to eliminate ours; we’ll be hard pressed to have another game with six turnovers. Offensively I thought we were very balanced in the game, I thought we were really good on third down staying on the field, but the balance creates a lot of easier third down conversion situations on down and distance. We averaged 15 yards per completion, which is outstanding, and we didn’t give up and sacks.
“Player of the game was Tyler Murphy; again I can’t compliment him enough about how he came in, responded, and handled the situation. We had a lot of confidence in him, he’s really taken a step forward; we thought he had a solid spring and obviously had a great summer, but you know, when you get thrust into the spotlight at the beginning of training camp, and how he responded in that time the confidence began to grow with us as far as him handling the job. He’s improved tremendously as a passer, taking the ball to the right spots. He’s always been a very intelligent guy, a really good athlete; we will not change much of who we are offensively. Obviously like I said after the game, there’s going to be some throws that he likes better than Jeff (Driskel) or whatever the case may be, we’ll structure it that way. But we’re very proud of him, a guy that’s worked through the process of becoming a starter here at the University of Florida. A guy that never complained, and did not handle things the wrong way, he always handled things perfectly. So very happy for him, disappointed for Jeff (Driskel) with the injury, a guy that worked extremely hard to have a great year, and he’ll have surgery on his fibula on Wednesday.
“Big plays of the game, Tyler Murphy of course had several, Trey Burton had one, Loucheiz Purifoy started the game with one, Soloman Patton had a huge play for us and Trey Burton made and outstanding block on the play to get on the edge. And that was a great read by Tyler (Murphy), that’s a run-pass combination, and he saw the leverage of the defender and got the ball outside. And Quinton Dunbar made several big plays in the game. Scrap iron up front, Max Garcia, Jon Harrison and Jon Halapio. Jon (Halapio) was fine, it was not anything wrong with his pec, he got poked in the eye pretty good and he’s got 3 stitches in his eye, he’s going to be fine for this week. But, I tell you what, what a tough young man he is to play through that.
“Defensively, very pleased with six turnovers obviously, a fourth down stop means seven changes of possessions while the defense was on the field. But we started the game fast, which was a real challenge coming out of the last game when we didn’t play very well; it’s going to be another key for us going up to Lexington this week. And I thought we affected the quarterback in the game; I know all y’all care about is sacks, but we worry about affecting the quarterback and we did in the ball game; being able to create vertical pressure with four guys in a lot of situations was outstanding, I thought our guys did a great job up front. Player of the game was Dante Fowler, obviously the second play of the game, and then the strip sack down in their territory to set up a score was huge; but a guy that continues to improve, play well, played much better than he did the previous time out, a guy that can be a very disruptive player for us. Ball hawks, we had a bunch, anybody that affected a turnover, whether it’s from a caused interception, caused fumble, recovered fumble, but Darious Cummings, Dominique Easley, Dante Fowler, Jabari Gorman, Damien Jacobs, Marcus Maye, Antonio Morrison, Brian Poole, and Mike Taylor. So all of those guys had something to do with a turnover and that’s outstanding. Hard hat was Antonio Morrison; I thought he had a couple nice plays in the run game, and a nice job on the check-down. But again, defensively, I think we had some eye control issues in the second half in the secondary, and what that means really is just keeping your eyes in the right spots; it’s not necessarily a busted assignment, taking a chance on a couple balls in those situations I wish we would have used better judgment in a couple drives, we certainly have displayed that we can use better judgment in those situations and that’ll be a challenge for our guys moving forward.
“Special teams, our specialists need to get better, we’re not very productive at the punter position right now, or at placekicker, we didn’t really affect the game as far as special teams are concerned like we have in our previous time here. Jarrad Davis was the special teams’ player of the week; Jarrad continues to improve, he’s also the scout team player of the week, he works with us half the time defensively preparing for the game and he works to prepare our offense for the next weeks’ game. But a guy that works extremely hard and is going to be a really good football player here. But we need to get better on special teams as far as affecting the game, we have not done that as much, and certainly last Saturday we didn’t have any affect. Defensively, Adam Lane was our scout team player of the week, and special teams was Cody Adams.
