Gators Winning Because Everybody's Doing Their Job

THOUGHTS OF THE DAY

By FRANZ BEARD

A few thoughts to jump start your Monday morning:

It started out as a stretch play to the right side for Trevor Etienne Saturday night. Right tackle Austin Barber and right guard O’Cyrus Torrence did their part by muscling South Carolina’s Jordan Burch and Zach Pickens out of the play. Center Kingsley Eguakun got a sealing block on Nick Barrett to create a wide lane for Etienne who began angling toward the west sideline of The Swamp about the 20 yard line.

Darius Rush seemed to have an angle that could have made this an 8-yard gain if only he could have gotten both hands cleanly on Etienne’s shoulder pads. The problem was Etienne was just too fast through the hole and Rush never really had a chance. Etienne blew through that attempted tackle and it was off to the races for an 85-yard touchdown run, the longest run from scrimmage this season for the Gators (6-4, 3-4 SEC).

“I honestly didn’t expect him to take it all the way because on outside zone, I’m expecting him to hit outside, but when I saw him cut it inside and I saw him miss the ‘backer, I’m like, ‘He’s going to the house,’ ain’t no way somebody is going to catch him,” Torrence said after the Gators had clobbered South Carolina 38-6 in the final UF home game of the season. “It was just a good rub-round play and everybody did their job. We had a hat-for-hat and he had to make one person miss and he did it.”

If you’re wondering what seems to have changed for the Gators since the second half of the Georgia game, that’s it – everybody is doing their job. Since the second half of the Georgia game, the Gators have a 96-44 advantage on the scoreboard. Narrowing things down further, if you simply go by the last six quarters – the last two of the 41-24 win over Texas A&M and the win over South Carolina – the scoring differential is 59-6. The yardage advantage in the last six quarters is 744-333. In the past two games, the Gators have outrushed the Aggies and Gamecocks 665-178. In the last three games, the Gators have forced seven turnovers while losing just one.

The Gators have played the last two games focused and motivated. They’re 2-0 in the month of November and while they’re bowl eligible, the goal is to finish the season with an 8-4 record. A couple of weeks ago UF was being shakily projected to go to a low level pre-Christmas bowl game. With the momentum of the last two games, the Gators are now projected to play January 2 in the ReliaQuest Bowl in Tampa (formerly the Outback). To finish November 4-0 and take an 8-4 record into the bowl game, the Gators have to ratchet up the intensity even more on the road at Vanderbilt (4-6, 1-5 SEC) and Florida State (7-3).

“We’re going to be real focused because we want to win out, and that’s the main goal,” Torrence said. “And the away games are the hardest, so we just gotta make sure we stay locked in on the small things that helped us get to this point and we feel like we’re a pretty good team. We played much more team ball and we’re just going to get better from here on out.”

Gators take out Kennesaw State; face FAU tonight

The Gators (2-0) will play their final home game until after Thanksgiving tonight when they take on Florida Atlantic (1-1) at the O-Dome (7 p.m., SEC Network). The Gators are coming off an 88-78 win over Kennesaw State in which Colin Castleton scored a career-high 33 points to go with nine rebounds, three assists, three blocked shots and two steals.

FAU, coached by former Florida assistant Dusty May, whose son Jack is a Gator walk-on, lost to Ole Miss in its most recent game.

Following the FAU game, the Gators will play FSU in Tallahassee Friday night, then travel to Portland, Oregon to play in the Phil Knight Legacy Tournament against Xavier and either Duke or Oregon State in the second game. In the third game of the tournament, the Gators will face either Gonzaga, Portland State, Purdue or West Virginia.

UF women’s basketball: Gators ratchet up the defense

Five Gators scored in double figures Sunday afternoon at the O-Dome but the offense took a back seat to the defense as Florida (2-0) forced 35 turnovers in an 86-40 win over UNC-Asheville. The Gators held UNCA to just 13-52 shooting overall and a dismal 1-18 from the 3-point line. Offensively, the Gators were led by Leilani Corea, who scored 17, while KK Deans had 13, Ra Shaya Kyle and Jordyn Merritt 11 each and Nina Rickards 10. Kyle had 15 rebounds.

