Do the Gators have what it takes to spring the upset on Miami?

(Photo by Chris Spears)

Another week and another chance for the Florida Gators to spring an upset. Last week the Gators had a close but no cigar moment against third-ranked LSU at Tiger Stadium. This week it’s 4^th-ranked Miami (3-0) at Hard Rock Stadium in the Miami burbs.

Last Saturday the Gators played ferocious enough defense to take out LSU if only the offense had cooperated. DJ Lagway played the worst game of his Florida career, heaving five passes to the bad guys, one of which was returned for a touchdown. The Gators had a touchdown called back for holding, the third time that’s happened this season, and two other holding calls helped to snuff out promising drives that had points written all over them.

Despite the numerous blunders, the Gators were in it until the bitter end before they went belly up on the short end of a 20-10 score. That the Gators were able to stay within 10 of the Tigers in that hostile arena does tend to support Billy Napier’s contention that the Gators are close to being a dangerous team if only they can eliminate the mistakes.

In the natural progression of things, one might surmise that little by little, bit by bit Napier has the Gators on track to get on a roll and win some ball games. They were picked to be a top 20 team what they were projected to do when the season began. Instead, they’re 1-2, which is what they were last year three games into the season.

A year ago Napier was teetering on the verge of a pink slip but he rallied the Gators to an 8-5 finish. Napier is back on the endangered species list once again, a place he’s awfully familiar since it seems he’s been there for most of his Florida coaching career.

With nine games remaining on the schedule, Napier has time to play his way off the hottest seat in college football. There isn’t a game on the schedule including Saturday at Miami that the Gators aren’t capable of winning.

By the same token, there isn’t a game on the Florida schedule that the Gators aren’t capable of losing, either. So what is it going to be? Can the Gators turn the season around. Would  a win over Miami tap the brakes on this losing skid, therefore salvaging both the season and Napier’s job?

The people in charge and the ones who will have to write very large checks to buy out Napier’s contract didn’t rush to judgment a year ago and they have shown patience so far, but is their patience wearing thin? If the Gators are dominated by Miami would that cause them to pull the plug or would it simply edge them closer to a decision?

The betting line moved two points Thursday, from 7.5 to 9.5 points which tells us the people in Las Vegas are leaning heavily toward a Miami blowout win. What do the Gators have to do to not only play it closer than 9.5 points but leave Miami with a win that might change the outlook of the entire season?

It all starts with Lagway protecting the football. The Gators cannot turn the ball over and expect to beat the Hurricanes. Secondly, Lagway has to hit open receivers to keep the chains moving. In other words, the Gators have to play a little defense with their offense by keeping the clock moving and the defense off the field.

Secondly, the offensive line has to eliminate the sloppiness that has plagued them every single game. The Gators have to neutralize Miami’s Rueben Bain Jr. coming off the edge and they also have to establish enough of a running threat to keep the pressure off Lagway. Give Jadan Baugh a crease and he can make the Hurricanes pay, but he has to have some blocking.

Third, Lagway has to see the field because Florida’s receivers have been open.

Finally, the Gators have to get pressure on Carson Beck. The Gators picked him off three times a year ago when he was heaving the ball downfield for Georgia. Those picks had everything to do with pressure. Ron Roberts has to have a big game calling the blitzes.

The Gators have the talent to spring the upset. They should have the motivation. The thought here is white knuckles in the fourth quarter. The pick: Miami.   

SEC FOOTBALL

Southeastern Louisiana (2-1) at No. 3 LSU (3-0, 1-0 SEC): For a team that has very little going in the way of offense, this game sets up perfectly for LSU. But what happens if the offense struggles to move the ball once again? Until LSU can show it can move the ball and score some points they will be a ticking time bomb for a disaster. The pick: LSU

Sam Houston (0-3) at No. 8 Texas (2-1): If Arch Manning has another very average game, then Texas can be officially labeled overrated. Arch has been far from the next great thing. If he can’t do it against winless Sam Houston, then how is he going to get it done against Okahoma,  Georgia and the Aggies? The pick: Texas

No. 22 Auburn (3-0) at No. 11 Oklahoma (3-0): It is homecoming for Auburn QB Jackson Arnold, who started for the Sooners last year. He will have to throw the ball better than he has so far if Auburn is to walk away with a win. If John Mateer carves up the Auburn defense he will take the lead as the Heisman fave. The pick: Oklahoma  