“As far as the injury front, I kind of hit on Jeff (Driskel) - he’ll have surgery Wednesday, it’s a four to six month recovery, from the surgery, he’ll have a plate inserted in his fibula, which is the non-weight bearing bone in the lower leg. Very disappointed for Jeff (Driskel), it’s part of the game but it’s very difficult to deal with, and I’m really hurt for him and his family and for us as a football team. Leon Orr hurt his shoulder in the game, we expect him to be back Tuesday or Wednesday for practice; he will miss practice today getting treatment. Marcus Roberson ran well yesterday, we’re going to rehab him again and let him run in the pit for us, and then probably get him back on the practice field Tuesday; expect him to play. Valdez Showers is doubtful for the game at this time with his ankle. Jon Halapio should be fine. Loucheiz Purifoy is fine, he ran extremely well yesterday coming off a pretty good hit on the kickoff coverage there when he was returning the ball, but he ran extremely well yesterday and he’s going to practice today. Tyler Moore should be fine for practice on Tuesday; we’re going to hold him today. Colin Thompson showed up yesterday with a stress fracture in his foot, he’ll miss one to two weeks; disappointed for Colin, he was really starting to progress and do well for us, he’s had some issues with his foot but this is a different issue with his foot, but disappointed for him.
“On to Kentucky, Mark Stoops is a guy I’ve got a lot of respect for as a defensive coordinator until this year, but does an outstanding job. He hired Neal Brown from Texas Tech, Neal’s a guy I’ve known for a long time, does a nice job of mixing run and pass, creating run-pass issues for you defensively. Up-tempo, they’re wanting to take upwards of 90 snaps in a game, so they’re going to be on the ball constantly getting the look-back, getting the tempo, and all the different things. They’ve got two different quarterbacks, (Maxwell) Smith and (Jalen) Whitlow, guys that are both effective in what they do; one more of a passer and one more of dual threat, so we need to be very cognizant of who’s in the game at the time. Defensively, Ryan Timmons, Demarco Robinson, are a couple receivers that I think are very talented guys as well. So we just have to do a good job as far as them mixing the spread with run and pass, and effectively running the ball to spread you out. And that’s something that they’re going to create a lot of space plays for us, we’re going to need to tackle well in space. Defensively, (Alvin) Dupree is and outstanding end, (Za’Darious) Smith I think is leading the SEC in sacks, so they’ve got two good edge guys that can rush the passer. (Avery) Williamson is a guy that makes a lot of plays for them inside, and again I think Mark (Stoops) is a guy that, he and D.J. Elliot did an outstanding job at Florida State together and they’re playing good redzone defense, good third-down defense, they’re going to be very sound in fundamental and what they do because those guys are outstanding coaches. So we have our work cut out for us, first SEC road game up in Lexington, whatever the streak is it doesn’t matter, it only matters what we do on Saturday afternoon, and that certainly will be reiterated to our players this afternoon when we start our team meeting for Kentucky. ”
On backup QB position:
“Skyler Mornhinweg will be taking about one fourth of the reps, like in most backup situations. Skyler (Mornhinweg) will be the backup. Max Staver’s going to move over and work with our offense for preparation of the game. Obviously we’ll have a package for Trey (Burton) and some different things that we’ll be able to go to in the game to take some of the runs off Tyler (Murphy).”
On defense getting better:
“Well I think so. I think that any time you watch the tape, in my opinion, you look at plays that you gave up, because of eye control, because of alignment assignment, whatever the case may be. It’s one thing when you’re getting beat physically, it’s another thing when you’re getting beat on something that can be corrected. And that’s what I always try to point out to the players, this is a correctable mistake, this is a mistake that is really because of what they did offensively or because of how we handled it defensively. And I think our players have an understanding of those mistakes, and the correctable mistakes that are made. If it’s a talent issue or a scheme issue, that’s on us. But when we give up a play because we don’t have our eyes in the right spots or we’re guessing on a route, those are things we need to correct, and I think that’s what the players see.”
On defensive progress up the middle:
“So far I don’t know that we’ve been truly tested in a two-back sense, as far as a two-back running game. Miami gave us a little bit of it, but I think those guys have to continue to play well. You’re only as good as your next game, and that’s our mentality. We have to understand that whatever we’ve done to this point really doesn’t matter.”
On giving credit to Dominique Easley for Dante Fowler’s performance:
“Well you know, I think something that we noticed in the box during the game was that they were turning the protection to Dominique (Easley) inside. As far as where his alignment was, it wasn’t necessarily off the back or off the formation, it was off his alignment. So Brad (Lawing) and D.J. (Durkin) did a good job of changing some things rush wise to create some one-on-ones. When they turn the protection, someone else is one on one so we have to do a good job of making sure we create good one on ones for Dante (Fowler) or Ronald (Powell) or whoever is in that situation. There’s no question Dominique (Easley) commands a lot of attention.”
