Gators – Commodores: Keys To A Gator Victory
The Florida Gators obtained a victory 24 of the last 25 meetings against the Vanderbilt Commodores, even though last year the Gators squeaked by with a late field goal to win 9-7, it was still a win.
As a matter of fact, this Gators vs. Commodores game is presenting an eerily similar presence to the Tennessee game. Obviously, the talent does not fill the Commodore roster like it does for the Volunteers but if you take last year’s games between the two schools, the Gators narrowly escaped in both games and this year we lost to the Vols. So, is this a trap game for the Gators? NO, but this game can’t be taken lightly and needs to be used to make a statement to the rest of the SEC.
Keys To Winning:
Austin Appleby will be making his second start as a Florida Gator and second start on the road. Nashville is certainly not Knoxville but it should be treated as a hostile environment. Appleby will need to perform as well as he did in the first half against Tennessee. The utilization of the deep throw is a strength of Appleby and expect Coach Nuss and Coach Mac to use it. His offensive line will (hopefully) give him more time to go through his progressions and make a smart decision with the football. Appleby will need to play smart against a decent Commodore defense that has been making a habit of forcing turnovers. With that being said, Appleby’s experience will allow him to keep everything under control today and manage the game in the Gators favor.
If the Gators want to be able to do anything going forward this season, they will need to abandoned the four-headed backfield they have going on. It is without a doubt taking away from big play carries and a rhythm for a running back. The four running back system works against lesser opponents, so it may work today but against better teams, not so much. With that being said, Florida needs it’s rushing attack to be a catalyst for the offense. Expect, Jordan Scarlett who leads the team with 219 yards and 3 touchdowns on 43 attempts to be the featured back today and if I were Coach Mac, Scarlett would get the first ten carries followed by Mark Thompson and Jordan Cronkite. The sophomore Cronkite especially on third down plays and passing downs for his ball catching ability out of the backfield.
Antonio Callaway! All that needs to be said, really. As for wide-recievers he is the cream of the crop at Florida and the Gators need him to play like the best. The sophomore has 2 touchdowns and 17 catches for 355 yards even after missing one game this season due to injury. Brandon Powell being cleared after his “phantom punch” is a relief to Gators fans and expect Powell to continue to thrive alongside Callaway.
One of the biggest and continuous questions I have about Florida is the offensive line. Last week I am going to chalk that up to coaching, because Tennessee did stack the box literally every play in the second half and no adjustment was made. However, this week the Commodore defensive line is not nearly as talented as the Volunteer defensive line and I fully expect the o-line to give Appleby protection all day long. This is a huge test, pending the results of the game we could see some moves on that o-line.
Special teams are the final key I am going to talk about. It is no secret that Antonio Callaway literally forgot how to be a punt returner last week with two crucial mistakes that ultimately gave the Volunteers great field position and easy scoring situations. This week, I think Callaway has learned from his mistakes last week and will make up for it today. Aside from the return team, we look at freshman kicker, Eddy Pineiro. He hasn’t really been called on to do much of anything considering 38 unanswered points last week but this week look for him to continue his strong season.
At the end of today, I fully expect a Gator victory. The Gators are going to come out hungry because of what happened last week, they are going to play with a vengeance. I don’t believe they will make the same boneheaded mistakes as last week in regards to the play calling, expect Mac to open it up a little bit and quit trying to force everything. Believe in Appleby and put him in a position to succeed.
Prediction:
Gators 35 Commodores 14