A few thoughts to jump start your Wednesday morning: GATORS NO. 9 IN COACHES, REMAIN NO. 13 IN AP Obviously, the coaches were more impressed with Florida’s 35-14 season-opening win over Florida Atlantic than were the Associated Press voters. The Gators moved up two spots to No. 9 in the Coaches Top 25 Poll but they remained at No. 13 in the AP Poll despite losses by then No. 9 North Carolina and then No. 12 Wisconsin. Leaping ahead of the Gators were former No. 18 Iowa and No. 19 Penn State while UF remained stuck at No. 13. The Coaches Top 25: 1. Alabama 1-0; 2. Georgia 1-0; 3. Ohio State 1-0; 4. Oklahoma 1-0; 5. Texas A&M 1-0; 6. Clemson 0-1; 7. Notre Dame 1-0; 8. Cincinnati 1-0; 9. FLORIDA 1-0; 10. Iowa State 1-0; 11. Oregon 1-0; 12. Iowa 1-0; 13. Penn State 1-0; 14. Southern Cal 1-0; 15. Texas 1-0; 16. UCLA 2-0; 17. Wisconsin 0-1; 18. Utah 1-0; 19. Coastal Carolina; 20. Ole Miss 1-0; 21. Virginia Tech 1-0; 22. North Carolina 0-1; 23. Oklahoma State 1-0; 24. Miami 0-1; 25. Arizona State 1-0 The Associated Press Top 25: 1. Alabama 1-0; 2. Georgia 1-0; 3. Ohio State 1-0; 4. Oklahoma 1-0; 5. Texas A&M 1-0; 6. Clemson 0-1; 7. Cincinnati 1-0; 8. Notre Dame 1-0; 9. Iowa State 1-0; 10. Penn State 1-0; 12. Oregon 1-0; 13. FLORIDA 1-0; 14. Southern Cal 1-0; 15. Texas 1-0; 16. UCLA 2-0; 17. Coastal Carolina 1-0; 18. Wisconsin 0-1; 19. Virginia Tech 1-0; 20. Ole Miss 1-0; 21. Utah 1-0; 23. Arizona State 1-0; 24. North Carolina 0-1; 25. Auburn 1-0 ZACHARY CARTER SEC CO-DEFENSIVE LINEMAN OF THE WEEK Florida defensive end Zachary Carter, who had three sacks for -25 yards and a forced fumble in the Gators’ 35-14 win over Florida Atlantic, was selected SEC Co-Defensive Lineman of the Week. Carter attributes his fast start to determination to improve from last season. “I had a solid year, but I just know that it was a lot of plays I left out there on the field,” Carter said Tuesday, adding that he dedicated himself in the offseason, changed his eating habits so he could get leaner, faster and stronger and put in extra reps every day so he could be more explosive when the ball is snapped. When the Gators face South Florida at Raymond James Stadium, it will be a homecoming for Carter, who played his high school football at Tampa Hillsborough. He’s of six scholarship players from Tampa on the Florida roster. COLE CUBELIC (SEC NETWORK/ESPN RADIO) ON FLORIDA VS. ALABAMA “I do not think Florida can beat Alabama with Emory Jones. Florida has a better chance of beating Alabama with (Anthony) Richardson in the game.” IF THE PLAYOFF WERE HELD TODAY It’s still early in the season and much can change when it comes to the College Football Playoff over the next three months but if the playoff were held today under the current four-team format, the SEC would have half the teams. Semifinals: 1. Alabama vs. 4. Oklahoma; 2. Georgia vs. 3. Ohio State If the playoff were expanded to the proposed 12-team format in which the top six conference champs are automatic bids, this is how it would play out (using Coaches Poll): Top 6 Conference champs: Alabama (SEC), Ohio State (Big 10), Oklahoma (Big 12), Cincinnati (American), Clemson (ACC), Oregon (Pac-12) At-large: Georgia (SEC), Texas A&M (SEC), Notre Dame (Independent), FLORIDA (SEC), Iowa State (Big 12), Iowa (Big Ten) Automatic byes: 1. Alabama, 2. Georgia, 3. Ohio State, 4. Oklahoma First round games on campus: 12. Iowa at 5. Texas A&M; 11. Oregon at 6. Clemson; 10. Iowa State at 7. Notre Dame; 9. Florida at 8. Cincinnati. COUNTDOWN TO FIRING DAY: WEEK ONE Extinct Species List Les Miles: Too many Title IX issues got him fired at Kansas. Randy Edsall: He announced he’s retiring at the end of the year. UConn said thanks for offering but why not just quit now? Translation: You’re fired. Good riddance. On Life Support Scot Loeffler, Bowling Green: The blowout loss to Tennessee was just the beginning of a very long season. If he wins four games he should be coach of the year in the Mac and Cheese. Scott Frost, Nebraska: If he loses to Buffalo this week he may not make it through September. Nebraska fans are already thinking the September 18 game with Oklahoma in Norman will be a dial-a-score loss. He needs six or seven wins and that’s going to be extremely difficult. Walt Bell, UMass: UMass is a 37.5-point road dog to Boston College this week. Will he still be around when the Minutemen play Rhode Island and Maine back-to-back? Tom Arth, Akron: That September 18 game with something called Bryant can’t get here fast enough. It’s the only game on the schedule the mighty Zips can win. Aubrin cold-cocked them 60-10 last week. Endangered Species List Ed Orgeron, LSU: The NCAA, Title IX and that loss to UCLA are giant storm clouds on the horizon. If the Tigers lose four this year (possible) does he survive with all this baggage? Dino Babers, Syracuse: He got a win over Ohio U. He only needs five more to remain gainfully employed. Chip Kelly, UCLA: He’s off to a 2-0 start with a win over LSU. Things are looking up. Clay Helton, Southern Cal: One win down, nine to go and they can’t fire him even though they’re dying to give him the pink slip. Thomas Hammock, Northern Illinois: He went for the win with a 2-point conversion and got it in a paycheck game against Georgia Tech. That counts for something. Anything close to .500 and he’s got a job next year. Dana Dimmel, UTEP: He has two wins already. If he can get to four he can probably stop sweating. If he were to get to five they’ll tear up the old contract and give him another one with a raise and extension. Checking for a pulse Dana Holgorsen, Houston: When you’re the highest paid Group of Five coach they expect you to win. So far he hasn’t delivered but the $8 million buyout may save his hide. Geoff Collins, Georgia Tech: That loss to Northern Illinois didn’t help things. After Kennesaw State there are back-to-back games with Clemson and UNC. Patience is wearing thin at the trade school on North Avenue. Marcus Arroyo, UNLV: He’s oh-fer his UNLV career (0-6 last year, 0-1 this year). He’s not going to get a win this month (Arizona State, Iowa State, Fresno State looming). The clock is ticking. Hoping He Would Just Up and Leave Jim Harbaugh, Michigan: The schedule says 10-2 or 11-1. One of those losses will be to Ohio State which will make the alums wish he would just pack his bags and find someplace else to coach. OVER, UNDER, AROUND AND THROUGH THE SEC Alabama (1-0): Quarterback Bryce Young, who threw for four touchdowns in his first collegiate start against Miami, was named SEC Offensive Player of the Week. Placekicker Will Reichard, who kicked three field goals and five extra points was the Special Teams Player of the Week … Basketball: Texas Tech transfer guard Nimari Burnett has reportedly suffered a serious knee injury. Arkansas (1-0): Saturday’s game with Texas at Reynolds Stadium in Fayetteville is a standing room only sellout. Auburn (1-0): Wide receiver Demetris Robertson, who transferred from Georgia, said he came to Auburn because he was “trying to play for a program where it fits me best.” After 42 catches for 443 yards and three TDs in three years at Georgia, Robertson caught three passes for 28 yard in his Auburn debut. Georgia (1-0): Kirby Smart confirmed that redshirt freshman Carson Beck is the No. 2 quarterback behind JT Daniels … Safety Christopher Smith whose 74-yard interception return was the game’s only touchdown in Georgia’s win over Clemson, was named SEC Defensive Player of the Week. Nose tackle Jordan Davis was Co-Defensive Lineman of the Week. Kentucky (1-0): The Wildcats host Missouri in their first SEC game of the year Saturday. A year ago, Mizzou beat UK, 20-10, prompting HBC Mark Stoops to tell Chris Doering of the SEC Network, “We’ll be better prepared this year” … Center Luke Fortner was SEC Co-Offensive Lineman of the Week for his play against Louisiana-Monroe … Basketball: John Calipari revealed that despite being vaccinated, he tested positive for COVID-19 during the summer, which is why he was absent on the recruiting trail and for the NBA Draft. LSU (0-1): Injured and out for Saturday’s game with McNeese State are starting offensive tackles Austin Deculus and Cam Wire, wide receiver Jontre Kirkland and defensive ends Soni Fonua and Ali Gaye. Free safety Jay Ward is questionable. Out for the season is linebacker Jared Small ... Kevontre Bradford, who transferred to Oklahoma during the summer, is enrolled once again at LSU. There are reports that he is hoping to play this season. Mississippi State (1-0): Starting right guard Kwatrivous “Dollarbill” Johnson was arrested for malicious mischief Monday. He was released on $482.50 bond and is due in court on October 5. Missouri (1-0): Shawn