On capability of being completely happy with how the defense plays:
“No. I think, again, that’s something you sit down at the end of the year and you reflect on what you did well and what you didn’t do well. I know in this business how easy you can travel from the outhouse to the penthouse in a second, or the penthouse to the outhouse in a second.”
On having a primary running back:
“No. We’re probably going to go with the guy with the hot hand, I think Mack (Brown) has played well, I think he deserves that. And Matt (Jones) needs to continue to come on, and Kelvin (Taylor) needs to continue to come on. Those are the three guys we feel comfortable with at this point.”
On problems at punter and placekicker:
“Well I’m going to open it up with Kyle (Christy) and Johnny Townsend has been a guy that’s probably been about as consistent a punter as we’ve had in camp, and we’ll pull the redshirt off Johnny (Townsend) if we need to. We need to get more production at the punter position, and I think that’s what we’ll do. And I think that Austin (Hardin) is in the same situation. I’m going to give Brad (Phillips) some live looks in practice this week and see how he responds.”
On if he has plans to take Purifoy off the return team:
“No.”
On the throws that Tyler Murphy prefers over Jeff Driskel:
“Just as far as feeling more comfortable with a different concept as opposed to what Jeff (Driskel) felt comfortable with. That’s something that we work throughout the week and we see how he sees the coverage and how he feels with certain throws. He may feel better with routes moving away from him, moving to him, moving across the middle; those are things that we’ve talking about with Brent (Pease).”
On how to decide who has the hot hands as running back:
“We really just get in the game and see who’s making the right cuts, who’s getting the ball north and south, who’s making positive yards and who’s maintaining possession of the ball. That guy’s probably going to get the ball a lot.”
On the preparations differing this week from last week for Tyler Murphy:
“Certainly being the starter is different. We’d like to sit there as coaches and say that it’s no different and that you’re going to prepare yourself for that one snap that happens, but all the sudden you’re going to be thrust into the action and you’re going to be playing. The quarterback position is different than other positions. Knowing Tyler (Murphy), he won’t approach it any differently from the standpoint of being the starter. He may have a couple more butterflies here and there as far as starting the game, but other than that, he’s a pretty calm, cool, collected guy as you saw on Saturday. He’ll handle it like a champion.”
On Tyler Murphy’s demeanor prior to entering the game:
“He was ready for the opportunity. His number was called and he was ready to go. I think he was handling it as well as you could handle it.”
On Jabari Gorman and Marcus Maye making big plays on Saturday:
“Those guys were expected to play that way when they got in the game. We don’t expect any drop off when you step on the field. We do a good job, and Travaris Robinson does a great job and doesn’t get enough credit for the job he does with our secondary, as far as making sure those guys are ready to play multiple positions. It’s not about putting the next guy in, it’s about putting the next best player in. If that means moving three guys, then all three of those guys better have repped at the other positions and better have a good enough knowledge base to understand the game plan of what we’re trying to do. You take Cody Riggs, who was the fourth corner for the game and was also the starting safety and the second nickel. Riggs repped every one of those this past week and we did a good enough of job and we’re organized as a staff well enough to know he was ready to play all of those positions and be productive enough for us to win.”
On whether Brian Poole would miss the first half against Kentucky:
“Yes, he’ll miss the first half.”
On who coaches the kickers:
“Jeff Choate and D.J. Durkin are two of the best special team coaches I’ve ever been around. We didn’t forget how to coach Kyle (Christy) from last year.”
On Jon Halapio’s perseverance:
“I wish we had more guys like that. He’s a typical throwback. His pec is mended and he’s playing through a lot of pain, probably. He won’t tell anybody, but I know he is. When he got hurt, I thought it was his pec. I went on the field and I lloked up and he was bleeding out of his eye. He’s one tough customer.”
On giving Jon Halapio a break if an opportunity presents itself:
“Possibly. Again, we’ve played a bunch of guys up front because of different injuries and situations that we’ve had, so it’s not about getting somebody else experience at this point. It’s about winning football games. Jon (Halapio) has continued to play and as long as he’s physically able to do so, he’ll do so.”
On his expectations of Kelvin Taylor:
“We’ll find out this week how well he practices and prepares for the game.”
