Florida football: The deficiencies have been there all along

A friend of mine, doing his best to explain what he’s seen of the first three-quarters of Florida’s football season, offered this analogy:

“When I was old enough to bet the ponies, I had my first experience at Hialeah, back when it was the most beautiful horse track in the world. Didn’t know what I was doing, got lucky on a few bets from listening to the guy standing on the rail beside me, then we got to the eighth race. He had warned me against betting longshots, but this one black thoroughbred caught my eye – 50-to-1 – and I’m saying ‘No way! Look how strong and fast this guy looks. The other seven horses look like ponies next to him.’ The guy next to me on the rail simply told me to read the Racing Form before I did something stupid.

“I ignored the advice, bet it all and I’m feeling really good when my horse leaves the gate like he’s shot out of a cannon. It’s a mile-and-1/16th. At the quarter pole he’s gassed and five horses pass him by. He finishes dead last. I lose $200 and go home empty. The Gators are like my horse at Hialeah. Sprinted out of the gate but burning out at the quarter pole.”

Now that the Gators seem one step away from total freefall – they couldn’t go 0-4 in November could they? – everybody is looking for answers, trying to pinpoint when things suddenly went south after such a great start. I agree with my friend, that the Gators sprinted through September and like the racehorse, felt the burning lungs and slowing feet once October got here, but I think it goes beyond that.

I’ll start with something Urban Meyer said at halftime of the Oklahoma debacle shortly after his place in the Ring of Honor at BHG had been unveiled.

“I actually saw deficiencies when I was here in the spring,” Meyer said.

If Urban was seeing the issues during a couple of days in Gainesville, imagine what Sumrall and staff were seeing on a daily basis. Urban and Jon Sumrall are such football junkies that you know darn good and well that the deficiencies were discussed when the Sumralls visited the Meyers in Sarasota during the late spring/early summer months.

How do you deal with obvious deficiencies? You do it with smoke and mirrors, which is what the month of September was all about. With the speed and playmaking abilities of Vernell Brown III forcing more of a straight up defense instead of the stacked boxes the Gators are seeing now, there were creases through which Jadan Baugh could slither through on his way to the second level. With the safeties backed up, the problems at tackle weren’t nearly as obvious. It’s amazing how much better Aaron Philo was throwing the ball when he had VBIII to throw to. Reminds me of 1989 when Stacey Simmons blew out a knee and the Gators had no passing game.

Now that I’ve seen five games since the 4-0 start, I have a greater appreciation for VBIII and see how Buster Faulkner was able to cover up inadequacies that you have to know he saw back in the spring. One player really can have that much of an impact. Think back to Percy Harvin’s freshman year in 2006 and how his speed transformed Florida’s offense. No, the offense wasn’t dynamic but there is no way in hell the Gators win a national championship without him in the lineup. Percy created almost as much havoc just by being on the field as he did with the ball in his hands.

Since VBIII was injured, the Gators have yet to score 30 points or gain 400 yards in a game. Jadan Baugh, who ran for 600 yards and 11 touchdowns in the first four games has 236 yards and three TDs in the last five. It’s rare that he gets to the second level. Why? Because the safeties crowd the line of scrimmage and the interior linemen can’t cover for the tackles. One-on-one they’re a disaster both in pass protection and in the run game. Back the safeties off, make opponents play the Gators straight up and watch how many yards Jadan Baugh gains. Watch how many open receivers there are for Philo or Tramell Jones to find in the passing game.

Watching these last five games, I’ve reached the conclusion that the Gators have to address the following issues in the offseason:

1. Find more of a dynamic playmaker at quarterback in the portal. I don’t think either Philo or Jones can lead the Gators to the promised land. It does NOT have to be someone who started at a power school. Trinidad Chambliss came from DII. Darian Mensah got his start for Sumrall at Tulane. There are quarterbacks out there just maybe not playing at one of the power schools.

2. Find at least five experienced offensive linemen in the portal, especially three tackles. Phil Trautwein needs an 8-man rotation minimum.

3. Add another receiver with outstanding speed from the portal. Eric Singleton was supposed to be a dude but he’s been injured all year and has suspect hands. Micah Mays has been a total bust. The Gators have young guys, but need someone with experience to avoid another problem like the one right now with injured VBIII.

