Something’s Got to Give
By Eddie Gilley
When Florida meets Missouri on Saturday at 3:30 p.m., everyone in the stadium with a pulse knows that Florida will want to establish the run game. Led by Heisman hopeful Jadan Baugh, the Gators are averaging 260 rushing yards per game. Baugh is on pace to rush for 1,800 yards and 33 touchdowns for the season if he continues at the current rate. That would place him ahead of Mark Ingram and Reggie Bush, who both won the coveted trophy as two of the last three running backs to lift the image that Baugh strikes after touchdowns. His 33 touchdowns would surpass the 28 scored by Derrick Henry, who was the last running back to win the Heisman in 2015.
All those numbers assume that he and the offensive line can continue the torrid pace of the first four games. But is that a reasonable assumption? Missouri is only giving up an average of 100 yards on the ground in each of its four games. The Tigers are led by former Auburn linebacker Robert Woodyard Jr. and Nicholas Rodriguez, another linebacker from Miami. Another Auburn transfer who supports the run defense well is safety Kensley Louidor-Faustin, who is also a Florida native from Naples. Neither of the players from Florida will need additional motivation to perform well on Saturday, but I’m sure they will want to prove why they shouldn’t have been allowed to leave the state.
Which unit will be able to impose its will on Saturday? Can the Missouri defense keep Baugh bottled up? Can the Florida offensive line continue to open holes against the front seven of the Tigers? How committed will Buster Faulkner be to the run-first strategy that has been so successful for the first four games?
Some of those answers will be dictated by the flow of the game. Can the Florida defense slow down Austin Simmons and the Missouri passing game? The Tigers are only averaging 263 yards per game in the air, but Simmons has thrown 11 touchdowns and zero interceptions. The Gators are giving up 248 yards to passes, but in fairness, most of the teams have been behind early and throwing just to stay in the game! Florida has managed to intercept the ball four times and created four more fumbles to rank 12th overall and third in the SEC.
Something has to give on Saturday. Will it be the Missouri or Florida defense? Each team will try to do it a different way. Florida wants to run the ball; Missouri has had more success through the air. Missouri’s opponents are 9-6 on the year. The Gators’ opponents have lost to no one other than the Gators. The only team with a winning record on the year beat Missouri last week in Starkville. The Bulldogs lit up the secondary of the Tigers. In the end, the key to the game may well be Aaron Philo and the talented receivers at UF. Success from them early will open the run game later. That’s a formula Coach Spurrier used with great success for the Orange and Blue. It just might be the roadmap to get away with a win in Columbia on Saturday. Time will tell which unit gives up the most in the end!
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