Dale J. Rodriguez
Gator Fan
Gator Bites - FLA vs MIZZOU
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Gator Bites - FLA vs MIZZOU
- Thread starter Dale J. Rodriguez
- Start date
Dale J. Rodriguez
See what you mean, Dale, this WAS easy to forget about and let the week run on--especially THIS week, of course. Anyway, it was time, I think...Time to move on, finally, if I'm "catching the vibe" around here. Maybe you or someone ELSE will remember sooner, be more inclined to pull this up by Monday, Tuesday at the latest, in future weeks--hopefully after a return to our winning ways.
I must confess I am not familiar with the details of Missouri's season so far, especially the last two games (I've been engrossed with other football-related matters, ya know?). I DO know that through the first portion of the season, this has been an "off" year for a strong, well-run program that was a growing force in the Big 12 and on the National scene until hit hard the last couple of years as its best players moved on to the pros. I'm not sure of the specific match-ups, but my impression is that their current skill level is not up to ours.
Until I do a little research, for the moment that leaves me only able to comment on our own team, its preparation and readiness--which, let's face it, is something of a question mark until we actually see them play again. The resilience of our coaches and players in permitting them to bounce back quickly and be ready to go, how able this team is to avoid the hangover that allows one team to beat them twice, may well be a bigger deciding factor this Saturday than how well Missouri itself plays.
In other words, I sure as hell hope our TEAM turned the corner and moved on sooner than WE did here at GE...There were things to be learned that will continue to be important, though, for this game and onward, regardless. As I have said: Whether describing our emotions or our opponents, "Either we control them or they will control us."
See what you mean, Dale, this WAS easy to forget about and let the week run on--especially THIS week, of course. Anyway, it was time, I think...Time to move on, finally, if I'm "catching the vibe" around here. Maybe you or someone ELSE will remember sooner, be more inclined to pull this up by Monday, Tuesday at the latest, in future weeks--hopefully after a return to our winning ways.
I must confess I am not familiar with the details of Missouri's season so far, especially the last two games (I've been engrossed with other football-related matters, ya know?). I DO know that through the first portion of the season, this has been an "off" year for a strong, well-run program that was a growing force in the Big 12 and on the National scene until hit hard the last couple of years as its best players moved on to the pros. I'm not sure of the specific match-ups, but my impression is that their current skill level is not up to ours.
Until I do a little research, for the moment that leaves me only able to comment on our own team, its preparation and readiness--which, let's face it, is something of a question mark until we actually see them play again. The resilience of our coaches and players in permitting them to bounce back quickly and be ready to go, how able this team is to avoid the hangover that allows one team to beat them twice, may well be a bigger deciding factor this Saturday than how well Missouri itself plays.
In other words, I sure as hell hope our TEAM turned the corner and moved on sooner than WE did here at GE...There were things to be learned that will continue to be important, though, for this game and onward, regardless. As I have said: Whether describing our emotions or our opponents, "Either we control them or they will control us."
"Celebrate Kentucky Win" T-shirts? Yikes! (Secretly, I am hoping for/half-expecting a big wash-that-taste-out-of-our-mouths score)
Against UGA, I had predicted that they would throw against our suspect secondary (they did), that our offense had to wake up in order to avoid becoming one dimensional (it did not), and that Gilly had to have a good day rushing in order to set the tone (he did not). What I did not account for is turnovers, because up until that game the Gators were in the top five in the nation in terms of taking care of the ball! In one day the Gators dropped several spots in that category. My keys to victory:
- [ ] Ground superiority. Run the ****ing ball! Either Gilly or Driskel need to run the ball in order to win against Mizzou. Mizzou had no running game to speak of until the QB went down. Then again, their running game only awakened against the mighty basketball superpower that is Kentucky. Over the past few games, the Gator rushing offense has gone quiet and has tumbled from being #1 in the conference and #6 in the nation to #4 in the conference, #35 in the nation.
- [ ] Protect the crown jewels, AKA take care of the ****ing ball! The Mizzou secondary is not very good at pass coverage, but they are great at forcing fumbles. This tells me that they run their cornerbacks like safeties and their safeties like linebackers, which is actually built like the Tennessee defense, but performing on par with Georgia's defense. The Gator receivers are so unaccustomed to catching the ball that they tend to forget how to protect the rock when it's in their hands. The Gators went from being #4 in the nation in turnover margin to #10 in only one game!