4. Corners. Several of them. Guys that can cover. Guys that can tackle.

5. Linebacker depth. Myles Graham is outstanding, Aaron Chiles okay and Ty Jackson a potential big time player. Nine or ten quality linebackers are a necessity.

6. An intense offseason with Rusty Whitt. One offseason was important but the Gators still need more time to put grown men on the field. As painful as it is to admit, Florida has to take a look at Georgia who not only look the part but play the part.

Unless the Gators want to emulate a thoroughbred speed horse that fizzles out before making the clubhouse turn, changes are in order. Glaring deficiencies have to be addressed. The Gators can still get to seven or eight wins this season, but somehow the smoke and mirrors approach has to work again. But it won’t work again for another year.

College Football Playoff top 25 (SEC teams bold face): 1. Georgia 8-1; 2. Utah 9-0; 3. Alabama 7-2; 4. UCLA 9-0; 5. Notre Dame 8-1; 6. Texas 7-2; 7. Miami 8-1; 8. Tennessee 7-2; 9. Indiana 8-1; 10. BYU 7-2; 11. Kentucky 8-1; 12. Texas Tech 8-1; 13. Wake Forest 8-1; 14. Houston 8-2; 15. Iowa 7-2; 16. Oregon 6-3; 17. South Carolina 6-3; 18. Southern Cal 7-2; 19. Ole Miss 6-3; 20. Ohio State 6-3; 21. LSU 6-3; 22. Missouri 6-3; 23. Arizona 7-2; 24. Boise State 8-1; 25. Oklahoma State 6-3

Countdown to firing day: Nov. 11, 2026 edition

Extinct species list

Mike Norvell, Florida State: The smart choice is Jimbo Fisher who has already won a national championship at FSU, lives in Tallahassee and works cheap thanks to $77 million of buyout money from the Aggies. Whoever said they do smart things at FSU however?

Dave Aranda, Baylor: Jeff Traylor (UTSA), Jason Eck (New Mexico) and G.J. Kinne (Texas State) are the prominent names. In their wildest pipe dreams they want Lincoln Riley.

Dave Doeren, North Carolina State: Philip Rivers is going to be the next head coach at NC State.

Mike Locksley, Maryland: Brian Kelly wants the job but does Maryland want him? Jake Dickert (Wake Forest Gump), Jason Eck (New Mexico) and Billy Napier are being mentioned.

Phil Longo, Sam Houston: They want Josh McCown, a SHU alum and QB coach of the Minnesota Vikings.

On life support

Greg Schiano, Rutgers: Rutgers announced Tuesday that he gets one more year. Reality check: They didn’t want to shell out $20 million to buy him out.

Deion Sanders, Colorado: The Buffs are 3-6, Deion is saying blame me and the boosters are wondering who else is there to blame but Deion. Do they want to pony up $26 million to fire him?

Joe Moorhead, Akron: The season comes to a merciful conclusion on November 27. They don’t have money to fire him but they would like to.

Kyle Whittingham, Michigan: He fired his offensive coordinator. Will that be enough to keep his job? The $26 million buyout is chump change for the boosters.

Endangered species list

Steve Sarkisian, Texas: The Longhorns are now 7-2 and looking like a playoff team. That doesn’t mean Sark is out of hot water.

Brent Venables, Oklahoma: The win over Florida certainly helped his status. Can he get the Sooners to seven wins?

Kalen DeBoer, Alabama: He clunked LSU and is 7-2.

Tony Elliott, Virginia: There are three winnable games remaining on the schedule. Elliott needs to win two of them at least.

Tim Albin, Charlotte: He’s 3-18 in two years. Dead end job and a 15,000-seat stadium as his home field.

Pat Narduzzi, Pittsburgh: The Panthers are 6-3 and an 8-4 finish is realistic. The boosters think it’s 1976 all over again however.

Bill O’Brien, Boston College: BC is 4-5 and two of the last three are at Notre Dame and at Miami. They’re too cheap to fire him this year.

Photo courtesy UAA (University Athletic Association, FloridaGators.com) and Ethan Caruso. See the official Florida Gators photo galleries at FloridaGators.com.