Robinson, who began the 2020 season as Mizzou’s starting quarterback, switched to safety this year. In his first game as a safety against Central Michigan, Robinson had four solo tackles including a sack for a 7-yard loss. Ole Miss (1-0): Tom Luginbill of ESPN, himself a former quarterback in his playing days at Georgia Tech, was highly impressed with Ole Miss QB Matt Corral vs. Louisville. On a Birmingham radio show Tuesday morning, Luginbill said, “If people are comparing Spencer Rattler (Oklahoma QB) to Matt Corral, Rattler is not even in his league” … Placekicker Caden Costa, who kicked three field goals and four extra points against Louisville, was SEC Co-Freshman of the Week. South Carolina (1-0): Quarterback Luke Doty, who missed the season opener, says he is close to 100 percent and could be available for Saturday’s game at East Carolina. In Doty’s absence, former grad assistant Zeb Noland threw four touchdown passes … Redshirt freshman linebacker Debo Williams was selected SEC Co-Freshman of the Week. Tennessee (1-0): Center Cooper Mays, who sprained an ankle against Bowling Green, should be available for Saturday’s game with Pitt. Wide receiver Jimmy Calloway, who missed the Bowling Green game, is expected to play Saturday. Texas A&M (1-0): Defensive end Michael Clemons, who was suspended after an offseason arrest, will be available for Saturday’s game at Colorado. Defensive tackle McKinnley Jackson, who also was arrested in the offseason, remains suspended. Injured corner Myles Jackson is practicing and may play Saturday while placekicker Caden Davis, who missed the opener, will be back … Left tackle Kenyon Green was named SEC Co-Offensive Lineman of the Week. Vanderbilt (0-1): Football Scoop is reporting that Vanderbilt is shaking up its offensive staff after one game and a horrible showing in a 23-3 loss to D1AA East Tennessee State. Quarterbacks coach Joey Lynch, who was hired off the Colorado State staff, will assume a greater role in the offensive game planning, essentially taking over the coordinator’s role from David Raih, who came to Vandy from the Arizona Cardinals. ONE FINAL PITHY THOUGHT: Sam “Bam” Cunningham, the former Southern Cal All-America fullback who is a member of the College Football Hall of Fame, passed away Tuesday. In 1970, Cunningham ran for 135 yards and two touchdowns as fully integrated Southern Cal blasted Bear Bryant’s lily-white Alabama Crimson Tide, 42-21, at Legion Field in Birmingham. A year later, Alabama had black players on scholarship for the first time. During the 10-year period from 1971-80, Bryant and Alabama went 107-13, winning eight SEC and three national championships. Jerry Claiborne, a former Bryant player (at Kentucky) and assistant (at Texas A&M and Alabama), remarked about Cunningham’s brilliant game against Alabama, “Sam Cunningham did more to integrate Alabama in 60 minutes than Martin Luther King did in 20 years.” That was not some casual statement. That Bryant would embark on wholesale integration of Alabama’s football team in 1971 ran quite contrary to Governor George C. Wallace, whose 1970 gubernatorial campaign is still remembered as one of the most racist political campaigns in US history. Bryant’s decision to integrate was thought to be outright defiance against a governor who had stood at the door of the University of Alabama in 1963 vowing “segregation now, segregation tomorrow, segregation forever” when two black students arrived on campus to enroll. Integrating the football team was a huge step in helping a state confront its racist past.

If fans are going to dwell on something negative, it shan’t be the play of Emory Jones, which was in the aggregate, pretty good; instead, the personal fouls and other penalties warrant more attention. Whatever the worst fears were Gator fans had during game week, they never came to fruition and Florida stands at 1-and-0. Still, the need to shower proved imminent as what felt a little dirty and uncomfortable took place Saturday evening in The Swamp. Just a shower, mind you – no need to sit alone in tepid bathwater crying, “I can’t get clean! I can’t get clean!” The victory was comfortable, and although no one is dancing in the streets about the bright prospects that were revealed against an outmanned Florida Atlantic team, there’s no reason to believe this cannot turn out to be a special season. In about a 30-minute span, hundreds of thousands of Gator fans went from believing Emory Jones to be the next Cam Newton, to setting their sights on Anthony Richardson as the next great hope. Hordes of Gator fans can be seen leaping off the Emory Jones train like depression-era hobos, quickly abandoning what was just yesterday the great promise of a new era. Such are the whims of fans, those who call for Jerry Golsteyn to supplant Doug Williams or Eddie Haas to take over for Joe Torre – they’re not to be taken seriously. Aside from three plays, Jones looked every bit the player that can lead the Florida Gators to a spot in Atlanta, and although Richardson (the physical “freak” that he is, according to Tim Tebow) made some eye-popping plays, the fact remains that when the Crimson Tide roll into Gainesville there had better be a veteran calling the signals for Dan Mullen. Unfortunately, those three plays seem to be all that anyone not named Dan Mullen remember. The problem with a game like Florida Atlantic is that not much can be revealed – a 50-0 victory would not have been taken seriously, yet a nail-biter or even a loss would have signaled the abandonment of all optimism. Thus, the bad plays draw the flies of our attention. This was a season-opener where a lot of backups gained a lot of playing time and two mistakes squelched a 49-7 thrashing down to a 35-14 coasting. As season-openers go, it was fairly typical if not rather clean, relatively speaking. So the clamoring for Richardson has begun and a so-called “quarterback controversy” ensues in Gainesville, and as such I take no part. This is Jones’ team and Richardson may be more than just the “straw that stirs the drink” – he’s more like the half ounce of dry vermouth – so we had better get ready for the two-headed QB where Jones gets the starting nod. The ride should be fun, so why spoil it with the incessant drum pounding of Emory Jones naysayers? If fans are going to dwell on something negative, it shan’t be the play of Jones, which was in the aggregate, pretty good; instead, the personal fouls and other penalties warrant more attention. Think of it this way: The team coached by Willie Taggart was by far the more disciplined squad on the field Saturday night. That thought alone should keep Gator fans up in the middle of the night. There was also the mysterious semi-absence of Jacob Copeland and Justin Shorter, whose combined 26 yards receiving against FAU was more than puzzling. These two are supposed to break out in a big way, but Saturday night’s game certainly belied this notion. Ultimately, it will come down to both Jones and Richardson settling into their position then being able to find them. For now, Copeland’s and Shorter’s sparse night will be attributed to green quarterback play. Through all this, it should be noted that Florida Atlantic returned more starters from last season than any team in college football. Granted, they were all FAU scholarship players, but they were Florida Division-I scholarship players, nonetheless. N’Kosi Perry was the best quarterback on the field Saturday night and he had to deal with a menacing pass rush, so kudos to the young man from Ocala. Thus, the silver lining: FAU is not among the mudfish of college football. You want bottom of the barrel? That would be the MAC team that visited Knoxville last Thursday night and actually proved to be a good challenge for the Tennessee Volunteers. Bowling Green went 0-5 in 2020 and came within 25 points of an opponent just once. That team brought back just nine starters yet seemed to compete admirably with the Vols. In Knoxville, the fans are all excited about a 38-6 win over perhaps the worst team in the country while in Gainesville there are questions hovering after a 35-14 win over a team that will contend for a conference championship. Whenever Gator fans feel down, just look at Tennessee, which scrambles for any crumb that falls from the table of the SEC masters. The South Florida game will be a blowout and Jones’ progression will lure some Gator fans off the ledge, but it’s all leading to the moment that matters most: the arrival of the Alabama Crimson Tide. To have a chance in two weeks, they’ll need that relentless pass rush, the emergence of Copeland and Shorter, and most of all an Emory Jones that exudes the poise of a veteran.

