A Quick Preview: Kentucky Wildcats at Florida Gators
Last season, when Florida played Kentucky we all experienced the concussion seen around the world. We saw Tim Tebow’s head whip back and forth before coming to a cold, hard rest on the ground. We saw the quarterback make his way to the sidelines, eventually. And then we saw #15 lose his stomach while being carted off the field. The entire thing was surreal for Gator fans and would be the talk of the college football world for the next few weeks until Florida played LSU and Tebow led the Gators out onto the field.
This season, the Kentucky game presents a turning point for the Gators. Florida is beating opponents by an average of 20 points per game, but you would think the Gators are 0-3. John Brantley hasn’t thrown an interception as a starter, but you would be led to believe he couldn’t quarterback a Pop Warner team. That’s where this game against the Wildcats comes in.
Florida is favored by 14. The same margin the Gators were favored by against Tennessee. I don’t know if that’s a testament to a Kentucky climb or a Tennessee fall. The oddsmakers were right in that matchup and the Gators won 31-17. The outcome could be similar against the Wildcats, but Florida better hope for more. Something in the 28-point victory margin. If it isn’t along those lines, no one will give the Gators much of chance against Alabama (although they may not be already). We’ve already seen the Gators continue to win, but fall in the polls.
Everything starts with the offensive line. A dose of consistency could be added here and there. Consistency in the snaps, consistency in the run blocking, and consistency in the personnel. Enough talk about the snaps at this point. The coaching staff will either make a change or they won’t. Against Alabama or LSU a bad snap at a critical point in the game could change the outcome. Hopefully by now Urban Meyer and company know that and continue to address the issue. Run blocking needs to return to the level it was at against Miami (OH) and USF. Not the Jeff-Demps-runs-into-a-wall-and-falls level it experienced against Tennessee. As for the personnel, get a healthy unit together and run with it. And find a right guard. What’s that? Mike Pouncey used to play right guard? And he was a second-team All-American only a season ago? Interesting.
Be in awe of the pass defense. It has been something special for almost all of the first 180 minutes of the season. Two plays against the Vols stand out. Those two plays should make you worry, but only for a moment. It could be an experience issue, but whatever the case some assignments appeared to be missed. Got that out of your system? Good. Lock it up against Kentucky and don’t look back. The Florida secondary is far too talented to let that happen again. They are a turnover monster waiting to attack. You can bet they have been shown those plays over and over and over again this week. It should be fixed. Although, should is a dangerous word.
The Wildcats haven’t beaten the Gators since sometime before the first World War. It doesn’t appear that will change, but some of the “experts” are putting this game on upset watch. Of course, some put last week’s game on a similar lookout and others picked Georgia to win the SEC East. That’s why I’m glad I have no real authority or expertise whatsoever. I’m just some guy voicing his opinions.
I could get into the whole “don’t look ahead to Alabama” thing, but you already know how that one goes. I’ll stick with the “play a full 60 minutes” speech. That’s always a good one, especially when you look back over the first three games. And if that fails, well, “just win.”