On things Tyler Murphy can improve on:
“I think he played extremely well. As much as we put on a quarterback, especially in that game because of some of the looks we knew we were going to get as far as the run blocks were concerned, to get us in and out of the right run and to get us out of a run and into a pass was very effective. Obviously ending the game, we should have been able to run the clock out; we could have done that a little better as far as managing that situation. We had one center/quarterback exchange where there was some confusion on the fumbled snap, so there’s some administrative things that we can do better and some procedural things that we can do better. Sometimes in your first start or your first situation in walking out there in that environment, you hate to say it’s to be expected, but you understand those are things we’ve got to correct as we move on, especially to go on the road.”
On Matt Jones recovering from the viral infection:
“Football is a developmental game and it takes time, we all knew this going in, it was nothing showing to us. Matt’s got to get in a rhythm and he’s a bigger back and sometimes it takes longer for those guys to get in their rhythm of playing. He’s not playing bad. You can’t switch the hands coming across the middle off of a catch, he knows that. That was a basic fundamental ball security that you can’t violate and he did. It’s not that he’s not running well, he’s just got to be sharper in some of his cuts and taking his eyes to the right spots. We had a couple of busted assignments on protection that we’ve got to get cleaned up. As we continue to move further in the season, he’ll continue to play well.”
On Jaylen Watkins’ play at safety:
“I thought he played well. Again, here’s another guy who’s our third nickel, he’s starting safety and he’s our third cornerback going into the game. He’s playing multiple positions. He’s extremely intelligent and can play a lot of things for us. I’ve been very pleased with his play as far as reception area with the ball down the field and for the most part having his eyes in the right spots and knowing what he’s supposed to do and how he’s supposed to play. I thought he tackled well in the game; I thought we tackled well as a unit in the game. I’ve been very please. There’s a lot of communication we’ve put on him and I think he’s done a nice job.”
On if he was pleased with the defense:
“I was very pleased with the first half. We played extremely well. I thought we played a great tempo. We had very good pad level. I was not pleased with how we started the third quarter. We had a 15-yard run come out on us. We were in position to make the play. We’ve got to make the play. We didn’t leverage the ball correctly in the secondary, and the ball spit on the sideline cost us 15 yards. Come up with a third-down opportunity and we jump the route instead of playing with our eyes and doing what we’re supposed to do on third down we’re off the field, and you give you give up a big play. You give up a field goal there. Two drives I was disappointed with. We had eye control issues giving up 10 points and 106 yards. You take that away and you’re feeling a lot better about yourself.”
On Dante Fowler not aware that Tennessee had changed quarterbacks:
“I’d like him to know who the quarterback is. But they do look alike.”
On whether this will be an emotional week for Joker Phillips:
“Anytime you spend a lot of time at a place, you have some great memories. I know as a player and coach there, no question it’s going to be emotional about that. Anytime you spend as much time as we spend, hours in the office, working hard for the university, there’s no question that’s part of it.”
On Joker Phillips’ work with the receivers:
“He’s done an outstanding job. You look at three of our most productive players are Quinton Dunbar, Solomon Patton and Trey Burton. And some young players are developing at the position that I’m pleased with. His production speaks for itself on the tape. Your tape is your résumé as a coach. What you put on tape is who you are. I think he’s done a really good job. He’s been a good addition for us.”
On how Joker Phillips has contributed to the preparation for Kentucky:
“A little bit as far as opinion on personnel. Other than that, schematically, they’re much different offensively, different defensively in what they’re doing in things. Sometimes that stuff can be a little overrated as far as that’s concerned.”
On how tough it is to go on the road and beat Kentucky:
“There’s no question any time you go on the road, it’s a little different. We try and do everything here Friday as far as our meetings are concerned and our walkthrough. We try not to do anything as far as meeting at night. It’s our first night game. You’re going to have a lot of young players for the first time with a lot of idle time on their hands as opposed to just getting up, eating and going to the stadium and playing, so the older guys I’ll rely on to really help them through that process and understanding. I sit there all week and think about what can go wrong, and that’s one of the things on my mind right now.”
On the 26 game win streak over Kentucky:
“I don’t really talk about that at all. I just focus on this game, this week, this season, this team, what we need to do to be successful. I don’t think anything in that regard helps or hurts your football team in their preparation.”
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Post by Deleted on Sept 24, 2013 16:00:33 GMT -5
Jamal Adams and other recruits gets red carpet treatment:
Written by Andrew Spivey, September 24, 2013
Recruiting
Jamal Adams gets the red carpet treatment
Official visits are fun and prospects take pride in visiting top schools but along with the fun comes little to no rest.
