We just keep on getting better and better

[78]

The Pruitt kick....

Sturdy board.

 

[OcalaGator83]

I've been bearish on Mullen since the hire, I bought in on the hype after Charleston Southern just to be duped by the Kentucky game. We beat a terrible CSU team last week (I was there and they were awful) and then we demolished UToothless in Knoxville, on the same night Kentucky beats Mississippi State.

It is very hard for me to know what to make of our team. The special teams play is definitely for real and vastly improved, nobody can deny that and given's Mullen's lineage as a Meyer disciple, not terribly surprising (also firing Nord was instant improvement). The defense seemed really great last night, but I can't escape wondering if UT was really just that bad. I felt like the offense was pedestrian for the most part and continue to believe Franks will get eaten alive by good defenses. It seemed like the line played better and the backs ran hard. Overall the O did what they needed to do even if they weren't terribly impressive doing it.

So after the heartbreak that was Kentucky, I'm not ready to buy in to Mullen yet, but we definitely seem to have improved on the things that killed us vs. Kentucky, which is a positive sign. Too early for me to declare him the answer to our problems but I definitely am seeing some positives that have been absent for years.

 

[gatormandan]

but I definitely am seeing some positives that have been absent for years.

This is what we were all hoping for at the start of the season. Now we just need to continue to build on it.

 

[Omar's Coming Yo!]

Good post Crete. I agree with most of it and the last 2 weeks have been strange games in that both teams were absolutely AWFUL, and you are supposed to win those big, which we did. By our own doing or thru the other team's gifts, we had short fields or ST or defensive scores. Nothing wrong with that at all. But those types of plays should clearly juice the offense when it does get the ball and has already demoralized the opponent. So it is concerning that the offense had every opportunity to make the game easy in the 3rd Quarter and laid an egg, on a team that had quit. Perhaps things would have been different had the play sequencing been different at the end of the 1st half. 1st down in the red zone, over 1 minute to play and all 3 timeouts, we called 3 straight pass plays. Not a single run play on them to see if they wanted to tackle. Well we settled for a FG and that could be considered a win for the D. go into half and we immediately cause a fumble on the kickoff. What was the 1st play? A simple run to Scarlett, 4 attempted ole arm tackles by Tinerc and bam an easy TD, b/c Tinerc had quit. Why not try that play on the last drive of the 1st half? I have never thought Cousin Eddie had a feel for situational game management and he made another mistake with the timing of a timeout last nite. No biggie to most, b/c it was a blowout, etc. but those things matter in a real game. Even if we could have scratched a first down or 2 just to flip the field, that would have been considered a positive possession. Tinerc is far and away the worst team on our schedule in conference play so if you can't put a game away on offense against them after they have quit, I think it is only fair to ask what happens when the game is on the line and you need to scratch out those yards and milk the clock.

It reminded me of the SCAR game in 2012.

 

[Bama&GatorFan]

Beating Tennessee by that margin will get a solid "A" grade from me every time. I don't care about the details.

 

[GatorFL]

Ox I agree with your OP. As I posted elsewhere, Mullen is doing his job. He's working with the hand he's been dealt with the lineup he has and he has been making them better each week. The offseason S&C and better coaching is evident. The whole team is improved I'm starting to think that Mullen has a long term plan: he iis building a solid foundation for the Gators. In a couple years I think we will be able to see the substantial difference.

In the meantime the Gators have a lot of work to do. Midterm, Mullen needs to recruit the lines and midfielders and work on the QB situation.

Nobody saw Kentucky blossoming into a powerhouse but I think they are a solid #2 behind UGA in the east. Who cares? We have a lot of work to do and the Gators can concentrate on the priorities.

 

[Ancient Reptile]

Great win, just what we needed. Coach Mullen did a great job with preparing the team mentally and physically. Love our Special Teams. Our Defense showed they can actually tackle and put some of pressure on their QB. The o-line did showed some improvement, Franks made some great plays but I'm still not convinced he's our guy . We have to get Pierce and Swain more touches. After seeing Miss St lose to Kentucky, we have a good chance to bet them also.

No. Pierce has to get himself some more touches. Swain is doing that already and likely will keep it up.

 

[GatorTom85]

Although I am admittedly grading on a curve this week, I am giving them an A due to the overall effort they showed in a super hostile road environment (briefly anyway) by playing as a cohesive unit while making numerous big plays and minimizing mistakes. Extra credit was also applied based on their many hustle plays that led to both turnovers and long TDs. Wish I'd been there in person. I bet it would have been the easiest exit from stadium parking for an event at a 100,000 seat stadium that I'd ever experience in a lifetime.