A few thoughts to jump start your Tuesday morning: THE FILM DOESN’T LIE AND OTHER QUARTERBACK STUFF Everybody who saw Anthony Richardson Saturday night remembers the two spectacular plays he made in Florida’s 35-14 win over Florida Atlantic. The traffic around Ben Hill Griffin Stadium was still jammed up when Richardson’s 73-yard sprint to the end zone and the phenomenal leap over an FAU defender had gone viral, creating the perception that Dan Mullen has a brewing quarterback controversy on his hands. Mullen doesn’t exactly share the sentiment. He knows what a fabulous talent Richardson is, but by no means has he given up on Emory Jones, especially since he’s had a chance to review the film. “You go watch the film, he [Richardson] made spectacular but missed some very, very simple checks within the game plan,” Mullen said Monday. “It’s just that comfort, and then that comfort of being able to execute it within a game, so obviously you can make that time work however you need to make it work sometimes. But it’s the best when you can let guys learn it the right way and build a really solid foundation.” Translation: Anthony Richardson is still learning the things that Emory Jones knows by heart. There may come a time when a change is a necessity, but it won’t be until Richardson can get the Gators out of a bad play and into a good one as well as other things that come only with time and repetition. So for now, commit these words to memory: The film doesn’t lie. THE NUMBERS SAY THE O-LINE DID A GOOD JOB BUT IMPROVEMENT IS REQUIRED Against Florida Atlantic, the Gators finished with 553 total yards (400 rushing, 153 passing) on 81 snaps, an average of 6.83 yards per play. The Gators averaged 8.7 yards per carry but only 4.4 per pass attempt. In 35 pass attempts, the UF offensive line didn’t allow a single sack or quarterback hurry. Mullen felt the O-line did “a solid job” but added, “You see some really good things they did and they missed a couple things here and there that we'll get corrected." INJURY UPDATE Regarding injuries, Mullen said, “We don't have any injuries coming out of the game, which is very fortunate. Hoping to get, you know, Lamar Goods back this week on the defensive line. Jalen Lee is going to be questionable, we're not sure, he'll be right there on the edge of being ready for this game on the defensive line. So you know, having four interior D-linemen out, that was tricky in game one so hopefully we get two of them back this week. Jaelin Humphries and Chris Thomas will both be another week or two, so, that way. Who else you got? Kamar Wilcoxson is going to miss the year, he had a knee surgery so he's going to miss the rest of the season.” OVER, UNDER, AROUND AND THROUGH THE SEC Alabama (1-0): Linebacker Christopher Allen, who was a second team All-SEC selection last year, will undergo surgery for a foot fracture suffered in Alabama’s 44-13 win over Miami. Allen is expected to miss the remainder of the season. Arkansas (1-0): Arkansas fans have let it be known they weren’t happy with the play of quarterback KJ Jefferson, but HBC Sam Pittman let it be known he isn’t hearing a word they’re saying. “KJ probably took a lot of heat, and everybody’s got their opinion, but the one that matters is mine,” Pittman said Monday. “He’s our quarterback, and he’s going to be a heck of a quarterback for us.” In the Razorbacks’ 38-17 win over Rice, Jefferson was 12-24 passing for 128 yards and a TD, plus he ran nine times for 89 yards and another TD. Auburn (1-0): Wide receiver Tar’Varish Dawson Jr. and nickel LaDarius Tennison missed the blowout win over Akron due to disciplinary reasons. HBC Bryan Harsin wouldn’t confirm if they will return for Saturday’s game with Alabama State. The status of corner Jaylin Simpson, who left the Akron game due to injury, is still up in the air. Georgia (1-0): Starting right guard Tate Ratledge is done for the season after suffering a Lisfranc fracture in his foot during the Clemson game. Warren Ericson will take over at guard, which means redshirt freshman Sedric Van Pran will be the starter at center. Kentucky (1-0): The season opening win over Louisiana-Monroe marked the first time Kentucky has had a 300-yard passer (Will Levis had 367), a 100-yard rusher (Chris Rodriguez had 125) and two 100-yard receivers (Josh Ali had 136, Wan’Dale Robinson had 125) in the same game since 2006. LSU (0-1): Paul Finebaum saw problems, problems and more problems for LSU in the Tigers’ 38-27 loss to UCLA. Speaking on a radio show hosted by Greg McElroy and Cole Cubelic Monday morning, Finebaum said, “I saw the defense look clueless at times. I saw 2 new coordinators who underwhelmed me. And I saw a head coach who sometimes has trouble with his mouth getting in the way of reality and I think that’s exactly what happened. LSU’s got some really challenging games.” Mississippi State (1-0): In explaining why Mississippi State suddenly woke up in the fourth quarter to rally from 20 points down for a 35-34 win over Louisiana Tech, HBC Mike Leach said, “In this case, nobody had a dental appointment or a study hall so we decided we were finally just going to play football and do the best we could. It’s kind of explosive on all sides of the ball when you do that.” Missouri (1-0): In their 34-24 win over Central Michigan, the Tigers converted only 1-11 on third down. “We stunk at it and our play designs,” HBC Eli Drinkwitz said Monday. “It’s on me.” Ole Miss (1-0): Matt Corral made his own Heisman statement against Louisville, throwing for 381 yards and a TD and running for 55 and one more in the Rebels’ 43-24 win. South Carolina (1-0): Even with Zeb Noland throwing four touchdown passes just two weeks after he hung up his grad assistant whistle to become the Gamecocks’ QB, HBC Shane Beamer isn’t ready to name a starting quarterback for Saturday’s road game at East Carolina. Tennessee (1-0): HBC Josh Heupel says QB Joe Milton’s subpar performance against Bowling Green wasn’t totally his fault. “Everybody played a part in it,” Heupel said. “The quarterback having his eyes in the right spot and delivering the ball. Wide receivers understanding what we’re asking them to do and being able to read coverages and sit in the right zone. Finishing [the play[ with a throw and catch [with] accuracy and catching the football. Then a couple of busted protections that we need to clean up so we can sit in the pocket and deliver it.” Texas A&M (1-0): HBC Jimbo Fisher says redshirt freshman QB Haynes King was unfazed by three interceptions he threw against Kent State. “A lot of times young guys, when they throw picks they don’t want to go back in the middle of the field. They don’t want to go back in that maze. It doesn’t bother him. He’s a competitor.” Vanderbilt (0-1): Vanderbilt outgained East Tennessee State in Saturday’s 23-3 loss, but the Commodores turned it over three times and ETSU didn’t commit a single turnover. WHERE THEY RANKED IN HIGH SCHOOL: D-LINE 2010 1. Ronald Powell (Moreno Valley, CA), Florida; 2. Dominique Easley (Staten Island, NY), Florida; Jackson Jeffcoat (Plano, TX), Texas; 4. Sharrif Floyd (Philadelphia, PA), Florida; 5. Owamagbe Odighizua (Portland, OR), UCLA; 6. William Gholston (Detroit, MI), Michigan State; 7. Reggie Wilson (Fort Worth, TX), Texas; 8. George Uko (Chino, CA), Southern Cal; 9. Chris Martin (Aurora, CO), Florida; 10. Corey Lemonier (Hialeah, FL), Auburn 2011 1. Jadaveon Clowney (Rock Hill, SC), South Carolina; 2. Anthony Johnson (New Orleans, LA), LSU; 3. Aaron Lynch (Cape Coral, FL), Notre Dame; 4. Timmy Jernigan (Lake City, FL), Florida State; 5. Ray Drew (Thomasville, GA), Georgia; 6. Anthony Chickillo (Tampa, FL), Miami; 7. Stephon Tuitt (Monroe, GA), Notre Dame; 8. Greg Townsend Jr. (Beverly Hills, CA), Southern Cal; 9. Xazvier Dickson (Griffin, GA), Alabama; 10. Desmond Jackson (Houston, TX), Texas 2012 1. Mario Edwards (Denton, TX), Florida State; 2. Noah Spence (Harrisburg, PA), Ohio State; 3. Malcolm Brown (Brenham, TX), Texas; 4. Eddie Goldman (Washington, DC), Florida State; 5. Jonathan Bullard (Shelby, NC), Florida; 6. Adolphus Washington (Cincinnati, OH), Ohio State; 7. Darius Hamilton (Ramsey, NJ), Rutgers; 8. Ellis McCarthy (Monrovia, CA), UCLA; 9. Chris Casher (Mobile, AL), Florida State; 10. Jordan Jenkins (Hamilton, GA), Georgia 2013 1. Robert Nkemdiche (Loganville, GA), Ole Miss; 2. Eddie Vanderdoes (Auburn, CA), UCLA; 3. Kenny Bigelow (Bear, DE), Southern Cal; 4. Montravius Adams (Vienna, GA), Auburn; 5. Chris Jones (Houston, MS), Mississippi State; 6. Carl Lawson (Alpharetta, GA), Auburn; 7. DeMarcus Walker (Jacksonville, FL), Florida State; 8. Joey Bosa (Fort Lauderdale, FL), Ohio State; 9. Dee Liner (Muscle Shoals, AL), Alabama; 10. Al-Quadin Muhammad (Ramsey, NJ), Miami 2014 1. Myles