Bits & Pieces: Florida vs. Missouri

cover2

Founding Member
I've grown old
Lifetime Member
Jun 12, 2014
8,834
32,032
Founding Member
upload_2020-11-1_7-24-23.jpeg

I don’t know about you, but it was a restless Halloween evening for me as I waited for the game to begin. Seems like we haven’t played football in a year or so. Maybe it was the COVID shut down and the lost opportunity to play a seemingly hapless LSU bunch. Maybe it was that our last outing was a stinging loss in the waning minutes to TAMU (and Jimbo Fischer) on October 10, three weeks ago. Maybe it was the concern for our defense, or lack there of, and whether it would be any better (or worse) in light of the interrupted practice. Maybe it was a rare Blue Moon.

But in the end, the recovering Gators, without a dozen or so players, easily handled the Tigers of Mizzou 41-17. The defense effectively bottled up Missouri, holding them to 248 yards (208 passing, 40 rushing). Most amazing was that we were without three starters in the secondary and the tackling woes that have plagued us previously seemed to have been corrected...with limited practice opportunities! Second most amazing was that for a week at least, “Third-and-Grantham” wasn’t much of an issue as the Tigers were 3 / 15 on this down.

On the other hand, I was worried for a while that “Third-and-Mullen” might become a chant with us having some problems converting. For the game we were only slightly better than Missouri at 4 / 13 on third down, but we moved the sticks enough to put up five TDs and two FGs. There was a little rust, but the offensive efficiency was enough to engender confidence with the Dawgs and the WLOCP (or what once was, pre-COVID) looming ahead.

So, let’s take a look at some specifics from the game:

*The story was the defense. If anybody would have told me that we’d have performed as well as we did with what we’ve put on the field thus far, I’d have told them they were crazy! How the heck we magically learned to tackle is a head scratcher. To be fair, Missouri helped us with some pass drops by open receivers and a couple of overthrows, but our performance was better. Now, will the improvement carry forward and be enough to help thwart UGA next week? You gotta think it looks better than it did three weeks ago!

*Offensively, Toney was the guy. Three TDs on the day, two receiving, one rushing, several defenders left grasping at air and nursing injured ankles. His talent is a difference maker and that he is getting the touches only makes our O that much better.

*Trask wasn’t at his very best, “only” 21 / 36 passing for 345 and a couple of hiccups (an INT and a three-and-out series with three straight incompletions), but he did throw four TDs and ran the ball effectively a couple of times. Maybe as importantly, he wasn’t injured on the unpenalized late hit just before the half. Healthy, he’s as good as any QB in the country.

*The front seven, especially the DL, Slaton, Cox, et al, deserve a shout out. 40 yards rushing, regardless of what you think of the Tigers, is a statement, especially when you weigh it against what we have been putting on film. Now go put two games together back-to-back.

*About that late hit...for all the blather and time spent by the SEC Network guys dissecting the play and the ensuing dust-up midfield, the biggest unanswered question to me was why was there no flag? Clearly Trask had completed the throw and was essentially defenseless. Although Mullen seemed to clumsily explain how things transpired, I don’t hold his outrage and sprint to midfield against him. If the refs aren’t going to protect your QB, then the HC has got to do it. And if the league hands down any suspensions after review, they should include an official responsible for the no call.

*Hats off to Howard! No McPherson? No problem! Way to step into the breech, young man. Evan will be back, but you showed that you’ve been earning your place at the training table. Kudos to a valuable walk-on and the latest Gator to make good.

*I’ve got to give @Swamp Donkey a shout. After seeing Mullen’s outfit for his postgame presser...

upload_2020-11-1_8-35-50.jpeg

...I couldn’t help but think “Damn, he really is ‘Dorky Dan!’” Maybe he lost a bet with Grantham?:dunno:

It feels good to feel good on Sunday morning again. Part of that has to do with a better effort by the defense. It’s also nice to not have to constantly fret about the OL! Looking ahead to next Saturday, it begs the question “Can we keep progressing on that side of the ball so that we give our O the chance to outscore the Dawgs? Their D is pretty good, but their O not so much. If we can at least continue to tackle better, our chances are much greater than anyone would have given us three weeks ago. We also have to keep getting improved efforts from the front seven. UGA’s OL is better than Mizzou’s, so we’ve got to take that step. Do we end Kirby’s run and maybe represent the East this year? We’ve got a great opportunity. Can’t wait to see how we react! Bottom’s up, Jacksonville! And Go Gators!

:chomp:
 
Last edited:

GR8 2B

A Florida Gator
Lifetime Member
Jun 12, 2016
4,055
5,356
In with the first "like". :yes:

Great observations and write-up, as usual, cover. Your insight and efforts are much appreciated.
 

GatorJ

Founding Member
Hopeful
Moderator
Jun 11, 2014
20,998
33,559
Founding Member
Braun stabilized the line. He replaced Reese after the first two series (I think).
 

BMF

Bad Mother....
Lifetime Member
Sep 8, 2014
25,399
59,222
The blowout was good for the team for many reasons; mainly confidence, but even more importantly, building depth.