- [ ] Disrupt, deter, deny James Franklin in his return to the gridiron. The Tigers beat Kentucky without their best player, the QB. They should be pumped up against Florida. Franklin could tee off against the Gator secondary, as I predicted Georgia would. If the Gators do not run the ball and open up a modest passing game, the Tigers will light up the Gator secondary and embarrass us at home. If the Gators can shut down Franklin as South Carolina did, and get back to their average of 350 yards of offense, they will prevail.
- [ ] Air superiority. When Mizzou played against Georgia, Aaron Murray lit up the Tiger secondary, but UGA also allowed James Franklin to light up its own secondary. The Gators absolutely need to stop the Tiger aerial attack. This late in the season we can assume that the Gators are never going to have a Boise-like aerial attack, so do not get into a shootout. Both teams are ranked around #100 in the entire nation in passing offense, but Mizzou has played a few of those games with an injured QB. Jeff Driskel does not need to throw for 250 yards as long as Gilly runs for 100+. If Gilly or Driskel do not run for 100+, then no passing lanes will open and the Gators will fal behind and let Mizzou tire down the secondary...or force them into committing penalties.
- [ ] Be disciplined. For crying out loud, stop the madness! Penalties are killing the Gators. They only gained 266 total yards against UGA, but were penalized for 26.2 miles (okay, not really... 97 yards). Last week, the Gators were offsides and let UGA rush the ball in through the hole created by being offsides. Multiple false starts on Xavier Nixon were understandable, because he was stuck blocking Georgia's best wrecking ball defender. Poor guy. Mizzou does not have a wrecking ball pass rusher. For crying out loud! Block your man and don't set the Gators back five yards with false starts!
You live in Big 12 country. You understand that many Big 10 and Big 12 fans (and some Pac 12 fans) have spread the rumor that every SEC team is good and that any victory over the SEC is a big deal--even if it is just Vanderbilt or Kentucky.
I have been in lots of debates with friends talking about SEC football with non-SEC fans. They assume we SEC fans are bragging about the SEC from bottom to top when in reality we are boasting about our best teams being virtually invincible against anyone but another SEC team. They just don't get it.
Escambia94
Totally agree...and manifests strangely (though "Woo-Hoo Ky. Victory!" T-shirts are a new one for me)...I sort of understand where they get the idea: The superb teams-at-the-top emerging and inevitably stepping OVER to "National Champion"-status, with new ones arising each year to present new challenges...How some may be down but inevitably rebuild and return (eg. Tennessee), even the "low-end"-programs seeming to find the talent to join this challenge for a time (eg. Ol' Miss a few years back, MSU now)--even our perennial bottom-dweller Vanderbilt (like KY., a well known roundball power) seems to rise up and upset someone on an annual basis--and (like the Widcats when they had Couch at QB) are showing media-noted signs of building itself into a stronger, more reliably decent football team too).
It's kind of funny, really: They try to talk loudly these days, trying to convince themselves that "The SEC is overrated!", attacking its "top-heavy strength" first and foremost--but in truth they are probably OVER-sold on our top-to-BOTTOM strength. It's the same with our SOS, of course...They deride UF for the "patsies" we schedule out-of-Conference and voice bewilderment at our official SOS, but deep down they know: just list our actual opponents in any season and the argument pretty well evaporates. You should have heard how they laughed at Mizzou and ESPECIALLY A&M down here as they were about to embark on their first seasons as SEC-members! A laughing/sneering "Good luck with that SEC-schedule!" and "You're stepping into the Lion's mouth now!" and "Things are gonna be different in THOSE away-game stadiums!", that sort of thing. They weren't wrong, of course--it was just interesting to hear them say it when they had their guards down.
