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Steve Sarkisian's complement of Florida Football also highlights fan frustrations

The Texas head coach called Florida "One of the best looking teams" in the SEC

By Benjamin Henderson

Oct 26, 2024; Nashville, Tennessee, USA; Texas Longhorns head coach Steve Sarkisian watches against the Vanderbilt Commodores during the first half at FirstBank Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Steve Roberts-Imagn Images
Oct 26, 2024; Nashville, Tennessee, USA; Texas Longhorns head coach Steve Sarkisian watches against the Vanderbilt Commodores during the first half at FirstBank Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Steve Roberts-Imagn Images / Steve Roberts-Imagn Images
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Florida is set to hit the road this week as the Gators take on the Texas Longhorns in Austin. Florida is 4-4 on the season and are on the verge of missing a bowl game for the second season in a row while Texas is 7-1 and ranked 5th in the country.

Perhaps not wanting to poke the bear, Texas coach Steve Sarkisian complimented the Gators during his weekly press conference. Those compliments are also at the core of the frustration Florida fans have had this season.

Florida Football: Nice Guys Finish Last

In his weekly press conference, Sarkisian tried to paint a picture that Texas wasn't overlooking Florida despite the disparity in rankings:

"This will be arguably one of if not the best-looking teams in our conference. They're big, they're long, they're athletic. I think they played 14 guys in their front seven this week against Georgia. They're depth got challenged in the secondary this week with a couple of corners getting nicked up, but they've got versatile guys there."

College football fans around the country raised an eyebrow or two at the idea of Florida being "one of if not the best-looking teams in our conference," but if you look at the quote in context, it makes perfect sense but also highlights the problem for Florida in 2024.

Sarkisian's point is that Florida's roster isn't filled with a bunch of charity cases who have no place in the SEC. The core of Florida's roster is still four-star prospects, and there is a reason why Florida came into the season with the 12 best rosters in the country, according to the 247 Talent Composite.

And when Florida played a team in 2024 with a significantly lower talent profile, the Gators looked the part and won by double digits against Mississippi State, UCF, and Kentucky.

The problem is when Florida has played a team with a similar talent profile. Miami, on paper, has a weak roster, while Texas A&M is only marginally better. Both ran the Gators out of The Swamp.

In fact, of Billy Napier's 15 wins as Florida's head coach, their 2022 win over Texas A&M is the only time they have defeated a team with a higher talent composite. Of his 18 losses, 12 have come against teams with a lower Talent Composite ranking.

So yes, Florida has athletic and versatile guys who other coaches take notice of. It's the operation surrounding those players that continues to let them down.

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