Tulane (3-0) at No. 13 Ole Miss (3-0, 2-0 SEC): It’s plug and play for the Ole Miss offense. When Austin Simmons couldn’t answer the bell last week, Trinidad Chambliss stepped in and looked like an absolute world beater. Simmons is healthy enough to play but Chambliss may have very well nudged past Simmons for the No. 1 job. Whoever is at QB, Ole Miss will score plenty. The defense struggled against Arkansas last week. They will give up points but get enough stops against Tulane. The pick: Ole Miss

UAB (2-1) at No. 15 Tennessee (2-1, 0-1 SEC): Job No. 1 for the Tennessee defense is slowing down UAB quarterback Jalen Kitna. If that name sounds familiar it’s because he’s the former Gator.  The Vols are gaining momentum behind QB Joey Aguilar, who has avoided throwing a rash of picks. Aguilar has a serious deep threat in Chris Brazzell II who is off to an All-SEC start. Too much Tennessee in this one. The pick: Tennessee

Georgia State (1-2) at No. 20 Vanderbilt (3-0, 1-0 SEC): Diego Pavia says Vandy is capable of winning a national championship. He’s a pied piper type for whom teammates will run through brick walls to follow him. This game won’t be much of a challenge for the Commodores. They’re going to be 4-0. Everybody is taking Vandy seriously these days. Who would have thought we’d ever see a day like this? The pick: Vanderbilt

South Carolina (2-1, 0-1 SEC) at No. 23 Missouri (3-0); LaNorris Sellers has been cleared to play so South Carolina will have its leader, but will it make a difference? The Gamecocks have been sluggish offensively with or without Sellers, who got conked out last week and spent three quarters of the loss to Vandy on concussion protocol. Mizzou, meanwhile, has a stud QB in Beau Pribula, who is playing like the All-SEC QB Sellers was supposed to be. The Mizzou offense is top ten nationally while the defense is top five. The Fighting Chickens will be overwhelmed. The pick: Missouri

Arkansas (2-1, 0-1 SEC) at Memphis (3-0): The Razorbacks know how to score points but their defense was exposed last week by Ole Miss. Memphis has deep threat wide receivers and a dual threat QB in Brendon Lewis.  The Tigers will put some points on the board, but the defense won’t get enough stops. Taylon Green leads the country in total offense and he has an All-SEC type target in O’Mega Blake to throw it to. Those are just two of the many weapons Arkansas has. Too many for Memphis. The pick: Arkansas

Northern Illinois (1-1) at Mississippi State (3-0): Mississippi State is on upset alert. Northern Illinois bushwhacked Notre Dame in South Bend last year and won’t be intimidated by all the cowbells. Northern Illinois plays stout defense and if Mississippi State is looking ahead to Tennessee, then they will lose this one. This is going to be a close one, but Mississippi State has already shown it can win when it went white knuckles against then 12^th-ranked Arizona State. That will be the difference. The pick: Mississippi State

FINALLY, MAD MAX’S STATS RESTORED

It took 35 years, but Vernon Maxwell’s scoring records were officially restored by the University of Florida.

“It’s time,” Florida athletic director Scott Stricklin said in restoring the 1,404 points Maxwell scored in his junior and senior seasons to the record book. With the acknowledgement, Maxwell is officially the No. 1 scorer in Florida basketball history with 2,450 points, an average of 18.8 per game.

Maxwell had his junior and senior season records stripped by then UF athletic director Bill Arnsparger after the NCAA sanctioned the basketball program. Florida’s NCAA Tournament wins in 1987 and 1988 were vacated. In response, head coach Norm Sloan was fired and Maxwell was singled out.

For 35 years, the only mention of Maxwell in the scoring column were the 1,006 he scored as a freshman and sophomore. Calls to restore the points from his junior and senior season fell on deaf ears until Stricklin removed the sanction Arnsparger placed on Maxwell.

“Vernon Maxwell is one of the greatest players ever to wear a Gator uniform,” Stricklin said. “You could not write the history of Florida basketball without him. What happened with the program and the NCAA did not change what Vernon accomplished on the court in helping to put the Gators on the national basketball map. He earned those points.”

From Florida Vernon went on to the NBA where he was part of two championship teams (Houston Rockets, 1994-95) during a 12-year career in which he scored 10,912 points (12.8 average).

It is a travesty that for 35 years the University of Florida refused to acknowledge Vernon Maxwell’s records but better late than never that his scoring records have been restored.