Totally agree...and manifests strangely (though "Woo-Hoo Ky. Victory!" T-shirts are a new one for me)...I sort of understand where they get the idea: The superb teams-at-the-top emerging and inevitably stepping OVER to "National Champion"-status, with new ones arising each year to present new challenges...How some may be down but inevitably rebuild and return (eg. Tennessee), even the "low-end"-programs seeming to find the talent to join this challenge for a time (eg. Ol' Miss a few years back, MSU now)--even our perennial bottom-dweller Vanderbilt (like KY., a well known roundball power) seems to rise up and upset someone on an annual basis--and (like the Widcats when they had Couch at QB) are showing media-noted signs of building itself into a stronger, more reliably decent football team too).
It's kind of funny, really: They try to talk loudly these days, trying to convince themselves that "The SEC is overrated!", attacking its "top-heavy strength" first and foremost--but in truth they are probably OVER-sold on our top-to-BOTTOM strength. It's the same with our SOS, of course...They deride UF for the "patsies" we schedule out-of-Conference and voice bewilderment at our official SOS, but deep down they know: just list our actual opponents in any season and the argument pretty well evaporates. You should have heard how they laughed at Mizzou and ESPECIALLY A&M down here as they were about to embark on their first seasons as SEC-members! A laughing/sneering "Good luck with that SEC-schedule!" and "You're stepping into the Lion's mouth now!" and "Things are gonna be different in THOSE away-game stadiums!", that sort of thing. They weren't wrong, of course--it was just interesting to hear them say it when they had their guards down.
For starters Escambia94 Aaron Murray didn't really light up the Gators. 150 yards, really? Plus he threw three intercepted three times. He got lucky once that game. James Franklin is no Aaron Murray however Franklin is a scrambler which will pose problems for the Gator D.
"Lit up" is a strong phrase. Either way, the Gators do not have a lockdown corner. Murray completed left, right, and center, short, medium, and long. The secondary needed him to screw up, and they still did not win the game. What does it say when Florida can be beaten with the sorry offense of UGA 2012 or FSU 2011? It says we were "lit up" by sorry offenses and we should expect more of the same!
This is not the end of the world. The sorry Gator passing (#100 in the nation) has forced a one dimensional offense that other teams are teeing off on--Gilly has dropped from a top ten in the nation runner to about #30. It needs to turn around before FSU. It needs to be against Mizzou.
This is not the end of the world. The sorry Gator passing (#100 in the nation) has forced a one dimensional offense that other teams are teeing off on--Gilly has dropped from a top ten in the nation runner to about #30. It needs to turn around before FSU. It needs to be against Mizzou.
"Franklin...scrambler which will pose problems for Gator D"...long as we hold onto ball this week, should be the ONLY "problem" this team poses to us, Lf. Taking the POV that we will come out ready to dominate (as I have decided to do, based on idea that this is a "different" Gator team, one that is tough and resilient and will come back HARD in this game--and KEEP coming throughout), to prove to OURSELVES who we are, what we can be, after last week's sudden fall, this might be just the right opponent for us at this moment in time.
InkedAdrenaline
VIP Member
Can't wait. I scored some tickets to the game so I'm excited to be there to get back in the W side!!
Escambia94
Sorry, E-, but everything is in transition right now, the last couple of our games not at all useful from a statistical or "trend-reading" standpoint. What happens this Saturday should tell us a lot--any "turn around" begins here and now.
Sorry, E-, but everything is in transition right now, the last couple of our games not at all useful from a statistical or "trend-reading" standpoint. What happens this Saturday should tell us a lot--any "turn around" begins here and now.
12 of 24 for 150 yards with three INTs isn't litting anyone especially since Driskel outplayed him though turnover the ball more and no touchdowns. Anyone who thinks otherwise is the biggest dumb@$$. A quote from the old MTV show Two-A-Days.
Escambia94, Leakfan12
Gotta admit I didn't see that performance --by their passing offense OR our overall D--as us being "lit up"...in fact, at other points in the post-game hand-wringing my distinct impression was NEITHER DID YOU, E-...I guess that's why I let that one go by: for the most part we've ALL been "all over the place" in our various "analyses-of-the-moment".