Lewisville (Tx.) Hebron safety Jamal Adams was in Gainesville on Saturday for his official visit to Florida. To say Adams was wore out on Monday following his visit is an understatement according to his father.
“On Friday night we got home from Jamal’s game at 12:30 and we had to be at the airport for a 3 A.M. flight to Gainesville,” George Adams said. “We spent all day Saturday and Sunday with the coaches and we got home at noon on Monday and Jamal had to go to school to practice so he’s worn out.”
Despite the lack of rest, Adams’ father says that the 6’0″, 199-pound Adams had a good visit to Gainesville.
“It was outstanding man,” George Adams said. “Coach (Will) Muschamp and his staff laid out the red carpet from the time we got there until the time we left there. Jamal had Marcell Harris as his host but Mack Brown and Vernon Hargreaves were with him a lot too.”
This was the second visit to Gainesville for Adams and his father George but this time was different because it was game day and Adams’ mother was in town.
“He pretty much seen everything he wanted to see the first time and this time he got to see everybody on campus and at the game,” Adams said. “My wife was wowed because there were people everywhere. It was good for Jamal to see everyone and he gets along really well with the players, he’s like me he gets along well with anyone, especially people who like to win like him. Overall he was very impressed by The Swamp on Saturday.”
The Gators signed three safeties in the 2013 class but Muschamp has made it clear that Adams is a wanted man by comparing him to a former Gator first round draft pick.
“We already knew the defense was outstanding but they played well on Saturday,” Adams said. “Coach Muschamp said that Jamal reminds him of Matt (Elam) and they think Jamal can do some of the same things he did like rush the passer but also play in coverage. Jamal really likes that and he loves the way Florida plays defense.”
Adams was thinking of making an early decision but now the Hebron safety says he wants to take all five officials, something coach Muschamp agreed with.
“Three more officials to Ohio State, Ole Miss and to Texas,” Adams said. “He told coach that he wanted to take all five of them and he will announce in November. Coach Muschamp agreed and said it was a once in a lifetime thing and that he wanted Jamal to take them all. Ole Miss is next up when they play Texas A&M.”
During Adams official visit to Florida he was joined by three other official visitors in Deandre Goolsby, Lorenzo Carter and Clifton Garrett and according to Adams father, the four got along great.
“They all clicked and they all talked to each other, I think they are talking on Facebook now,” Adams said. “Jamal knows Clifton and Lorenzo from The Opening and from Chicago. I could tell they were all having a good time together.”
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Post by Deleted on Sept 24, 2013 16:22:24 GMT -5
It's too early to take these numbers seriously, but UF is #2 nationally in defense, 1st against the run and 3rd against the pass: statistics.ncaafootball.com/merge/tsnform.aspx?c=ncaa-football&page=cfoot/stat/ncaa-team-totaldef.htm*** 2013 NCAA FBS Total Defense Statistics *** (Complete through Saturday, September 21st) From The Sports Network T O T A L D E F E N S E Rank Team G Pl Yds Ydspg 1. Michigan St. 4 249 755 188.8 2. Florida 3 164 637 212.3
3. Louisville 4 228 885 221.3 4. Southern California 4 249 922 230.5 5. Virginia Tech 4 257 933 233.3 6. Wisconsin 4 258 973 243.3 7. Florida St. 3 190 753 251.0 8. Cincinnati 4 235 1014 253.5 9. Maryland 4 265 1055 263.8 10. Washington St. 4 267 1059 264.8 *** 2013 NCAA FBS Team Rushing Defense Statistics *** (Complete through Saturday, September 21st) From The Sports Network R U S H I N G D E F E N S E Rank Team G Rsh Yds Ydspg 1. Florida 3 67 166 55.3
2. Michigan St. 4 114 233 58.3 3. Southern California 4 106 237 59.3 4. Texas St. 3 82 186 62.0 5. Rutgers 4 124 279 69.8 6. Wisconsin 4 122 305 76.3 7. Colorado 2 54 154 77.0 8. Michigan 4 103 316 79.0 9. Ohio St. 4 122 319 79.8 10. East Carolina 3 91 247 82.3 *** 2013 NCAA FBS Pass Efficiency Defense Statistics *** (Complete through Saturday, September 21st) From The Sports Network P A S S E F F I C I E N C Y D E F E N S E Rank Team Att Com Int Yds TD Pass Eff 1. Michigan St. 135 49 4 522 4 72.63 2. Virginia 100 37 1 420 3 80.18 3. Florida 97 43 6 471 3 82.95 4. Miami (FL) 90 46 6 452 1 83.63 5. UNLV 123 54 5 586 3 83.84 6. Virginia Tech 110 52 9 547 4 84.68 7. Washington 112 58 4 508 1 85.69 8. Wisconsin 136 69 4 668 0 86.11 9. Oklahoma 113 58 3 572 0 88.54 10. Maryland 128 71 8 661 1 88.93