-Tarquin & Braun both played meaningful snaps on the OL. Later in the game Eguaken played (he sailed the high snap over EJ's head for the turnover).

-Along the DL, they gave Lang quite a few snaps, especially in the 2nd half after Carter was out. He played well. Gervon got a lot of PT. Later in the game Lee & Princely got the entire 4th quarter. I know we're thin, but they let Dunlap play a lot too - he's hot and cold, hopefully the increased PT helps him improve.

-The DBs played well, especially the young guys. The biggest surprise (to me) was walk-on Patrick Moorer (#37....not Tyler Waxman, like the dumbass announcers said), he played meaningful snaps (1st half snaps). #22 seems like he'll be a good safety, he's already better than Stiner.

-Why did we run Whittemore as a RB? At that point, even Clement and Lingard hadn't seen the field. But they line up a 6'3 WR at RB for a play? He lost 2 yards.

-Trask was off last night, especially on 3rd down (poor play calling?). He was 16/31 at one point (barely 50%) and finished the game 5 for 5, to finish 21/36.

-Playing AR when you're up 6-0 is so stupid, so stubborn....and so Dan Mullen. Wait until you have a lead to get cute. And it cost us 7 points (I blame this for getting Trask and the OL out of rhythm).

-The kicker did a great job.
 

BMF

Bad Mother....
Lifetime Member
Sep 8, 2014
25,399
59,222
He really did.

Is Reese hurt?

No. He's just not as good as advertised. He looks out of shape, and slow. Maybe he'll improve, but he's definitely no better than what we've been putting out there the last few years. Braun allows Gourage to move to OT, putting our biggest liability - Delance - on the bench.
 

GatorJ

Founding Member
Hopeful
Moderator
Jun 11, 2014
20,998
33,559
Founding Member
No. He's just not as good as advertised. He looks out of shape, and slow. Maybe he'll improve, but he's definitely no better than what we've been putting out there the last few years. Braun allows Gourage to move to OT, putting our biggest liability - Delance - on the bench.

who were the 5? Who replaced Delance? Or did Reese just shift?
 

G8trwood

Well-Known Member
Lifetime Member
Nov 29, 2015
4,084
6,041
I can see why we can’t recruit RB or LB, we don’t know how to play either, lol.

A big butt rotation really helped to stabilize the line and others to play a more natural position. Rushing 4 helped with the man coverage. Young guys really stepped up.

Go Gators, send the dogs to the pound.
 

BMF

Bad Mother....
Lifetime Member
Sep 8, 2014
25,399
59,222
who were the 5? Who replaced Delance? Or did Reese just shift?

When they left Reese in they moved Gouarge to OT....when they replaced Reese, Delance stayed in. I think the lineup w/ Reese in is better than the line up w/ Reese out (and Delance still in).
 

GatorJ

Founding Member
Hopeful
Moderator
Jun 11, 2014
20,998
33,559
Founding Member
When they left Reese in they moved Gouarge to OT....when they replaced Reese, Delance stayed in. I think the lineup w/ Reese in is better than the line up w/ Reese out (and Delance still in).

The backup OL must be horrendous if Delance gets this much PT. He missed about half his blocks.
 

BMF

Bad Mother....
Lifetime Member
Sep 8, 2014
25,399
59,222
The backup OL must be horrendous if Delance gets this much PT. He missed about half his blocks.

Well J, up until last night - through 3 games - we had played exactly FIVE O-lineman all year long! That's why the blowout helped...BUT, they did put Braun in early, in the 1st half, which was a surprise. Then Tarquin played early in the 2nd half. When we get White back it'll really allow Delance to sit - White will play OG, moving Gourage to OT, and allowing Reese or Braun to play the other OG spot. This is great for depth, as we lose 4 OL's next season (Heggie, Reese, Forsythe, and Delance).
 

Shortcast

Newbie
Lifetime Member
Aug 10, 2015
77
81
Sooo happy to finally wash the TA&M loss out of mouth. Its been a long three weeks. Amen Cover2, how nice it is to wake up on Sunday with a good feeling about this team. Lot of youngsters stepped up and played well... Marco who?
If my calculations are right, this last shot of covid has just about done its thing with our team. Hopefully we will be infection free for the balance of the season
The rust on the offense especially Trask was obvious...looked like they were playing in mud and timing seemed off. Toney was the match and he lit a fire. Mizou got caught in the backblast and our D never let them get off the floor.
Great win and I feel much better about our chances against the Dawgs. We have to beat them this year, I'm not sure I can take another year of listening to my sister and some of my golf buddies crow about their team .
 

Gatorbait25

Founding Member
H.E. Pennypacker, wealthy American industrialist
Lifetime Member
Jun 12, 2014
3,537
5,323
Founding Member
The blowout was good for the team for many reasons; mainly confidence, but even more importantly, building depth.

-Tarquin & Braun both played meaningful snaps on the OL. Later in the game Eguaken played (he sailed the high snap over EJ's head for the turnover).

-Along the DL, they gave Lang quite a few snaps, especially in the 2nd half after Carter was out. He played well. Gervon got a lot of PT. Later in the game Lee & Princely got the entire 4th quarter. I know we're thin, but they let Dunlap play a lot too - he's hot and cold, hopefully the increased PT helps him improve.