I'm trying to look forward now (finally!), and even there the unspoken shadow of last Saturday is cast across most statements and observations...here's another one:
This team needs a break-out performance on offense. NOT just because I wanna see it (much as I DO) but because THEY do! Oh, it'll have all kinds of practical tactical and strategic advantages by now, I'm sure, and I could argue that we maybe got "too cute" and coy with seeing how little we could get away with showing "future opponents", instead of just opening things up and "letting it fly" from time to time--but that's spillt milk under the bridge blah blah blah...I just think (and FEEL!) this team needs to just "clear its pipes" in a really bad way, and that's a part of it--show themselves what they can do.
We'll be able to run on them, and there'll be a certain inclination I'm sure to just "get back on track", but I don't think you have to be Freud to figure out that there was a lot going on with our kids that produced THAT group-grope, and even more in the way of confused thoughts and feelings swirling around in its aftermath. The good news is that with young athletes, so much healing can be managed by a cathartic TEAM victory--and nothing does "Cathartic Team Victory" better than a bust-out offensive display.
Gotta admit I didn't see that performance --by their passing offense OR our overall D--as us being "lit up"...in fact, at other points in the post-game hand-wringing my distinct impression was NEITHER DID YOU, E-...I guess that's why I let that one go by: for the most part we've ALL been "all over the place" in our various "analyses-of-the-moment".
I'm trying to look forward now (finally!), and even there the unspoken shadow of last Saturday is cast across most statements and observations...here's another one:
This team needs a break-out performance on offense. NOT just because I wanna see it (much as I DO) but because THEY do! Oh, it'll have all kinds of practical tactical and strategic advantages by now, I'm sure, and I could argue that we maybe got "too cute" and coy with seeing how little we could get away with showing "future opponents", instead of just opening things up and "letting it fly" from time to time--but that's spillt milk under the bridge blah blah blah...I just think (and FEEL!) this team needs to just "clear its pipes" in a really bad way, and that's a part of it--show themselves what they can do.
We'll be able to run on them, and there'll be a certain inclination I'm sure to just "get back on track", but I don't think you have to be Freud to figure out that there was a lot going on with our kids that produced THAT group-grope, and even more in the way of confused thoughts and feelings swirling around in its aftermath. The good news is that with young athletes, so much healing can be managed by a cathartic TEAM victory--and nothing does "Cathartic Team Victory" better than a bust-out offensive display.
The stats are absolutely useful. Show me another team with a #100 ranked offense that does not look as ugly as Florida did last week. For two straight weeks the offensive stats were taking a nosedive, but the wheels came off the bus when they forgot how to take care of the ball while they were sucking on offense. That game was an utter disgrace to SEC football. I said it before--the SEC East should forfeit the SEC championship game, Mike Slive should cancel the SEC championship game, and the SEC West champion should be the de facto SEC champion.
A turnaround this late in the season is for the #100 ranked offense to act like the #90 offense. We have no right to complain about Charlie Weis last year when his new team is #99 on offense with inferior athletes.
Here is a good stat: 0-2, our record against UGA under Muschamp. I am tired of losing to UGA. I am tired of making excuses. I am tired of watching Muschamp go apesh!t on the sidelines at the referees when he should be, I don't know, coaching his players up. How long is this "sucky offense" transition going to last? That is what this offense is--sucky. It is terrible. It is an embarrassment. It will not beat FSU in this condition.
I have been saying this for years: I don't mind losing games, but I hate being a loser. Putting the ball on the ground six times is for losers. Getting punked in the tunnel before the game and losing the psychological edge before the first snap is for losers. Letting the other team throw 3 INTs at you, and you only come away with a couple field goals is for losers. Not setting getting your running back 100 yards of rushing while their suck-@$$ running back does is for losers.
I hope I am just over-reacting to an ugly loss by a loser offense, but I think I am right on this one. Our offense is full of losers and the defense is going to have pull those losers to a win. No, I do not think the Gators will put up 30 points on Mizzou. If the Gators can win this game with 30 points, 12 of those points will have to come from pick-6s and punt returns. Since Debose has gone gun shy, it won't be him taking the kicks and punts to the house against Mizzou, so where on earth are the Gators going to get these 30 points that people are predicting?
I will be as happy as a clam if the Gators win this game 9-6 in a field goal contest. I will pee into a light socket if the ****ing loser offense would just throw the damn ball down the field on accident to show that we know how to use that invention called a "forward pass".