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Post by Deleted on Sept 24, 2013 17:05:54 GMT -5
Florida Leads Time Of Possession By A Wide Margin:
Rank
Team
G
W-L
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1 Florida 3 2-1 117:45 39:15 2 Bowling Green 4 3-1 146:07 36:31 3 Virginia 3 2-1 109:31 36:30 4 Mississippi St. 4 2-2 143:32 35:53 5 Iowa 4 3-1 143:12 35:48 6 Rice 3 1-2 106:44 35:34 7 Georgia Tech 3 3-0 106:35 35:31 8 Navy 2 2-0 70:55 35:27 9 Texas St. 3 2-1 105:11 35:03 10 Arkansas 4 3-1 139:55 34:58
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Post by Deleted on Sept 24, 2013 17:58:42 GMT -5
No. 20 Florida relying on stout defense again By MARK LONG AP Sports Writer
Published: Tuesday, September 24, 2013 at 5:46 p.m.
Last Modified: Tuesday, September 24, 2013 at 5:46 p.m.
Florida defensive tackle Dominique Easley wore a red sweat shirt with a gold football helmet on the front and the word "BEST" underneath it on campus Tuesday.
Easley bought it in Miami because he liked the colors.
It seemed somewhat appropriate to throw on this week. The 20th-ranked Gators lead the Southeastern Conference in just about every major defensive category. Florida (2-1, 1-0 SEC) tops the league in scoring (14.7 points a game), rushing (55.3 yards a game) and passing (157 yards a game).
Coach Will Muschamp's unit didn't allow Toledo, No. 15 Miami or Tennessee to gain more than 220 yards and has been at its best on third down (19 percent).
Now, with quarterback Jeff Driskel out for the season with a broken right leg, the Gators might rely on the defense more than ever before.
"We're not afraid to punt the ball," offensive coordinator Brent Pease said Tuesday, summing up the state of the team.
The defense has played well enough for Florida to be unbeaten. The Gators held the Hurricanes to 212 yards, including 76 over the final 11 possessions, but lost 21-16 thanks to five turnovers.
Nonetheless, the Gators believe they can play better. They want perfection, which they define as a shutout and three turnovers. They haven't witnessed it in more than a year - a lengthy wait they would like to see end Saturday at Kentucky (1-2).
"Those guys have got to continue to play well," Muschamp said. "You're only as good as your next game. That's our mentality and we've got to understand that whatever we've done to this point really doesn't matter."
The Gators rank second in the nation in total defense, up three spots from where they finished last season.
It's been somewhat surprising considering Florida lost seven defensive starters after 2012. But the team has experienced little, if any, growing pains while replacing defensive linemen Sharrif Floyd, Omar Hunter and Lerentee McCray, linebackers Jon Bostic and Jelani Jenkins and safeties Matt Elam and Josh Evans.
Muschamp expressed concern before the season about how stout the defense would be up the middle.
But Easley has wreaked havoc on offensive lines. Middle linebacker Antonio Morrison has emerged as the team's top tackler despite being suspended for the season opener. And former cornerbacks Cody Riggs and Jaylen Watkins have played well at safety.
Several youngsters have made significant impacts, too.
Sophomore defensive end Dante Fowler was named the SEC defensive player of the week after recording three tackles for loss, two forced fumbles and a sack against Tennessee. And freshman cornerback Vernon Hargreaves III intercepted two passes in his first two games and broke up three more against the Volunteers.
"We know we can do better," Fowler said. "We take defense really seriously especially after the year that we had last year. I know a lot of people had some doubts going into this year, so we wanted to play even harder and be better than last year. We wanted to be the best defense in the nation."
So far, the Gators are getting rave reviews.
Tennessee coach Butch Jones said Florida's defensive front "dominated the line of scrimmage" in Saturday's 31-17 loss in Gainesville and added that the Gators have "one of the best defensive fronts in the country."
Kentucky's Mark Stoops was equally impressed.