Garrett (Arlington, TX), Texas A&M; 2. Da’Shawn Hand (Woodbridge, VA), Alabama; 3. Andrew Brown (Chesapeake, VA), Virginia; 4. Lorenzo Carter (Norcross, GA), Georgia; 5. Chad Thomas (Miami, FL), Miami; 6. Solomon Thomas (Coppell, TX), Stanford; 7. Malik McDowell (Detroit, MI), Michigan State; 8. Gerald Willis (New Orleans, LA), Florida; 9. Travonte Valentine (Palm Bay, FL), LSU; 10. Derrick Roberson (San Antonio, TX), Texas 2015 1. Trenton Thompson (Albany, GA), Georgia; 2. Byron Cowart (Seffner, FL), Auburn; 3. Kahlil McKenzie (Concord, CA), Tennessee; 4. CeCe Jefferson (Glen St. Mary, FL), Florida; 5. Josh Sweat (Chesapeake, VA), Florida State; 6. Terry Beckner Jr. (East St. Louis, IL), Missouri; 7. Daylon Mack (Gladwater, TX), Texas A&M; 8. Keisan Lucier-South (Orange, CA), UCLA; 9. Canton Kaumatule (Honolulu, HI), Oregon; 10. Rasheem Green (Gardena, CA), Southern Cal 2016 1. Rashan Gary (Paramus, NJ), Michigan; 2. Dexter Lawrence (Wake Forest, NC), Clemson; 3. Ed Oliver (Houston, TX), Houston; 4. Nick Bosa (Fort Lauderdale, FL), Ohio State; 5. Derrick Brown (Buford, GA), Auburn; 6. Oluwole Betiku Jr. (Gardena, CA), Southern Cal; 7. Jeffery Simmons (Macon, MS), Mississippi State; 8. McTelvin Agim (Hope, AR), Arkansas; 9. Rashard Lawrence (Monroe, LA), LSU; 10. Benito Jones (Waynesboro, MS), Ole Miss 2017 1. Jaelan Phillips (Redlands, CA), UCLA; 2. Marvin Wilson (Bellaire, TX), Florida State; 3. Chase Young (Hyattsville, MD), Ohio State; 4. Joshua Kaindoh (Bradenton, FL), Florida State; 5. Aubrey Solomon (Leesburg, GA), Michigan; 6. A.J. Epenesa (Edwardsville, IL), Iowa; 7. LaBryan Ray (Madison, AL), Alabama; 8. K’Lavon Chaisson (Houston, TX), LSU; 9. Jay Tufele (South Jordan, UT), Southern Cal; 10. Tyler Shelvin (Lafayette, LA), LSU 2018 1. Xavier Thomas (Bradenton, FL), Clemson; 2. Eyabi Anoma (Baltimore, MD), Alabama; 3. Micah Parsons (Harrisburg, PA), Penn State; 4. KJ Henry (Clemmons, NC), Clemson; 5. Taron Vincent (Bradenton, FL), Ohio State; 6. Brenton Cox Jr. (Stockbridge, GA), Georgia; 7. Tyreke Smith (Cleveland, OH), Ohio State; 8. Nesta Jade Silvera (Fort Lauderdale, FL), Miami; 9. Tommy Togiai (Pocatello, ID), Ohio State 2019 1. Nolan Smith (Bradenton, FL), Georgia; 2. Kayvon Thibodeaux (Thousand Oaks, CA), Oregon; 3. Antonio Alfano (Colonia, NJ), Alabama; 4. Zacch Pickens (Anderson, SC), South Carolina; 5. Zach Harrison (Lewis Center, OH), Ohio State; 6. DeMarvin Leal (Converse, TX), Texas A&M; 7. Travon Walker (Thomaston, GA), Georgia; 8. Chris Hinton (Norcross, GA), Michigan; 9. Ishmael Sopsher (Amite, LA), Alabama; 10. Drake Jackson (Corona, CA), Southern Cal 2020 1. Bryan Breese (Damascus, MD), Clemson; 2. Myles Murphy (Powder Springs, GA), Clemson; 3. Jordan Burch (Columbia, SC), South Carolina; 4. Gervon Dexter (Lake Wales, FL), Florida; 5. Will Anderson (Hampton, GA), Alabama; 6. Jalen Carter (Apopka, FL), Georgia; 7. Chris Braswell (Baltimore, MD), Alabama; 8. Sav’ell Smalls (Burien, WA), Washington; 9. Demonte Capehart (Hartsville, SC), Clemson; 10. Jaquelin Roy (Baton Rouge, LA), LSU 2021 1. Korey Foreman (Corona, CA), Southern Cal; 2. J.T. Tuimoloau (Sammamish, WA), Ohio State; 3. Jack Sawyer (Pickering, OH), Ohio State; 4. Dallas Turner (Fort Lauderdale, FL), Alabama; 5. Leonard Taylor (Miami, FL), Miami; 6. Maason Smith (Houma, LA), LSU; 7. Shemar Turner (DeSoto, TX), Texas A&M; 8. Damon Payne (Belleville, MI), Alabama; 9. Keeshawn Silver (Rocky Mount, NC), North Carolina; 10. Clayton Smith (Texarkana, TX), Oklahoma ONE FINAL PITHY THOUGHT: In the last few days much has been made of this “alliance” between the Big Ten, ACC and Pac-12. Supposedly, it will counter the dominance of the Southeastern Conference and it will lead to a united front to stop expansion of the College Football Playoff to 12 teams. Judging by what we saw from the ACC and Pac-12 this past weekend, neither the ACC nor Pac-12 will have a team that cracks the final four this year which means it’s entirely possible the SEC will have half of the field. These leagues desperately need a expansion to 12 teams because it might prove to be the only way they can get one of their teams in the playoff.

How in the world will Dan Mullen ever get the genie back in the bottle? After all, it was he who created this beautiful two-headed monster. Hey, diddle, diddle, The cat and the fiddle, The cow jumped over the moon… Or in this case, the quarterback jumped over the moon. As a prelude, he tamped down his helmet with both hands, licked his fingers like a pitcher tuning up a fastball and stuck the yellow mouthpiece in his teeth, ready for takeoff. That’s how it began on the game’s third series. A few quarters later, Anthony Richardson did jump over the moon. Or, over a couple of Owls. And we rubbed our eyes. That’s after he’d accounted for two scores, passing for one and salting away a 73-yard streak for another. He was now on his way to a 200-yard night in total offense. His leap over the Florida Atlantic would-be tackler, was only a small taste of A.R.’s smorgasbord night, and didn’t even result in points. Unless you were scoring style points at home. And if you were, it had to be at least a 9.5 because he looked like Superman soaring over the Century Tower. Had we just witnessed some new Swamp magic? Somebody said Richardson’s electrifying performance was a “spark,” suggesting it was like the celebrated 2006 Jump Pass. After all, he was wearing No. 15. To me it was one of those sparks that could light up not just one September night sky, but maybe become a night to remember for all-time. Maybe an era. Some of us who had pretty much assured ourselves -- and everyone else -- that Richardson had come to sit in apprenticeship and wait his turn like all other Dan Mullen quarterbacks now may have some recalibration to do. How in the world will Dan Mullen ever get the genie back in the bottle? After all, it was he who created this beautiful two-headed monster. Those of us on the outside looking in, not privileged to see Gator practices, now understand what so many others raved about. Chris Doering bet me recently that before this 2021 season was over, the 6-4, 236-pound former Eastside High star would be starting. In a moment of stunned reaction, I hooted him down, saying Mullen would never break a loyalty oath to his prized recruit Emory, who has waited for over 1,000 days for his shot. (And BTW, Jones brought no shame in his first start -- no doubt suffering some opening night, first-start tremors.) Now I’m beginning to wonder myself. Tim Tebow kept warning us about this “freak” he’d seen. Mick Hubert said on my show that he was having a little trouble containing his enthusiasm after what he saw in practice. Even Mullen said Richardson was a “wow!” After the game, Mullen feigned confusion when asked by SEC Network analyst Cole Cubelic if he had to make a “decision” on his starting quarterback. “Whaaaa? Emory’s our starting quarterback,” said Mullen. And I respect that, because that’s what veteran Quarterback Whisperers are supposed to do. I’d stop short saying Dan’s nose began to appear wooden and maybe grow a little, but you could see in his eyes that he knew what was ahead. Mullen dismissed it, however, saying there wasn’t going to be a “Quarterback Controversy” because Emory and Anthony were nice guys and not “controversial.” Were it only so simple. While it does seem they are friendly competitors and even root for each other -- and I’m not suggesting that either might be duplicitous – we will see how long this can last in a world of transfer portals and social media wildfires. Later, when the Zoom press corps tried to find a way to nibble around the edges, Mullen wasn’t having any of it. MEDIA: “Anthony Richardson was unbelievable tonight.” MULLEN: "He did some good things. Yeah, he's exciting with the ball in his hand, isn't he? Running around making some plays…” MEDIA: “Do you ask yourself if there is a quarterback controversy?” MULLEN: “I would never ask myself that because I coach the quarterbacks a bunch. They’re not very controversial guys. They’re both really nice guys.” MEDIA: “Fans are going to look at how AR played and say why isn’t he the starter? Why (are you) so confident in Emory? MULLEN: “His decision-making and getting us through every part of the game. Obviously, when you look at what happened and with Anthony coming in, did some nice things. I mean, you know, you got to run the whole offense. And so I think and Anthony’s really growing with that and growing with situations. So I think he’ll continue to grow with situations as we move forward and Emory’s going to continue to grow, so …” Remarkably understated, but understandably so. And the rest of the nursery rhyme: The little dog laughed To see such sport, And the dish ran away with the spoon.