Escambia94
(!!!!!!) Tell me if we haven't just said the same thing about what SHOULD happen--having gotten there on roads through two different worlds.
(I've been saying many of these same things about Debose in particular and the offense in general for WEEKS...and I'M supposed to be the "bummed out Voice of Doom"!)
Someone once said, "Show me a cynic, and I'll show you a disappointed idealist." I have long protected myself from disappointment in this way (or at least softened the blow--how could I still be such a rabid Gator fan after all these decades of seasons if that were not so?). I've had practice at this. Let's see what they do, and what in fact happens as a result.
(PS I don't think we ARE "losers". I just think we ACTED like "losers" last Saturday. We've examined the causes quite thoroughly here ever since, but the reasons underlying those are deeply hidden, and require a shift that cannot be discussed or rationalized, only acted upon. We've got to dare to DO the things that will make us "winners". "Fortune favors the brave". We'll fill holes, develop depth, up our talent level in seasons ahead--but we won't be the TEAM that we want, can and SHOULD be until we take that final step. It is there in front of us, even now...)
(!!!!!!) Tell me if we haven't just said the same thing about what SHOULD happen--having gotten there on roads through two different worlds.
(I've been saying many of these same things about Debose in particular and the offense in general for WEEKS...and I'M supposed to be the "bummed out Voice of Doom"!)
Someone once said, "Show me a cynic, and I'll show you a disappointed idealist." I have long protected myself from disappointment in this way (or at least softened the blow--how could I still be such a rabid Gator fan after all these decades of seasons if that were not so?). I've had practice at this. Let's see what they do, and what in fact happens as a result.
(PS I don't think we ARE "losers". I just think we ACTED like "losers" last Saturday. We've examined the causes quite thoroughly here ever since, but the reasons underlying those are deeply hidden, and require a shift that cannot be discussed or rationalized, only acted upon. We've got to dare to DO the things that will make us "winners". "Fortune favors the brave". We'll fill holes, develop depth, up our talent level in seasons ahead--but we won't be the TEAM that we want, can and SHOULD be until we take that final step. It is there in front of us, even now...)
The overall team is still good, but LSU and Florida offenses are both full of losers. I can say that objectively, and the numbers support it. This is not a mark against Mike Gillislee, who has been flawless. On the other hand I am losing patience with Jeff Driskel in the same way I lose patience with my own kids (LSU's Zach Mettenberger is also on the list). My kids know that I do not "count to three before I get mad"--you get one mistake and you had better learn from it the first time. Why is it that Jeff Driskel gets 8 or 9 games to improve, but freshmen QBs get a couple games? JD needs to prove that he is a sophomore with 8 starts, not a freshman with 2 starts. Stop holding onto the ball. JD needs to realize that the offensive line is the best it is going to be, so don't pray that the o-line will magically improve in a week. Just assume Halapio and Nixon are going to let their man blow by, so you might want to count to three and chuck the ball out of bounds or run for your life. Or, avoid the mistakes of Mettenberger and run for 200 yards. I am fine with running a Georgia Tech-like offense if the official verdict is that the Gators cannot win through the air. I would hope that the Gators can test out some aerial attack against Mizzou, and then really experiment against the cupcakes. I just do not want to see another loser performance where players are putting the ball on the ground and not playing with the intensity that got them to 7-0 before UGA.
Well, on top of all its other woes, this offense will be missing one of its "potential stars", Soloman Patton, who is out for the season with a broken arm (now "potential FUTURE star", seemingly underutilized before now given the break-out speed he'd shown--"underutilized" describing another receiver, Pittman, who has disappeared since dazzling coaches and bystanders during spring and summer drills...indeed, "underutilized" pretty well sums up whatever passing potential we have, until now)--a broken arm suffered on ANOTHER infuriating play that should further fire up our team NEXT year, should it need any more firing up (which it sure as hell could have used THIS year, apparently)...I know how it makes ME feel, every time I even THINK about it.
(@Escambia94 ...Actually, this whole post is for everyone, but from here on out happens to answer and add to some of E-'s declarations in particular...)
What this means for us and the offense immediately is another chance for Debose: Doghouse or not, he's in the rotation now, and if he has ANYTHING in that sack between his legs, this is an opportunity he should just sell himself OUT to make good on.