"They're very disruptive, very dominant up front, and their secondary is fabulous," said Stoops, who got an up-close look at the Gators as Florida State's defensive coordinator the last three years. "They cover the heck out of you."
Florida's last "perfect game" on defense was a 38-0 shutout against the Wildcats last season.
The Gators have come close to repeating the feat a few times since. But no matter how well they play on defense, Muschamp never seems satisfied.
"That's a good thing," Easley said. "Basically, you can't be happy with something that you know you're supposed to do. I mean, you can be happy, but you should expect more from yourself."
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Post by Deleted on Sept 24, 2013 18:29:38 GMT -5
Follow Robbie Andreu on Twitter RobbieAndreu: Pease said running backs coach Brian White is the one who decides which tailback has the hot hand in the game. RobbieAndreu: Pease said Demarcus Robinson has to find that "pattern of consistency" that all freshmen are looking for. RobbieAndreu: Pease said he expects Murphy to make good decisions for 80 snaps on Saturday night.
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Post by Deleted on Sept 25, 2013 8:15:43 GMT -5
September Recruiting Board from Gator Country - UF is at 14 and can possibly take 8 more for a projected class of 22:
Written by Andrew Spivey, September 25, 2013
With four official visitors and several other top prospects visiting Gainesville for the Tennessee game, the Florida Gators hosted their biggest recruiting weekend of the season. Now that the dust has settled from the first SEC recruiting weekend, Gator Country takes a look at the Florida recruiting board, who the Gators are targeting and where they stand with these guys.
Players will be categorized into three groups, same as on a cross country flight on a major airline: (1) Prospects who the Gators sit in first class with or are looking good for; (2) Business class, which is prospects for whom the Gators are heavily involved with but still have some work to do; and (3) Coach class, a group of prospects for whom Florida has a lot of work to do to get them in the Class of 2014.
Here are the targets as of September 25th.
FIRST CLASS
Hebron (TX) High safety Jamal Adams: Adams made an official to Gainesville and had a great visit overall. Most Florida fans know that Adams’ godfather is receiver coach Joker Phillips and that helps. It also helps that Adams plays the Matt Elam safety position and with Florida’s defense under Will Muschamp perhaps the best in the country, Florida is in good position here. Adams will announce in November.
Derby (KS) High tight end Deandre Goolsby: Goolsby plays a position of huge need and he’s the Gators top tight end prospect. This was Goolsby’s second visit to Florida this past weekend and came away very impressed by what Will Muschamp and his staff have to offer, plus he likes the state due to the weather and the beaches. Goolsby will take all five officials and announce shortly after that.
Gardena (CA) Junipero Serra cornerback Adoree’ Jackson: Florida has done a tremendous job of recruiting Jackson with the help of track coach Mike Holloway. Jackson has made it clear he wants to run track and play football in college and there isn’t a better school to offer both at the highest level. Gator Country expects Jackson to return to Gainesville for the FSU game in November.
West Palm Beach (FL) Cardinal Newman receiver Travis Rudolph: Rudolph has been a priority for Florida ever since he decommitted from Miami. Joker Phillips has done a great job on Rudolph and right now it looks to be a two team race between Florida and Florida State with the Gators having the edge from what sources have told GC.
BUSINESS CLASS
Norcross (GA) High defensive end Lorenzo Carter: Carter named Florida as his leader only to back down a bit, but there is no doubt he still likes the Gators. The key for Florida is getting Carter back on campus for an unofficial visit which GC has been told could happen for Florida’s banquet or the FSU football game. Georgia is Florida’s biggest competition here.
Joliet (IL) Plainfield South linebacker Clifton Garrett: LSU and Florida are battling it out for Garrett. Working against Florida is that Garrett’s parents haven’t been to Gainesville. Garrett likes Florida’s defense and is friends with Antonio Morrison but the Tigers are going to be tough to beat.
Lakeland (FL) Kathleen receiver Javon Harrison: Florida was finally able to get Harrison on campus this past weekend and it was a good trip. The Gators still have work to do here but the opportunity to play close to home in front of his young daughter is something that weighs on Harrison’s mind. Florida needs to secure an official visit before things can move any further but that should happen.
Brooklyn (NY) Abraham Lincoln defensive tackle Thomas Holley: Holley has been very quiet about his recruitment as of late but Holley has talked about how much he liked his Florida visit this past summer. Brad Lawing visited Holley during the bye week and Holley is expected to take an official to Gainesville later this fall.
