Thoughts of the Day: October 7, 2026

A few thoughts to jump start your Wednesday morning:

Albert Einstein is credited with the quote, "Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results." Whether Einstein actually said it or not is debatable. What isn't debatable is Florida's defense, which keeps doing the same thing over and over again – allowing explosive plays of 10 or more yards. The Gators are 15th in the SEC and No. 95 nationally in explosive plays allowed – 67 of 10+ yards, 22 of 20+ yards, 11 of 30+, five of 40+, two each of plays netting more than 50, 60 and 70 yards, plus one 80-yard play.

The numbers are real and they prompted UF defensive coordinator Brad White to have one of those Captain Obvious moments Tuesday.

"We can't give up explosives both in the pass game and then in the run game," White said.

The Missouri game was the perfect example. The Gators (4-1, 2-1 SEC) gave up 560 yards and 45 points. Missouri ran for 220 yards, the first time the Gators had allowed more than 128 in a game all season. Mizzou had 34 carries that netted 63 yards (1.85 per carry). However, the Gators allowed runs of 77 and 80 yards on the other two carries. Missouri threw for 340 yards, averaging 11.3 yards per attempt. Mizzou, like the other teams, isn't beating the Gators with long bombs – only three plays all year have gone for 40 or more yards – but those intermediate range passes of 14-17 yards are killers because they loosen up the safeties, forcing them to play deeper while creating more space for receivers.

Florida is dead last in the SEC in pass defense – 266.6 yards per game, 7.9 yards per attempt – and No. 128 in the nation. Overall, the UF defense is 15th in the SEC and No. 107 nationally (393 yards per game).

Things have to change starting with Saturday's game with South Carolina (2-3, 0-3 SEC). The Gamecocks aren't winning games but it isn't due to a lack of offense. South Carolina is third in the SEC in total offense, averaging 491 yards per game (256 on the ground, 235 through the air).

"Everything's up for adjustment," White said. "Scheme, personnel, groupings, how you go about it. Any time you're not playing well or you're getting exposed in a certain area. To just continue to do the same thing wouldn't be real smart. So everything's always being evaluated. How we're coaching it is being evaluated. From us as coaches, are we saying it right? Are we teaching it right? Are their eyes in the right spot? All of these things. Yeah, everything's up for adjustment."

The Gators are at the halfway point of the season. They entertain thoughts of making the College Football Playoff as an at-large team. They won't make it unless adjustments are made that result in the defense getting off the field.

ELSEWHERE IN THE SEC

No. 6 Alabama (5-0, 3-0 SEC): Dennis Franchione, who was the head coach of the Crimson Tide for two years after succeeding Mike DuBose, passed away on Monday. He was 75 years old. Alabama went 17-8 in his two seasons. Saturday: No. 2 Georgia (5-0, 3-0 SEC), 7:30 p.m. ABC

Arkansas (2-3, 0-2 SEC): Wide receiver Jelani Watkins is no longer with the team. Instead, he will focus on track where he has run a 9.95 100 meters and a 19.87 200. Watkins has run a 6.46 60 meters indoors. Saturday: No. 15 Tennessee (4-1, 1-1 SEC), 4:15 p.m. SEC Network

Auburn (3-2, 1-2 SEC): The Tigers are using the open date to work out problems that have been plaguing the offensive line. Auburn ranks dead last in the SEC and No. 133 nationally in sacks allowed (18 for -79 yards). Poor protection is one of the reasons QB Byrum Brown is tied for last in the SEC with seven interceptions, most of which have been thrown under duress.

No. 2 Georgia (5-0, 3-0 SEC): Georgia's secondary, which has picked off four passes and is allowing only 5.7 yards per pass attempt, will be challenged by Alabama quarterback Keelon Russell, who has thrown for three touchdowns and run for one more in each of his starts this season. Georgia has recorded 13 sacks for -102 yards. Saturday: at No. 6 Alabama (5-0, 3-0 SEC), 7:30 p.m. ABC

Kentucky (4-1, 2-1 SEC): As many as seven Wildcats could miss Saturday's game with No. 10 LSU due to injuries including running back Jason Patterson, who averages 7.89 yards per carry … Will the Wildcats be able to run the ball against the Tigers, who are giving up just 58.4 yards per game on the ground, 2.61 yards per carry. Saturday: No. 10 LSU (4-1, 1-1 SEC), 7 p.m. ESPN

No. 10 LSU (4-1, 1-1 SEC): Quarterback Sam Leavitt, who has been battling hamstring issues, says he expects to be 100 percent for Saturday's game at Kentucky … The Tigers are second in the nation in sacks (22) and total defense (220.6 yards per game). Saturday: at Kentucky (4-1, 2-1 SEC), 7 p.m. ESPN

No. 17 Mississippi State (4-1, 2-1 SEC): The health of quarterback Kamario Taylor is priority No. 1 during his off week. Taylor injured his ankle against Missouri, then had to leave the game against Alabama where he was seen on the sidelines in a walking boot in the fourth quarter.