Next up for the Gators is a Wednesday night road trip to Tallahassee to face Florida State (3-0).

Head coach Kelly Rae Finley announced Friday evening that the Gators signed 5-star guard Laila Reynolds (6-1, Brandywine, MD Shabach Christian Academy). Reynolds, rated the No. 19 recruit in the country, chose the Gators over Georgia, Mississippi State and UCLA.

UF volleyball: Gators gear up for UK with road win over Texas A&M

The 11th-ranked Gators (20-4, 12-2 SEC) went on the road to College Station Saturday to take a 4-set win over Texas A&M – 25-18, 25-16, 16-25, 25-20 – to set the stage for next weekend’s showdown with Kentucky (16-6, 11-2 SEC) that will probably determine the Southeastern Conference championship. Merritt Beason led the Gators with 15 kills, four blocks and four aces to lead the Gators.

Football Poll-iticks: Top four teams remain the same

Associated Press top 25: 1. Georgia 10-0; 2. Ohio State 10-0; 3. Michigan 10-0; 4. TCU 10-0; 5. Tennessee 9-1; 6. LSU 8-2; 7. Southern California 9-1; 8. Alabama 8-2; 9. Clemson 9-1; 10. Utah 8-2; 11. Penn State 8-2; 12. Oregon 8-2; 13. North Carolina 8-2; 14. Ole Miss 8-2; 15. Washington 8-2; 16. UCLA 8-2; 17. UCF 8-2; 18. Notre Dame 8-2; 19. Kansas State 7-3; 20. Florida State 7-3; 21. Tulane 8-2; 22. Cincinnati 8-2; 23. Coastal Carolina 9-1; 24. Oklahoma State 7-3; 25. Oregon State 7-3

AFCA Coaches top 25: 1. Georgia 10-0; 2. Ohio State 10-0; 3. Michigan 10-0; 4. TCU 10-0; 5. Tennessee 9-1; 6. Southern California 9-1; 7. LSU 8-2; 8. Alabama 8-2; 9. Clemson 9-1; 10. Utah 8-2; 11. North Carolina 9-1; 12. Penn State 8-3; 13. Oregon 8-2; 14. Ole Miss 8-2; 15. Washington 8-2; 16. UCLA 8-2; 17. Kansas State 7-3; 18. UCF 8-2; 19. Notre Dame 7-3; 20. Florida State 7-3; 21. Cincinnati 8-2; 22. Tulane 8-2; 23. Coastal Carolina 9-1; 24. Oklahoma State 7-3; 25. North Carolina State 7-3

SEC football

No. 8 Alabama (8-2, 5-2 SEC): Alabama scored 23 of the last 30 points in its win over Ole Miss, plus gained 198 of its 317 total yards in the second half. Next week: vs. Austin Peay (7-3)

Arkansas (5-5, 2-4 SEC): Without starting QB KJ Jefferson, sidelined with shoulder and clavicle issues, the Arkansas offense managed only 10 points and 249 yards in the loss to LSU. vs. No. 14 Ole Miss (8-2, 4-2 SEC)

Auburn (4-6, 2-5 SEC): Interim head coach Cadillac Williams got the ice bucket treatment from Auburn players after the win over Texas A&M. Next week: vs. Western Kentucky (7-4)

No. 1 Georgia (10-0, 7-0 SEC): Georgia is favored by 22.5 points over Kentucky. Next week: vs. Kentucky (6-4, 3-4 SEC)

Kentucky (6-4, 3-4 SEC): Mark Stoops says that will have to wait until after the regular season ends to decide about staff changes. Offensive coordinator Rich Scangarello, O-line coach Zach Yenser and defensive coordinator Brad White are on very shaky ground. Next week: at No. 1 Georgia (10-0, 6-1 SEC)

