Losing Faith Is Easy, But 2-1 Is Not So Shabby, Either. Up Next: Knoxville And The Vols.

Trevor Etienne carried the rock for the winning score. (Chris Spears Photo)

It’s time to put to rest any thoughts that this is or could be a great Florida Gators team. It’s not great – it probably is only pretty good.

By CARLTON REESE

GatorBaitMedia.com

The cynics at this moment control the narrative when it comes to the Florida Gators: The Utah win was a fluke, the USF win was a fluke, Anthony Richardson is not who we thought he was and Billy Napier may not yet be ready to make the right decisions in big moments.

Fair enough, the cynics may be right on all counts, but to what end? The narrow victory over South Florida showed clearly that Florida had not improved much since its meltdown against Kentucky a week earlier and that the Gators are in big trouble heading to Knoxville to face a red-hot Tennessee team.

Against South Florida, we all expected to see Richardson sharp and ready to dominate as before, we all expected to see a Napier game plan to befuddle the Bulls, we all expected a lock-down defensive effort against an utterly outmanned opponent, we all expected a breezy second half with backups getting much-needed reps.

We got none of it. What we did get was yet another slap in the face from old man reality, who keeps screaming at us that this young team with little depth is miles from its intended destination. But we’re fans, and we want to reach that destination now and not later.

So what if the Gators had no business beating South Florida Saturday night? When Florida’s defense could not stop USF, it took a bad snap and a muffed hold on a field goal to deliver the final 31-28 victory, not the recipe for victory one would have expected entering this contest. Florida could not stop USF, but the box score says otherwise.

It’s time to put to rest any thoughts that this is or could be a great Florida Gators team. It’s not great – it probably is only pretty good. But it CAN be great, just likely not until November when this young team has had a chance to hone a new system with a new coaching staff and endure a lot of lumps along the way.

We are watching Richardson learn his trade through the school of hard knocks at the moment. A couple more ugly picks against South Florida have turned the Gators fans’ mantra from “In Anthony We Trust” to “In Anthony We Hope.” But Richardson and his teammates are not the only young ones learning the hard way – the same can be said for Napier.

With the Gators trailing 28-24 with 11:14 to play, it was time for Napier to take the team off Richardson’s shoulders and let his powerful backs and offensive line take this thing over once and for all. An acrobatic catch by Justin Shorter for 39 yards followed by some gash running from Montrell Johnson had Florida set up with 1st-and-goal at the five. That’s when Gator fans saw perhaps the most addled play call since Doug Dickey went for it on fourth-and-one from his 29 against Georgia in 1976.

Not exactly Dickey’s “Fourth and Dumb,” Napier’s call was nearly as disastrous: A low percentage back shoulder fade into the end zone that was picked off.

Florida’s line and running backs were taking over and 88,000 people in attendance including everyone on the USF sideline knew the hammer up the middle would not be stopped.

It was a bad call by Napier, but he later showed he learned from his mistake. Following an interception by Tre’Vez Johnson, Napier decided the best option would be handing the ball off to Trevor Etienne, not once but four straight times. To the relief and ultimate delight of Gator fans everywhere, the formula worked and the Gators went ahead on Etienne’s 3-yard TD run.

Napier learned from his mistake, so all is forgiven.

Even Richardson learned from his mistakes. Both interceptions he threw were never close to being anything but picks, then later when being chased near the sideline and facing the opportunity to thread it into a tight window to a receiver downfield, Richardson chose to launch it out of bounds. Again, another sigh of relief from 80,000 clad in orange in blue.

The temptation for cynicism is too great, especially with the history of this program. A 16-7 lead at home against Kentucky? Game over. A 24-10 lead at home against South Florida? Time for the scrubs to quit salivating and put on a helmet. Sadly, those days are over – Kentucky no longer fears The Swamp and even South Florida comes to Gainesville believing it will win.

In Kentucky and South Florida, we witnessed two teams with near-perfect game plans. Is game planning the Florida Gators such an easy thing these days? Kentucky knew exactly what it took to stifle Richardson and the Gators offense.

South Florida’s game plan of misdirection and multiple shifts never ceased to succeed – Florida never figured it out and was poised to lose until a poor snap lost the Bulls 14 yards after driving inside the Gator 20 with 34 seconds left.

The Gators are 2-1 but two plays from being 0-3. That’s the view of the cynic; the Pollyanna among us revel in the belief that this may be a team that can find ways to win when it shouldn’t.

Come Saturday in Knoxville, there will be no room for errant throws and dizzied defenders – this is the best Volunteers team in 18 years and enters the Florida game more confident than it has been since 1971. No one cares if you deserve your victory in Knoxville, only that it comes home with you. Even the cynics will rejoice a win over Tennessee, fluke or not.