A few thoughts to jump start your Monday morning: NOW FOR THE HARD PART, CORRECTING THE MISTAKES If the intent was pure vanilla Saturday night at The Swamp, then Florida’s 35-14 win over Florida Atlantic was a roaring success. The Gators got the win without Dan Mullen having to dig into his bag of tricks on the offensive side of the ball. Over on defense where the Gators were so poor last year, coordinator Todd Grantham had a shutout going until late in the game when he was liberally substituting one new face after another. All 14 points and more than half of FAU’s yards came in the final 10 minutes when the game was already decided. The lack of sophistication on offense, particularly in the passing game where Emory Jones and Anthony Richardson combined to average fewer than 4.5 yards per attempt, gave away no secrets to the bevy of analysts that Nick Saban assigned to break down the Florida film. Over on defense, Grantham played it straight up, rarely blitzing and spending a good portion of the game playing soft zone in the secondary. The Gators did what they needed to do to win the game and even playing it close to the vest they still won by three touchdowns. That’s it. Now comes the hard part. Despite the simplicity, there were mistakes made such as nine penalties for 91 yards including four personal fouls and a pass interference; two interceptions including one at the goal line that erased a scoring opportunity; allowing 7.9 yards per pass attempt and 13.7 yards per completion; a delay of game that turned third-and-goal at the FAU two into third-and-goal at the seven after which there was an interception; and a bad decision on a fourth-and-goal at the four that resulted in a turnover on downs instead of a TD. There were other mistakes for sure, but those were the most glaring errors. In his post game remarks, Mullen sounded a lot like his mentor Urban Meyer, who was at the game, guest of Steve Spurrier. Mullen, like Meyer, is a perfectionist who frets the details both before a game and after game when he’s trying to figure out anything and everything that might have gone wrong. “We had a lot of penalties in the game, missed assignments, making sure … We played a lot of guys, had a bunch of guys out,” Mullen said. “You had four interior D-lineman out with injuries. Hopefully we get some of those guys back this week just to increase the depth on that side of the ball. Everything. I don't know if it keeps me up at night. I mean everything. I’m up all the time anyway thinking of how we're going to get better. How we're gonna practice better, how we improve our scout-team looks, how we're more detailed and exact, how we make sure we cut down on mistakes, and we have better attention to detail, eliminate all the penalties. You know I'm kind of a perfectionist and so what I want to see, I think, is we got to get a lot better and we got to in every aspect of it, you know. Not just better Saturday night. We have to get better right now. We got to get better starting Monday. We come back in, every part of our preparation can be more detailed and more exact so we play much cleaner.” The Gators should play cleaner against South Florida next Saturday. Not to make excuses for what happened at The Swamp against Florida Atlantic, but it was the first time since last January and the Cotton Bowl that the Gators have been able to go against real opponents. By the time the season arrives after a spring practice and August of going against each other every single day, players are typically eager and ready to take out their aggression on someone other than a teammate with whom they have to share a locker room. That seemed to be the case Saturday night, particularly with the defensive penalties. Improvement isn’t guaranteed but from all indications, this is a close knit team that does feel the need to atone for that three-game skid at the end of last year. Expect the Gators to clean up a bunch of mistakes from FAU when they face South Florida in Tampa, but you can also expect another game in which most everything is played close to the vest. It shouldn’t be as vanilla as what we saw against FAU, but Alabama isn’t going to see anything other than the basics to prepare for. You can count on that. OVER, UNDER, AROUND AND THROUGH THE SEC Alabama (1-0): At Alabama players come and go but the results stay the same. Bryce Young was brilliant (4 TDPs) in his starting debut, looking every bit the next great Alabama quarterback. The yardage totals were Alabama 501, Miami 266. The only downside was linebacker Christian Allen injuring a foot that will sideline him perhaps the entire season. Next week: vs. Mercer Arkansas (1-0): New Arkansas QB KJ Jefferson looked pretty average throwing it, but he ran for 89 yards and two touchdowns so Hog fans have hope. The two top tacklers on defense, Grant Morgan and Bumper Pool, were both ejected for targeting. Next week: vs. Texas Auburn (1-0): If Bo Nix can go 20-22 for 275 yards and three TDs against a decent team, then Auburn has something to talk about. This was Akron. The defense did hold the Zips to -3 rushing. Next week: vs. Alabama State Georgia (1-0): Georgia’s offense was tentative and JT Daniels didn’t exactly bring back memories of Dan Marino, but the defense was dominant with seven sacks and it got the only touchdown of the game on a pick six. Georgia has four games to figure out the offense before its only tough gauntlet of the year at Auburn, vs. Kentucky and against Florida in Jacksonville. Next week: vs. UAB Kentucky (1-0): Okay, so it was Lousy Monroe, but still a quarterback throwing for 367 yards and four touchdowns is uncharted territory for Kentucky. Will Levis did the pitching and Josh Ali (5-126, 1 TD) and Wan’Dale Robinson (5-125, 2 TD) did the catching. Chris Rodriguez ran for 125 and a TD. Next week: vs. Missouri LSU (0-1): Was it the distraction from Hurricane Ida or is LSU heading for a repeat of last year? The Tigers couldn’t run (49 yards) and they couldn’t play a lick of defense (UCLA passed for 260, ran for 223). Losing 38-27 to UCLA does not bode well for the rest of the season. Next week: vs. McNeese State Mississippi State (1-0): The Bulldogs committed four turnovers, 12 penalties and trailed by 20 in the fourth quarter, yet they came back to beat Louisiana Tech 35-34, securing the win when the Tech kicker shanked a 46-yard field goal in the closing seconds. Next week: vs. North Carolina State (1-0) Missouri (1-0): Despite 203 rushing yards from Tyler Badie and zero turnovers from QB Conor Bazelac, HBC Eli Drinkwitz can’t be too happy. His defense gave up 475 yards (301 passing, 174 rushing) to Central Michigan. The mighty Chips from the MAC were in Mizzou without their head coach Jim McElwain, who had his appendix removed. Next week: at Kentucky (1-0) Ole Miss (0-0): Ole Miss will take on Louisville tonight in Atlanta minus HBC Lane Kiffin, who tested positive for COVID-19. Next week: vs. Austin Peay South Carolina (1-0): Zeb Noland, who was a graduate assistant two weeks ago, threw four touchdown passes and senior ZaQuandre White, who had 59 rushing yards in his career, ran for 128 in South Carolina’s 46-0 win over D1AA Eastern Illinois. The defense held the Panthers to 109 total yards. Next week: at East Carolina (0-1) Tennessee (1-0): The Vols ran for 326 yards against the Our Lady of Perpetual Motion Convent from Bowling Green. They better figure out how to throw the ball better (12-24, 145 yards) before Saturday against Pitt. Next week: vs. Pitt (1-0) Texas A&M (1-0): The good news for Jimbo Fisher is that the Aggies ran for 305 yards on Kent State. The bad news is that starting QB Haynes King threw three picks and backup Zach Calzada’s only throw of the night was completed to the Golden Flashes. Next week: at Colorado Vanderbilt (0-1): Perhaps we should call next Saturday’s game at Colorado State the REPUS (that’s super spelled backward) Bowl. Like Vandy, which was hosed by D1AA East Tennessee State, 23-3, the Fighting Addazios of Colorado State went down in flames to a D1AA team. Gloom, despair and agony for the loser next Saturday in Fort Collins. Next week: at Colorado State ELSEWHERE IN COLLEGE FOOTBALL WELCOME BACK MCKENZIE MILTON: You don’t have to be a Florida State fan to love that McKenzie Milton not only saw the field but got the Seminoles into overtime before they lost to 9th-ranked Notre Dame, 41-38. It’s an absolute miracle that he’s even walking much less playing football after that devastating injury he suffered against USF in 2018. THE BIG TEN (PLUS FOUR): Despite four touchdown passes from redshirt freshman C.J. Stroud, Ohio State (1-0) wasn’t very impressive, especially on defense. If not for the injury that knocked running back Mohamed Ibrahim (163 rushing yards, 2 TDs) out of the game, the Buckeyes might have gone down for the count against Minnesota. Their 45-31 win suggests the defense we saw in the national championship game loss to Alabama hasn’t improved a lick. THE ACC (ALWAYS CLIMPSON CONFERENCE): Is it basketball season yet? All three ranked teams – No. 3 Clemson, No. 10 North Carolina and No. 14 Miami – lost. Duke lost to Charlotte and Georgia Tech lost to Northern Illinois … The best part about the weekend for the ACC was watching Lane Stadium rock out to “Enter Sandman” as Virginia Tech took the field. THE BIG 12 (MINUS TWO): Color me unimpressed with Oklahoma (1-0) and Spencer Rattler. The Sooners are fortunate to come away with a 40-35 win over Tulane. Rattler threw a couple of interceptions. Don’t you know that every fan of the eight Big 12 orphans was praying for Tulane. THE PAC-12 (AKA THE LACK 12): Six Pac-12 teams lost to non-conference opponents, the most embarrassing of which was 20th-ranked Washington taking it on the chin to D1AA Montana. It’s that kind of weekend that should have commish George Kliavkoff begging for the College Football Playoff to expand to 12 teams because the way they’re playing football in the Lack 12 an expanded playoff might be the only way they’ll get a team in anytime soon. ONE FINAL PITHY THOUGHT: Sports Illustrated is reporting that UCF, Houston, Cincinnati and BYU will apply for membership in the Big 12 this week and the four could be approved to join the league as early as Friday. It would be 2023 or 2024 before UCF, Houston and Cincinnati could leave the American Athletic Conference but independent BYU could join as early as next year. There is a deal to be made here if Big 12 commish Bob Bowlsby is willing to bring the ESPN and the SEC to the negotiating table. If he plays his cards right, he could give Texas and Oklahoma an early release so they could join the SEC for the 2024 season, exact a nice exit fee from them (maybe a combined $80 million) that would help defray the cost (minimum $10 million exit fee each) for the three American Athletic Conference teams and get a media rights deal from ESPN. The current Big 12 media deal with ESPN and Fox expires after the 2025 season. ESPN would probably be willing to do a deal with the Big 12 in order to get Texas in the SEC for the 2024-25 seasons.