Meanwhile, there are practical lessons to be learned by proven young athletes up and down our roster here in the aftermath to "The Debacle in the Gator Bowl"--beginning with JD FINALLY starting to "Run or get RID of it" on a certain count--can't argue with you there, E-...and Jordon Reed MUST learn to STOP JUMPING in most cases, and in the few others where a jump is required, at least get the TIMING right; as it is, he often gets BOTH wrong, one or both facets of that bad habit responsible this season for 3 drops on PERFECTLY thrown long passes from JD, PLUS of course a lost fumble inside the 5 on the last-chance drive of our only loss.
Me, I hate ALL losses...but can more easily let them go and move on when and if we do everything possible to play-our-best-game, "leave it on the field", as they say. Until we start seeing what we can do aggressively through the air, actually try the kinds of creative wrinkles we all KNOW that our OC has at the very LEAST been messing around with "on paper" and in practice since he got here, that's going to be my "bone of contention" with this team and its coaches, if and when we DO lose.
At least we won't have to wait long to see on Saturday: Kick-off at Noon in the Swamp (11am for me, E-, 9am for YOU, man), appearing on ESPN-2, I believe. Unless you're on duty, I expect a mid-to-late-morning appearance here from you--to acknowledge our "healthy response" or bemoan our "continued failure", as the case may be.
(Worth noting here: Statistically, Reed is far-and-AWAY our No.1 receiver--and on our depth chart, he's not even listed as a "receiver", none of whom have caught more than 3 passes in a single game all season--only Dunbar and Frankie Hammond have caught more than 2...Though there is still SOME question as to whether this is all purely a matter of available depth and talent limiting options and game plans, or timid game plans limiting chances for break-out performances, as ESPN notes we may not get any "true relief until 2013", with the arrival of our next recruiting class.)
(@Escambia94 ...Actually, this whole post is for everyone, but from here on out happens to answer and add to some of E-'s declarations in particular...)
What this means for us and the offense immediately is another chance for Debose: Doghouse or not, he's in the rotation now, and if he has ANYTHING in that sack between his legs, this is an opportunity he should just sell himself OUT to make good on.
Meanwhile, there are practical lessons to be learned by proven young athletes up and down our roster here in the aftermath to "The Debacle in the Gator Bowl"--beginning with JD FINALLY starting to "Run or get RID of it" on a certain count--can't argue with you there, E-...and Jordon Reed MUST learn to STOP JUMPING in most cases, and in the few others where a jump is required, at least get the TIMING right; as it is, he often gets BOTH wrong, one or both facets of that bad habit responsible this season for 3 drops on PERFECTLY thrown long passes from JD, PLUS of course a lost fumble inside the 5 on the last-chance drive of our only loss.
Me, I hate ALL losses...but can more easily let them go and move on when and if we do everything possible to play-our-best-game, "leave it on the field", as they say. Until we start seeing what we can do aggressively through the air, actually try the kinds of creative wrinkles we all KNOW that our OC has at the very LEAST been messing around with "on paper" and in practice since he got here, that's going to be my "bone of contention" with this team and its coaches, if and when we DO lose.
At least we won't have to wait long to see on Saturday: Kick-off at Noon in the Swamp (11am for me, E-, 9am for YOU, man), appearing on ESPN-2, I believe. Unless you're on duty, I expect a mid-to-late-morning appearance here from you--to acknowledge our "healthy response" or bemoan our "continued failure", as the case may be.
(Worth noting here: Statistically, Reed is far-and-AWAY our No.1 receiver--and on our depth chart, he's not even listed as a "receiver", none of whom have caught more than 3 passes in a single game all season--only Dunbar and Frankie Hammond have caught more than 2...Though there is still SOME question as to whether this is all purely a matter of available depth and talent limiting options and game plans, or timid game plans limiting chances for break-out performances, as ESPN notes we may not get any "true relief until 2013", with the arrival of our next recruiting class.)
Dale J. Rodriguez
Gator Fan
Today my strategy for the gators is the following:
Do not turn the ball over, play good defense, and Just win baby!
Do not turn the ball over, play good defense, and Just win baby!