-The DBs played well, especially the young guys. The biggest surprise (to me) was walk-on Patrick Moorer (#37....not Tyler Waxman, like the dumbass announcers said), he played meaningful snaps (1st half snaps). #22 seems like he'll be a good safety, he's already better than Stiner.

-Why did we run Whittemore as a RB? At that point, even Clement and Lingard hadn't seen the field. But they line up a 6'3 WR at RB for a play? He lost 2 yards.

-Trask was off last night, especially on 3rd down (poor play calling?). He was 16/31 at one point (barely 50%) and finished the game 5 for 5, to finish 21/36.

-Playing AR when you're up 6-0 is so stupid, so stubborn....and so Dan Mullen. Wait until you have a lead to get cute. And it cost us 7 points (I blame this for getting Trask and the OL out of rhythm).

-The kicker did a great job.


Good stuff buddy. A couple of observations I would include is that Jalen Lee needs to play a bit more. He forced that fumble that Kamar recovered. No reason he can’t give us ten or so snaps a game Also anytime Clement gets an opportunity he looks good carrying the ball. He looks third best of the backs to me behind DP and Wright.
 

GatorJ

Founding Member
Hopeful
Moderator
Jun 11, 2014
20,998
33,559
Founding Member
Sooo happy to finally wash the TA&M loss out of mouth. Its been a long three weeks. Amen Cover2, how nice it is to wake up on Sunday with a good feeling about this team. Lot of youngsters stepped up and played well... Marco who?
If my calculations are right, this last shot of covid has just about done its thing with our team. Hopefully we will be infection free for the balance of the season
The rust on the offense especially Trask was obvious...looked like they were playing in mud and timing seemed off. Toney was the match and he lit a fire. Mizou got caught in the backblast and our D never let them get off the floor.
Great win and I feel much better about our chances against the Dawgs. We have to beat them this year, I'm not sure I can take another year of listening to my sister and some of my golf buddies crow about their team .

one of my favorite legacy posters from gsmb.

post more!
 

BMF

Bad Mother....
Lifetime Member
Sep 8, 2014
25,399
59,222
Good stuff buddy. A couple of observations I would include is that Jalen Lee needs to play a bit more. He forced that fumble that Kamar recovered. No reason he can’t give us ten or so snaps a game Also anytime Clement gets an opportunity he looks good carrying the ball. He looks third best of the backs to me behind DP and Wright.

Yes, I was surprised we hadn't seen Lee until last night - especially needing to add size earlier in the season w/ Campbell out. Also last night, Humphries was out and he played ahead of Lee. We need to get both of those guys involved - for depth building. But getting 10 snaps/game from a combination of Lee/Humphries/Goods would be great. I think with Campbell back we may not see any of those 3 against UGA though - it'll likely be a heavy rotation of: Slaton, Campbell, Dunlap, Dexter, Carter, and Lang (if Carter gets suspended, we may just go w/ those 5). The emergence of Lang really helps.

Another note from last night that was a head scratcher - on the 4th and inches play, when Missouri tried to draw us off-sides (and Carter jumped, but their C didn't snap the ball), and then they called timeout....Slaton wasn't on the field. WTF? 4th and inches and our 350lb NT is on the bench. That's Grantham for you.
 

GatorJ

Founding Member
Hopeful
Moderator
Jun 11, 2014
20,998
33,559
Founding Member
Good stuff buddy. A couple of observations I would include is that Jalen Lee needs to play a bit more. He forced that fumble that Kamar recovered. No reason he can’t give us ten or so snaps a game Also anytime Clement gets an opportunity he looks good carrying the ball. He looks third best of the backs to me behind DP and Wright.

to piggyback on you and BMF, One of the biggest issues over the last decade is that we have had such poor coaching and mediocre talent that we haven’t had an opportunity to play backups and build depth.

This was nice.
 

GatorJ

Founding Member
Hopeful
Moderator
Jun 11, 2014
20,998
33,559
Founding Member
Another note from last night that was a head scratcher - on the 4th and inches play, when Missouri tried to draw us off-sides (and Carter jumped, but their C didn't snap the ball), and then they called timeout....Slaton wasn't on the field. WTF? 4th and inches and our 350lb NT is on the bench. That's Grantham for you.

:eek3::boom:
 

cover2

Founding Member
I've grown old
Lifetime Member
Jun 12, 2014
8,834
32,032
Founding Member
One thing I forget to add was that as I listened to Mick and Lee on WRUF, I got very tired of the Biden commercials. I know which way they lean , but dang if it didn’t piss me off to have to hear it during a football broadcast!
 

LongTooth

Senior Member
Lifetime Member
Feb 4, 2015
3,673
5,746
Copeland showed a better pair of hands last night too.

He and Grimes are just not the vacuum cleaners that Pitts is and Cope’s been letting those throws from Trask bounce off his hands all year. Nice to see a little improvement from him.

Please Lord, no more tinker bell crap on defense. Keep it simple and play guys that get results.
 

Users who are viewing this thread

Help Users

You haven't joined any rooms.