The No. 13 Florida Gators opened their 2021 season with a 35-14 win over the Florida Atlantic Owls, extending their home opener win streak to 32 straight. It’s the longest such streak in SEC history and the longest current ongoing streak in the Power 5. In front of a crowd of 86,540 Gator fans in an (attempted) white out, Florida welcomed home fans as they look to defend their SEC East title. “The best part of the night was the crowd,” expressed Head Coach Dan Mullen after the win. “That was the absolute best part of the night was seeing all the Gator fans and the energy and the electricity in the stadium again and you know you realize how much you miss that. “Just that feeling of that energy of having all the Gator fans in there cheering and that noise in the stadium. That was awesome, that was definitely the best part of the night, was the whole, all the Gator fans cheering us on." The fans had a good bit to cheer about—and to fret over—as the Gators fielded a new look on both sides of the ball. Florida received the opening kickoff and put together a drive that went exactly how one imagined it would and all fans could hope for. A couple of early jitters caused plays to fall flat, then a quick Emory Jones pass to Jacob Copeland picked up 15-yards and jolted life in the offense. A 31-yard run by Malik Davis officially kicked up the energy then two more good decisions and quick throws from Jones put the Gators in the redzone. A bruising run by Dameon Pierce found pay-dirt, and the Gators were up 7-0 before some people could find their seats. The score came on a pitch from Jones to Pierce that exemplified the leeway Mullen is giving his veteran—but first time starting—quarterback. The decision was indicative of what Jones can do after three years in the program, and for Mullen, it outweighs the mistakes he expected to see from Jones in his first start. “That was a check play. He saw them in a certain defense and he got the check right. That’s part of it,” Mullen said of the score. “There’s things that, you know, if you look at Emory there’s things that he did really well. And then there's some things he missed. And when you look at some of the misses, I'm fine wine with. “Some of the misses are tough things and then a couple simple misses, and I know he's frustrated with it. The good thing is coming off the field, you're like, ‘Hey, what’d you see?’ And he knows what the issue was, you know what I mean? ‘Hey, I missed this. Hey, I missed that,’ and that's what you want from the quarterback. It’s not like he was kind of looking like he had a confused look on his face. What he missed, that’s what you want so we can get it cleaned up.” On the Gators ensuing offensive drive, Pierce, Davis and Jones ate up yardage on the ground yet again, moving Florida back into scoring territory. In total, Florida had 400 yards rushing, the third most in a game in the past 25 years. This, a year after leading the nation in passing offense. “We are going to do what our guys do well, that’s what it is. Honestly, I would love to continue to be balanced,” remarked Mullen. “We ran it a bit more that we threw today, 46 runs and 35 passes, but some of those were scrambles too. I think you’re able to stay balanced, but our explosive plays came on the ground and so we got to look at that a little bit. Are we taking the shots down the field to be explosive in the pass game as well? "Like I said, we're going to do what we're going to do. If we've got to lead the nation in rushing, we'll do that. Last year we lead it in passing. Do what our guys do well.” Malik Davis, who finished with 104 yards and scored a touchdown for the first time since 2019, knew early on he and the rushing attack would dominate. “We just saw that they couldn’t stop us, honestly. Everything we wanted to do, we did it. And the stops that they did make, I believe that we just shot ourselves in the foot. We hurt ourselves at times in the game. But other than that, I think that we just felt like they couldn’t stop us.” Davis formed a duo with redshirt freshman quarterback Anthony Richardson that put up the best rushing performance by a quarterback and teammate in over a decade. Davis’ century mark was surpassed only by Richardson, who racked up 160 yards on the ground. The only other time in program history that a quarterback and teammate duo both passed 100 yards rushing was in the 2008 National Championship, when Tim Tebow and Percy Harvin did it, in route to defeating the Oklahoma Sooners. Speaking of Richardson, the Gainesville native put together two scoring drives that invoked memories of Tebow himself, sporting the No. 15 jersey and all. After two Jones’ drives ended in an interception and a punt respectively, Richardson came in to provide a different look for an entire drive. He led a seven play, 73-yard drive that ended in a Malik Davis touchdown, and was kickstarted with a 26-yard run from Richardson. The following offensive drive saw Richardson scramble on a keeper, before turning on the jets, leading to the 240-pound passer making a house call for a 74-yard touchdown. Without that 74-yard run, Richardson finishes with 86 yards on the ground, just 12 more than Jones. The upperclassmen Jones went 17-27 for 113 yards and a touchdown through the air as well. But he also had two turnovers and a missed call on the goal line that had Mullen shaking his head. On 4th and goal from the 4-yard line, Jones ran a QB power that went two yards before being stood up by the FAU defense. Mullen’s reaction on the sideline made it clear he was as confused by the play as anyone. It also served as a learning opportunity for the coach and the first quarterback he recruited to play at Florida. “He got the wrong signal from the sideline, thought we called something we didn’t and missed communication. Great things there to learn from, I mean, if he’s not sure with the communication I didn’t know he wasn’t sure when we’re running a play because it looks like we’re in the right formation and all that stuff he wasn’t sure with the play call. That’s an experience deal in a first start right there.” For Jones part, there was plenty he was pleased with in his first start, but even more he wants fixed, especially his two interceptions in which he stared down defenders. “I feel like it was just, I mean sloppy, rusty. We just gotta go back in the lab, get better, try to get better every week,” admitted Jones. “I feel like I still made a lot of mistakes early in the game that you probably couldn’t see when you’re watching the game. I missed too many throws that I never do. It’s me getting more comfortable, just being out there actually being excited. Got to lock in and get better every week.” One thing that did improve drastically from last season was the push from the defensive front seven. Led by Zachary Carter and Brenton Cox, the Gators landed six sacks for a loss of 36 yards. One sack from Carter (four tackles, three sacks and a forced fumble) put the ball on the ground and then a botched handoff with the Owls led to another fumble. Both were recovered by Gervon Dexter. “Well I gotta give credit to my back end, they did a great job covering tonight, helping me get back there,” bragged Carter. “Especially my guys inside for giving me that push. It was just one of those games. I was feeling it tonight and, you know, I’m excited for this year. I’m planning on having a big year. I’m excited. "I read the tackle’s stance [on the fumble] and I knew it was about to be a pass. I just got off the ball as fast as I could and I just so happened to run by him. I’ve been working on stripping the ball so when I have my chance I executed that.” The defensive push was necessary as the Gators young secondary took their lumps. Other than Trey Dean and Kaiir Elam, the majority of the defensive backs were young and new faces. There is still ample room to grow in that aspect. In total the secondary gave up 13.7 yards per completion (somewhat skewed by explosive plays in garbage time) but the Gators kept FAU out of the redzone until there were less than five minutes remaining in the fourth quarter. The two Owls touchdowns game against third and fourth string underclassmen. “I thought solid at times,” Mullen said of the defensive front seven. “I thought we got after the quarterback. I thought they [FAU] did a good job getting the ball out pretty quick early, and, you know, a lot of times when they got the drop back pass we got a bunch of pressure, got some sacks.” The Owls finished with 353 yards total, but Todd Grantham’s defense held FAU to 173 total yards through the first three quarters. Head Coach Willie Taggart’s team surpassed their entire total to that point in the fourth quarter, picking up 180 in the final quarter. Of those 180 yards, 143 came on the two garbage time touchdown drives. “This is just a sneak peek. I know we can do a lot better,” said Carter of the performance. “We’re just scratching the surface. It’s the first game. We have a lot to correct.” The Gators have a week to correct more mistakes against the South Florida Bulls, against whom they’re favored. Kickoff is set for 1pm EST in Tampa at Raymond James Stadium. They’ll return home for Week 3 for the early season showdown against the No. 1 Alabama Crimson Tide.