No. 6 LSU (8-2, 6-1 SEC): Freshman edge rusher Harold Perkins Jr. was a disruptive force in the 13-10 win over Arkansas. He had eight tackles, four sacks for -33 yards, one pass breakup, one QB hurry and two forced fumbles. Next week: vs. UAB (5-5)

Mississippi State (6-4, 3-4 SEC): Mike Leach was careful not to make the kind of comments that will get him fined by the SEC, but he quipped that the officiating crew for the Georgia game Saturday night paid “homage to aspects of the Pac-12.” Next week: vs. East Tennessee State (3-7)

Missouri (4-6, 2-5 SEC): After getting hammered by Tennessee, HBC Eli Drinkwitz said, “It’s Senior Week. We have two games left to define what this season looks like for our seniors. The best thing we can do right now is look ahead.” Next week: vs. New Mexico State (4-6)

No. 14 Ole Miss (8-2, 4-2 SEC): After losing to Alabama Saturday night, Lane Kiffin said, “We didn’t win the game. Maybe at some other places that’s good or it’s been good here in the past. It ain’t good enough. We came here to win, to beat Alabama and we didn’t do it. So we’re 0-1 today.” Next week: at Arkansas (5-5, 2-4 SEC)

South Carolina (6-4, 3-4 SEC): With No. 5 Tennessee and No. 9 Clemson looming in the final two regular season games, the Gamecocks are now being projected to play in the December 17 Las Vegas Bowl. Next week: vs. No. 5 Tennessee (9-1, 6-1 SEC)

No. 5 Tennessee (9-1, 5-1 SEC): For all the talk about Hendon Hooker, who is having a marvelous season, the player with the eye-popping stats is wide receiver Jalin Hyatt, who has caught 58 passes for 1,116 yards and 15 touchdowns. Next week: at South Carolina (6-4, 3-4 SEC)

Texas A&M (3-7, 1-6 SEC): The Aggies have lost six in a row. Jimbo Fisher’s record after 58 games as the HBC is 37-21. To hire Jimbo, A&M fired Kevin Sumlin who was 42-16 after his first 58 games. Next week: vs. UMass (1-9)

Vanderbilt (4-6, 1-5 SEC): With AJ Swann sidelined, Mike Wright assumed his old starting QB job and had the kind of performance that will make him a Vandy legend. Wright ran for 129 including a 59-yarder for a TD and threw for 184 including an 8-yard TDP that was the game winner over Kentucky with 32 seconds left. Next week: vs. FLORIDA (6-4, 3-4 SEC)

Our SEC orphans in the Big 12

Oklahoma (5-5, 2-5 Big 12): There is widespread panic in the state after the Sooners lost to a West Virginia team playing with its second string QB. Next week: vs. Oklahoma State (7-3, 4-3 Big 12)

Texas (6-4, 4-3 Big 12): In the loss to TCU, Quinn Ewers was just 17-39 passing for 170 yards with no TDs and one interception. Next week: at Kansas (6-4, 3-4 Big 12)

ONE FINAL PITHY THOUGHT: The wonderful thing about November is the way college football’s pretenders are exposed, one-by-one. Over on the Left Coast Saturday night, Oregon lost to Washington and UCLA lost to Arizona, eliminating any chance either of those previously one-loss teams had of making the College Football Playoff. Southern Cal only has one loss, but with games against UCLA and Notre Dame (in South Bend) remaining, there is a good chance the Trojans will go down in flames as will the Pac-12’s chance of landing its first playoff team since 2017.

There are only four remaining unbeaten Division I teams and only three of them have a chance to run the regular season table since Ohio State and Michigan will play in Columbus on November 26. TCU is unbeaten but will probably play Kansas State in the Big 12 title game and K-State is a team TCU does NOT want to play a second time. If the Frogs lose, the Big 12 will be without a playoff team. Again.

So here’s a possibility for you: Georgia and Ohio State finish unbeaten and win their conference title games. Michigan and Tennessee both finish with one loss. We could wind up with two SEC and two Big Ten teams in the playoff.

If you aren’t in favor of an expanded playoff, then that scenario alone should change your mind.