Two truths and a lie for Florida Football after beating UCF

Even though Florida Football opened as a favorite against UCF, the betting public poured so much money into the Knights that the line shifted to as high as UCF being a 2.5 point favorite.

So beating UCF by 11 points is a positive thing for Billy Napier, but it also doesn't mean all is well in Gainesville as the Gators get ready to take on Tennessee this week.

Truth: Jack Pyburn Needs More Snaps

During the build-up to last week, Napier had hinted that Jack Pyburn would start to see more snaps along the defensive line. To some extent, this was true. Pyburn had 25 snaps, the same amount he had against Mississippi State, but given that the Bulldogs ran 32 more plays than the Knights, Pyburn saw his percentage of plays go from 26% to 39%.

Even though at 6'3" he is a tick undersized compared to some other options Florida has at EDGE, and as we chronicled earlier this week, he was far from perfect against Mississippi State, there is no denying that Pyburn has a wrecking ball element to his game that others on the roster do not.

Florida official stats credit him with five tackles against UCF, and he was instrumental in blowing up the 4th and 1 attempt that led to a key stop for the Gators.

Truth: Pass Blocking From A Running Back Matters

When a certain running back transferred from Florida after last season, a narrative took hold that he was awful at pass protection. We thought that narrative was a bit overblown, but there is no denying that the backs Florida played on Saturday were all in on pass protection.

Both Monrell Johnson and Jadan Baugh delivered some cracking blocks, and neither back allowed a pressure in six total pass blocks between the two.

Compare that to the efforts of UCF running back RJ Harvey, who was tagged for three pressures, two hurries, and completely whiffed on R.J. Moten to allow a sack.

Lie: Billy Napier Deserves His Flowers

Here is an anecdote from my personal life:

I coach high school soccer, and we have had some good years, including 15-3-1 and 16-4-1. One year, we were not very good, but we beat a team that year 7-2.

We still went 6-12-1 that season.

The point is Napier's play calling is the same as it's always been, and there is a reason why Florida scored zero points in the second half. And much like my 6-12-1 soccer team, beating a bad team doesn't mean everything has been fixed.

If you look back at all the preseason predictions and the pessimistic literature that discussed the possibility of a 4-8 campaign, UCF was one of the four teams most had in the win column.

To the chagrin of UCF fans, they were considered the fourth-easiest team on Florida's schedule heading into the year.

Kentucky and FSU are the only two games remaining that Florida will be favored in.

An 11-point win over the Knights is fun, and we never have to speak of the University of Central Florida ever again, but they are not the bar by which this season will be measured.

Tennessee, Georgia, Texas, LSU, and Ole Miss are the bar when you are the head coach of Florida. To get to a bowl game this season, Florida has to beat one of those teams in addition to Kentucky and FSU.

Until Florida beats two or three of those teams, Napier needs to be like Miley Cyrus and buy his own flowers.