Florida Gators Football: Clash With LSU Will Be War Of Attrition
The Florida Gators football team will play the LSU Tigers on Saturday, November 19. Expect the clash in Baton Rouge to be a war of attrition.
The Florida Gators will face the biggest test of the Jim McElwain era on Saturday, November 19. Florida has fought to achieve its 7-2 record, but the SEC East will be on the line in Baton Rouge.
What was meant to be a home game will now be a war of attrition against the No. 16 LSU Tigers in Death Valley.
Two of the most dominant defensive teams in the country will clash when Florida and LSU take the field on Saturday. Both the Gators and the Tigers are Top 10 in the country in points allowed per game and play with an almost unrivaled level of physicality.
LSU has the more noteworthy offensive personnel, however, which is where the inner war begins for Florida.
LSU started the season slow, but since parting ways with head coach Les Miles, it’s been nothing short of sensational. The Tigers have won four of their past five games, with the only loss coming by a score of 10-0 against the undefeated Alabama Crimson Tide.
For perspective, Alabama has scored at least 33 points in every game but the clash with LSU.
Against Florida, the Tigers will be led by one of the most dominant players in college football history: Leonard Fournette. The junior has rushed for nearly 3,000 career yards with 40 rushing touchdowns and a slew of devastating highlights.
Even if Florida manages to contain Fournette, it’ll still have to deal with Derrius Grice, who has run for 881 yards and nine touchdowns on an average of 8.7 yards per carry in 2016.
Simply put, the Gators won’t win this game if they engage in a traditional shootout. Instead, it’ll be a matter of buckling down on defense and playing both responsibly and opportunistically on offense.
As is generally the case in big road games, Florida must capitalize on the few chances it has to break free.
The Gators are coming off of a 20-7 victory over the South Carolina Gamecocks. It was another stellar showing by the defense and a breakout performance by sophomore running back Jordan Scarlett.
Scarlett ran for a career-high 134 yards on 20 carries for a Gators team that was in dire need of a breakout performer on offense.
It’s certainly possible that Florida’s offense will come to life, just as it’s possible that the defense will crack under pressure. The more likely outcome is that both teams will show up defensively and the offense will be tested beyond the X’s and O’s.
This will be a war between two teams with heart and vigor, which means both Florida and LSU will be tested—physically, mentally, and emotionally.
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If the Gators come out with a more fiery passion, a more defined purpose, and a stronger sense of urgency, then the critics will be silenced, the Tigers will be defeated, and the SEC East will be won.
It’s a tall task, but anything is possible in college football.