For three years Emory Jones waited for his moment to take over as Florida’s starting quarterback. He did everything right. Came to work every day. Practiced hard. Studied film. Won over the coaches with his patience and determination to improve in every aspect of his game. When given opportunities to show he had the right stuff to take over the most storied position in Gator football history, he showed potential. Then came Saturday night, the long-awaited first start against an outmanned, overmatched Florida Atlantic team that the Gators finished off 35-14. It could have been and should have been worse. A blowout was called for and it really wouldn’t have taken a star is born kind of moment from Emory Jones for the Gators to light up the Owls for 50 or more. A night of good decisions and smart throws would have turned the trick, but that’s not what we got. It’s unfortunate, but against Florida Atlantic, Emory Jones played like he’s still the backup quarterback to Kyle Trask. Jones ran the ball just fine – 10 carries, 74 yards – but we’ve always known he had a great set of wheels. Trask could take an opening that was worth two yards and get you five on occasions. Emory Jones can take that same opening and get you 10, 15 or more. He showed he could do that against FAU and he made really nice decisions running the option down on the goal line. No, running was never the problem in the past nor was it Saturday night against FAU. Throwing the ball? Well, let’s just say that was an adventure. Jones completed 17-27 passes for 113 yards (a very ugly 4.19 yards per attempt) and a touchdown pass, a 9-yarder to Rick Wells who had to wait five full years before he finally made the first TD catch of his career. The throw to Wells and a nice 18-yard completion to Trent Whittemore were his highlight passes. Most of the other 25 passes were forgettable. Before and after the two good throws there were far too many times when Jones took the easy throw rather than look downfield. It’s not as if there weren’t open receivers, particularly in the middle of the field. Even more troubling than taking the easy throw were the many times Jones could have made a call to Uber Eats for pizza delivery. Time to throw was rarely a problem. If anything, it seemed Florida’s offensive line gave him too much time. Jones so often stood for what seemed an eternity in the pocket only to take the dump down throw or make a soft throw when a dart was required. Now, FAU wasn’t credited with a single sack or even a quarterback hurry. Some of that has to do with the frequency FAU dropped seven and eight into coverage, but whether they blitzed or went zone, there was no shortage of open Florida receivers. There were two interceptions and both of them were bad ones. The first was in the second quarter at the goal line. Backup QB Anthony Richardson marched the Gators down the field in his first series of the game but third-and-goal at the two turned into third-and-goal at the seven on a delay of game penalty. Sent back into the game, Jones stared down a receiver at the goal line then threw soft for an easy interception by FAU corner Diashun Moss. The second interception came in the waning moments of the third quarter when on one of those rare occasions Jones tried to throw it downfield. He put too much air under the ball and it was an easy pick for FAU strong safety Teja Young. There was one more opportunity for Jones to re-energize what had become a stagnant offense but three completions netted all of 12 yards and another punt. That was the end of the night for Jones and it brought back Richardson, who turned the final 10 minutes of the game into his own personal showcase. Taking over at the UF 27 with 10:20 remaining, Richardson had a 26-yard run and a 36-yard pass to Ja’Markis Weston in driving the Gators 73 yards for a TD that Malik Davis scored with 7:42 to go to make the score 28-0. Davis finished the game with 104 yards, his first 100-yard game since his freshman year against Vanderbilt in 2017. On Florida’s next possession, Richardson broke into the secondary and then turned on the jets for a 73-yard touchdown. Later in the game, he had runs of 22 and 11 yards and made a highlight reel play when he leapt over an FAU defender, then landed on his feet for a few extra yards before going out of bounds. For the game, Richardson carried seven times for 160 yards. He was 3-8 passing for 40 yards, not exactly great stats, but he seemed far more confident going downfield than Jones. Even his incompletions showed off a strong arm. If you’re going to miss on a deep throw, overshoot. Undershooting a receiver on a deep throw results in an interception far too often. *** Of the two quarterbacks, Anthony Richardson was easily the most impressive Saturday night. No doubt, Florida fans will by and large be calling for Richardson to get the start next Saturday night in Tampa against South Florida but it would be a shock for that to happen. Mullen has been around too long and has a long, proven track record when it comes to developing quarterback to dump a quarterback that quickly. In defense of Jones, this was his first career start. He’s waited a long time for this chance and he probably felt the need to have a great game to prove to everyone that the time in Mullen’s quarterback aging vat has been very well spent. In all likelihood, Jones put more pressure on himself than he needed. Mullen seems quite confident in his abilities so perhaps it’s simply a matter of relaxing and just going out there to do everything he’s trained the last three years to do. Perhaps. That isn’t to say that Emory Jones has no need to be concerned about Anthony Richardson. Richardson is an enormous talent who has only scratched the surface of his potential. There is also that teensy matter of what happened in August practices and Florida’s two scrimmages. People who saw the Gators regularly and in the scrimmages were of the opinion that Richardson had the better August and that it’s only a matter of time this season before he assumes the starting role. To be considered is the fact that Richardson has never taken snaps in SEC football games. Jones may have never started prior to FAU, but he has seen critical snaps in big games, both home and on the road. He’s not going to be intimidated by big crowds or facing off against highly regarded opponents. That alone will weigh heavily in any decision Mullen makes before electing to change quarterbacks. There is also the matter of the locker room. Like it or not, teams do follow a leader and from all reports, Jones has been that leader ever since the Gators returned from the Cotton Bowl game. Any change that takes place at QB will have to be accomplished with teammates understanding that it’s time. What we can probably count on moving forward is Richardson getting more opportunities to play. There was no question in 2019 and 2020 that there was a gap between Kyle Trask and Jones. Trask was the unquestioned starter. Jones was the clear backup. Here we are in 2021, however, and based on what we saw Saturday night, the gap that separates Emory Jones and Anthony Richardson shrunk considerably. How much more it shrinks in the next week or two remains to be seen, but Mullen can’t feel confident that Jones can lead the Gators past Alabama in two weeks time. While Jones was looking like a career backup in his first career start as a college quarterback, Alabama’s Bryce Jones was looking like he’s ready to lead the Crimson Tide to a second straight national championship the way he sliced and diced what was thought to be a good Miami team. While Jones was averaging 4.19 yards per throw and throwing more interceptions (two) than touchdowns, Young was throwing for 344 yards and four touchdowns in an almost flawless performance. For now it’s safe to say there is no quarterback controversy at the University of Florida. Dan Mullen will start Emory Jones next week against South Florida. If it’s more of the same that we saw against FAU for Jones, then Mullen may feel compelled to make a change, but would he do it on the verge of the Gators playing the No. 1 team in the nation? We often hear that old saying that the greatest improvement college football teams make is from week one to week two. The same can be said about quarterbacks, especially those making their first career start. The door is wide open for Emory Jones to prove that he is indeed the right quarterback at the right time for the University of Florida, but he has to be feeling the rather talented footsteps of Anthony Richardson. The Gators are still Emory Jones’ team. For now. He needs to play very well next week in Tampa or else he will be feeling an inordinate amount of heat in the weeks to come.