Bradenton (FL) IMG Academy running back Bo Scarbrough: The Alabama commit was supposed to be in Gainesville for the Tennessee game but the ACT prevented that trip from happening. Scarbrough sees early playing time at Florida and the possibility to play with his cousin C’yontia Lewis is appealing here. Florida needs to get Scarbrough back on campus soon but communication between both sides as of right now is good.
COACH CLASS
Greensboro (NC) Page defensive end Lorenzo Featherston: Featherston doesn’t talk about recruiting at all so knowing what he’s thinking is next to impossible. The one thing that we do know is that Featherston likes Clemson but also sees the potential to play for Brad Lawing at Florida. The key for Florida is getting Featherston on campus.
Plaquemine (LA) High defensive end Davon Godchaux: LSU is the team to beat for Godchaux, and some say he may be a silent commit to the Tigers. Godchaux was supposed to visit Florida this past weekend but he had ACL surgery that caused him to cancel the trip. Godchaux will be in town for the FSU game and this will be a huge visit for Florida.
Gallatin (TN) Station Camp receiver Josh Malone: Malone talked about not taking an official to Florida but apparently that has changed and he is likely to take an official for either the FSU or banquet weekend. Malone has concerns about Florida’s passing offense but also sees the potential to play early. Georgia is the biggest competition for Malone with Clemson in the race.
Hinesville (GA) Liberty County linebacker Raekwon McMillan: While McMillan has said that Ohio State is his leader, some close to to him don’t believe that he will go that far from home. Working in Florida’s favor is that they get the last official from McMillan for the FSU weekend. Alabama and Ohio State are the leaders here.
Jacksonville (FL) Providence offensive lineman David Sharpe: Florida was thought to be the team to beat for quite some time but things are changing quickly. Sharpe has already attended two Georgia games and he is expected in Athens again this weekend. Sharpe declined to visit Florida for the Tennessee game.
Homewood (AL) High offensive lineman Jordan Sims: The key for Sims is getting him on campus and soon. Sims was thought to be an Alabama lock but when the Crimson Tide didn’t seal the deal, Auburn and Florida stepped in to take advantage.
Washington D.C. Friendship cornerback Jalen Tabor: Tabor announced on Tuesday that he would take officials to Florida, Maryland, Alabama, USC and Arizona but Maryland is considered the leader here. Tabor talks about Under Armour a lot and Maryland is an Under Armour school.
McCalla (Al.) McAdory defensive end Cory Thomas: Much like Sims the key for Florida is to get Thomas on campus soon. Thomas and C’yontai Lewis are good friends and want to play together but Thomas hasn’t seen Florida yet. Mississippi State is the leader here.
Gardena (Ca.) Junipero Serra linebacker Dwight Williams: The question for Williams is how much interest does both parties have in each other. Williams says he will visit for the FSU game but will the visit be legit or just a free trip?
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Post by Deleted on Sept 25, 2013 8:56:05 GMT -5
Brian Poole will sit out the first half of the Kentucky game after his ejection for targeting in the second half of the Tennessee game. Players are going to have to use their arms to wrap up tackles rather than simply hitting the player hard. Ejections and time missed in follow up games is a high price to pay for poor tackling and pass coverage techniques.
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Post by Deleted on Sept 25, 2013 9:35:37 GMT -5
Stanford also has a player missing the opening half of the Washington State game. I have a feeling there is going to a lot of this going on until the coaching and players adjust:
Stanford's Reynolds to sit out a half By RICK EYMER Associated Press
Published: Wednesday, September 25, 2013 at 6:01 a.m.
Last Modified: Wednesday, September 25, 2013 at 1:45 a.m.
Stanford senior Ed Reynolds will sit out the first half of the fifth-ranked Cardinal's game against Washington State on Saturday for targeting.
The Cardinal also announced Tuesday that senior left guard David Yankey will not play against Washington State saying he is dealing with a personal matter. Joshua Garnet will start in his left place.
Reynolds was ejected from last Saturday's 42-28 victory over Arizona State after lowering his head and hitting Sun Devils quarterback Taylor Kelly in the helmet with less than seven minutes remaining to play.
Stanford coach David Shaw said Tuesday that Reynolds did not argue the call and has since expressed remorse for the hit.
Shaw agreed with the penalty, saying the punishment is necessary to discourage that activity in college football.
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Now THIS here...is a member
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Post by lz2112 on Sept 25, 2013 11:19:41 GMT -5
From his tweet, it doesn't sound good. That really sucks.
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