No. 14 Missouri (4-1, 1-1 SEC): Freshman offensive lineman Johnnie "DJ" Jones is at the Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville where he is waiting for a heart transplant. Jones was a 4-star recruit out of Venice High School who chose Missouri over 32 other offers including Florida State and Ole Miss … Against the run, the Tigers are allowing just 88.6 yards per game and 2.61 yards per carry. Saturday: Texas A&M (3-2, 1-2 SEC), 12 noon ABC

Oklahoma (2-2, 0-1 SEC): The reason the Sooners are only 7.5-point underdogs to Texas is their defense. Oklahoma is fifth in the nation, allowing just 238 yards per game. The reason why the Sooners have lost two games and have struggled is the offense, which (a) can't run the football (99 yards per game); and (b) turnovers (10) which ranks No. 131 in all of Division I. Saturday: No. 1 Texas (4-0, 1-0 SEC), 3:30 p.m., ABC, in Dallas

No. 9 Ole Miss (3-1, 1-1 SEC): Kewan Lacy is set to return to the lineup Saturday at Vanderbilt. Plagued by a shoulder injury that has been slow to heal, Lacy has only 191 rushing yards in the three games he has played. He averaged more than 20 carries a game last year, but the injury has caused him to miss one game entirely this year while averaging just 13 carries in the games in which he has played. Saturday: at Vanderbilt (3-2, 0-2 SEC), 3:30 p.m., ESPN

South Carolina (2-3, 0-3 SEC): One reason Shane Beamer is under such intense heat by the South Carolina fan base is his record against power conference opponents (21-32). In those 32 losses the Gamecocks have been outscored by an average of 31-18. In their three SEC losses the Gamecocks have been outscored 125-86 … Suspended defensive end Dylan Stewart is back with the team and is expected to make the trip to Florida. Saturday: at No. 16 FLORIDA (4-1, 2-1 SEC), 12:45 p.m. SEC Network

No. 15 Tennessee (4-1, 1-1 SEC): Freshman quarterback Faizon Brandon has been benched. Redshirt freshman George MacIntyre, who completed 8-10 of his passes for 86 yards against Auburn is the new starter … DeJuan Lane, who had nine tackles, 2.5 sacks and an interception against Auburn was named Walter Camp National Defensive Player of the Week. Saturday: at Arkansas (2-3, 0-2 SEC), 4:15 p.m. SEC Network

No. 1 Texas (4-0, 1-0 SEC): Penalties have been killing offensive momentum for the Longhorns, who have been flagged 19 times in the last two games … Running back Hollywood Smothers, who missed the Tennessee game, is expected back at full speed against Oklahoma. Saturday: Oklahoma (2-2, 0-2 SEC), 3:30 p.m., ABC, in Dallas

Texas A&M (3-2, 1-2 SEC): The Aggies are averaging nearly 100 fewer yards per game than they did in 2025. The biggest reason for the dropoff is in the passing game where Marcel Reed has thrown four interceptions while averaging just 6.1 yards per attempt. Reed averaged 8.4 yards per attempt in 2025 when the Aggies averaged 259.8 passing yards per game. This year they have fallen off to 188.8 yards per game. Saturday: at No. 14 Missouri (4-1, 1-1 SEC), 12 noon ABC

Vanderbilt (3-2, 0-2 SEC): Linebacker Bryce Cowan thinks the Commodores can beat Ole Miss and it starts with defending QB Trinidad Chambliss. "All we got to do is keep him caged," Cowan said. "Nothing too special." Saturday: No. 9 Ole Miss (3-1, 1-1 SEC), 3:30 p.m. ESPN

ONE FINAL PITHY THOUGHT: Like it or not – and apparently most of the fans across the country don't like it – the powers that be in college football are bound and determined to double the size of the College Football Playoff. The expansionists and ESPN have two days to reach agreement on playoff expansion and if that fails, the CFP people will put expansion on the open market. A decision whether to expand or keep the playoff status quo has to be agreed upon by December 1.

Count me as opposed to expanding to 24 teams. I think there are more serious issues facing college football than playoff expansion right now. Solve problems such as free agency, NIL, eligibility, conference realignment and football seceding from NCAA control, and once those matters are resolved, then bring playoff expansion into the ongoing discussion of what's best for the sport.

The 12-team playoff format has been in existence since 2024 and while it is better than the old four-team playoff it is not without issues, chief among them the four teams that get a first-round bye don't get a home game. Their first playoff action is the quarterfinals at a neutral site. In two years, only Indiana, which eventually won the national championship last season, has moved on after the first-round bye. The other seven seeded teams are 0-7. Solve the problems of the 12-team format before expanding makes common sense, but since when does common sense enter into the equation?

If there is to be expansion, I'm far more in favor of 16 teams rather than 24. The top six conference champs and 10 at-large teams would work best but the Big Ten is adamantly opposed to 16 teams and wants 24. Why inject mediocrity into the playoff equation which is what would surely happen with 24 teams? We almost get that with 12. When expansion to 24 teams becomes the law of the land we're going to get 8-4 and 7-5 teams in the playoff. Is that what we really want to see? The playoff should be a reward for excellence. Does anyone think 8-4 or 7-5 is excellent?

I'm told that 24 teams in the playoff is progress, that it will improve the game. Common sense says it will be a step in the wrong direction.