Florida Football can't erase last week, but can showcase four key things vs Samford
The Dixie Chicks/The Chicks once said, "Forgive, sounds good. Forget, I don't think I could. They saw, time heals everything. But I'm still waiting." After last Saturday's debacle against Miami, there is very little the Gators can do on Saturday against Samford that will make us all take back the things we have said about Billy Napier all week.
And while we here at Hail Florida Hail have said our peace all week, we are still Gator fans at the end of the day, and we are not actively rooting for rock bottom.
It's with that in mind that we would like to see the following four things against Samford to illicit any kind of hope as Florida looks to pick up the pieces and trudge through the 11 games still left in the 2024 season.
DJ Lagway has 150 air yards
Air yards is calculated by taking the total number of passing yards and subtracting out the total number of yards after the catch. In other words, if a pass is caught at the line of scrimmage and the receiver runs 10 yards for a first down, the QB gets credit for 10 yards passing but his air yards on the play were zero.
This stat is essentially used to gauge how much vertical passing a team or quarterback is doing versus being reliant on short passes that require yards after the catch.
Last year, Florida averaged 101 air yards per game, while Georgia, as a reference point, averaged 143 air yards per game. Even Michigan was at 125 air yards per game.
If Florida comes out and has Lagway throw the same tired screens and dump-offs we have come to expect from Billy Napier's offense, we won't learn anything about Lagway, and it gives zero reasons to believe Florida intends to take advantage of their speedy wide receivers in 2024.
But if Lagway can top 150 air yards, it will give a glimmer of hope that Florida knows how to go vertical, and it hints that the offensive line for Florida can hold up long enough to try things deep.
Zero delay of game penalties and/or timeouts to prevent a delay of game
Another very real problem the Gators have had under Napier is the speed at which the play call is delivered to the quarterback. Worse is when Florida comes out of a timeout or change of possession and still looks lost.
That happened against Miami, again.
The backdrop is that Lagway is playing, and one normally is not shocked if a freshman struggles to get the team in and out of the huddle. But Napier shares a role in this too, and while it may seem petty to put this on this list, it must be cleaned up moving forward.
Under 50 yards after the catch
Emblematic of the fact Florida couldn't tackle last year was the fact they gave up an average of 126 yards after catch per game in 2023. Against Miami last week, 203 of their 385 receiving yards came after the catch.
So, against a team like Samford, Florida needs to demonstrate two things on defense:
- Don't have coverage busts like they did against Miami
- Rally to the football when the ball is caught
Do both of those things against Samford and their yards after the catch should stay under 50. If this number is over 100 on Saturday, some massive red flags need to be raised.
No special teams gaffes
As much as Napier claims to be detail-oriented, special teams last year were anything but. One of the changes Napier made in the offseason was hiring Joe Houston to lead the unit, and against Miami, the group was clean without any of the mistakes that plagued the group in 2023.
For Florida to prove it is a trend and not a fluke, we would like to see a similar operation on Saturday where Florida always has 11 guys on the field, and they know when they are supposed to run onto the field.
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