Florida Gators head coach Dan Mullen met with local media following the No. 13 Gators win over FAU. From the quarterback rotation to the defensive front seven, Mullen touched on a little bit of everything. As a valued GatorBait subscriber, we are offering this transcript in full. WHY SHOULDN'T WE BE WORRYING ABOUT QB AFTER TONIGHT'S GAME? "Well I think the plan was we were going to play both of them, got Anthony that series in the first half then wanted to get him another couple series in the second half. I thought he did a good job. Missed some reads, missed a couple of reads out there. But I thought it was good for him to get some experience. Was great for Emory to get that experience as the starter right now, for his first game out there. He missed some reads too, but I think you see both of them have the ability to make explosive plays. The nice thing is I'm pretty confident with both the quarterbacks. Obviously Emory is our starter and we say, but as you get the experience you roll the guys through. We did that tonight and it was great to see them both make some really explosive plays. I mean I think, what you said, I guess, what is it, you're concerned with them? I think our concern, we missed a couple little reads, and we missed some reads that we shouldn't miss. A couple of checks, you know? That type of deal is stuff that we've got to get cleaned up and stuff that you haven't seen a ton in practice but all the sudden it's different, you know what I mean? The difference between practice and a game, in practice, quarterbacks start scrambling we blow the play dead. Well we saw tonight those are big, explosive-hit plays. In practice, though, you don't hit the quarterback and you see them and they get used to certain kind of looks and making certain reads, well now you get into a game you're playing a different defense. You've got to be able to adjust and take what the defense gives you. I think we missed some of those throws tonight." NOT EVEN SO MUCH THE CONCERN, JUST ANTHONY RICHARDSON WAS UNBELIEVABLE AT TIMES TONIGHT? "He did some good things. Yeah, he's exciting with the ball in his hand, isn't he? Running around making some plays." GOING AGAINST TIRED DEFENSE AND EVERYTHING, I GET THAT "No, we know. I think I told that, I think he's going to be a great player for us, and I think you saw that tonight, his athleticism. He's a special guy with the ball in his hand." CAN YOU GO FROM BEST PASSING TEAM IN COUNTRY TO BEST RUSHING TEAM? "I mean I've done it before. We're going to do what our guys do well. It's just kind of, that's what it is. Honestly, I'd love to continue to be balanced. Let me just see here... yeah, we ran it a little bit more than we threw it today; 46 runs, 35 passes, but some of those were scrambles, too, you know what I mean? So I think you're able to stay balanced, but our explosive plays came on the ground tonight. So we've got to look at that a little bit. Are we taking the shots we need down the field to be explosive in the pass game as well? Like I said, we're going to do what we're going to do. If we've got to lead the nation in rushing, we'll do that. Last year we lead it in passing. Do what our guys do well." 4th-and-goal, Emory make the wrong call? “He got the wrong signal from the sideline, thought we called something we didn’t and missed communication. Great things there to learn from, I mean, if he’s not sure with the communication I didn’t know he wasn’t sure when we’re running a play because it looks like we’re in the right formation and all that stuff he wasn’t sure with the play call. That’s an experience deal in a first start right there. He’s sitting out there and saying I got to make plays. You called this and I got to make a play and he got the wrong signal from the sidelines. In that situation it doesn’t seem right, he’s got to take a timeout for us and say, this doesn’t seem right, just let me just make sure and have the, you know, fix errors that come from the sideline fix it on the field.” When ask if QB controversy? “I would never ask myself that because I coach the quarterbacks a bunch. Umm, they’re not very controversial guys. They’re both really nice guys.” Fans are going to look at how AR played and say why isn’t he the starter? Why so confident in Emory? “His decision-making and getting us through every part of the game. Obviously, when you look at what happened and with Anthony coming in, did some nice things. I mean, you know, you got to run the whole offense. And so I think and Anthony’s really growing with that and growing with situations. So I think he’ll continue to grow with situations as we move forward and Emory’s going to continue to grow, so …” Emory pitch to Pierce, did he call that? “Yeah. That was like you said, you have the leeway, that was a check play. He saw them in a certain defense and he got the check right. That’s part of it. There’s things that, you know, if you look at Emory there’s things that he did really well. And then there's some things he missed. And when you look at some of the misses, I'm fine wine with. Some of the misses are tough things and then a couple simple misses, and I know he's frustrated with it. The good thing is coming off the field, you're like, ‘Hey, what’d you see?’ And he knows what the issue was, you know what I mean? ‘Hey, I missed this. Hey, I missed that,’ and that's what you want from the quarterback. It’s not like he was kind of looking like he had a confused look on his face. What he missed, that’s what you want so we can get it cleaned up.” What will keep you up tonight? “I mean everything right now. We had a lot of penalties in the game, missed assignments, making sure … We played a lot of guys, had a bunch of guys out. You had four interior D-lineman out with injuries. Hopefully we get some of those guys back this week just to increase the depth on that side of the ball. Everything. I don't know if it keeps me up at night. I mean everything. I’m up all the time anyway thinking of how we're going to get better. How we're gonna practice better, how we improve our scout-team looks, how we're more detailed and exact, how we make sure we cut down on mistakes, and we have better attention to detail, eliminate all the penalties. You know I'm kind of a perfectionist and so what I want to see, I think, is we got to get a lot better and we got to in every aspect of it, you know. Not just better Saturday night. We have to get better right now. We got to get better starting Monday. We come back in, every part of our preparation can be more detailed and more exact so we play much cleaner.” what's the thing that impressed you tonight that coming into the game you didn't think would? “I don't know. Not much. I don't know. I’d have to watch the film. Not much surprises me out there. I think you know me. I'm always … as the game (goes), I'm very critical, so I'm not like, ‘Wow, this was fantastic.’ What probably surprised me is our number of penalties.” So, what did you expect out of offense, specifically Emory? Did he meet that or were you not surprised that he had these miscommunications? "Well the miscommunication one, obviously that's disappointing, that's, that's a big miscommunication, that's everybody.That's not him, that's everybody. No I, you know I thought, you know this, you know in you're first start, you're going to miss a read or two here or there. You know, so I'm not real worried about that, we'll get that cleaned up, that didn't surprise me. You know, the best part of the night was the crowd, you know, that was the absolute best part of the night was seeing all the Gator fans and the energy and the electricity in the stadium again and you know you realize how much you miss that, you know. And, you know, just that feeling of that energy of having all the Gator fans in there cheering and that noise in the stadium. That was awesome, that was definitely the best part of the night, was the whole all the Gator fans cheering us on." What impressed you the most about Malik Davis's performance tonight? "Well you know I thought he really ran the ball hard, breaking tackles, yards after contact, his vision, I thought he did a really good job with that. But that's what we've been seeing and that's the Malik I know and expect to see throughout the season and he's really worked hard at that. So, you know, I thought, I thought all our backs as a whole played pretty well to be honest with you." I wanted to ask you about the front seven. I know you guys thought that can kind of be a strength for you. How did you feel like they played tonight? "On defense, I thought solid at times. I thought we got after the quarterback. I thought they [FAU] did a good job getting the ball out pretty quick early, and, you know, a lot of times when they got the drop back pass we got a bunch of pressure, got some sacks. Let's see. How many did we end up with here? (looks at stat sheet) Thomas: Four sacks, got on a couple fumbles "Yeah created two, you know and that was those were all done up front, you know, a little, a little bit, a little bit soft in the run game at times so you know that I want us to be a little bit stouter on that part of it. Even though I, you know at times were stout, it was kind of like, you know either, like zero or 10 yards kind of seemed like to me at times, so we gotta be a little bit cleaner that way up front. But overall, you know, and I think those guys, especially older guys, they have a pretty high expectation for themselves so I think they want to get better, you know, and this transition into playing games and how different it is, you know from all the practice stuff so you know I think we'll see a big jump this week." In that first couple of drives, really high tempo, more than we saw last season on the first couple of drives. Is that something we can expect to see more and what do you think of kind of like just faster pace? "Yeah, we really want to play with tempo, you know obviously what goes on in the situations, you know, determine that and the yardage and where the ball is but we'd like to do a lot more tempo this season." It's been obviously your second game without Toney, Pitts and Grimes and then it's the second game where Rick Wells led you guys in receiving. Got his first career touchdown tonight just, what do you think of his performance and just being back for his six year. What does he mean to that receiving corps? "Yeah, I think you know, I mean Rick just shows, you know, the perseverance. I mean he's a guy, he's worked his tail off. You know when I got here, early on I had questions whether he would make it and then I said 'hey, eventually you got to buy into the program.' And he bought all into the program, and I saw a change in him, and then all of a sudden he got stuck kind of behind some guys even though he bought in. But it never deterred him, and he just, you know, I mean he kept battling and kept working, kept his head down, kept grinding and now he's reaping the reward of, you know, of all that hard work."

GAINESVILLE, FL—The No. 13 Florida Gators are back on the field to kick off the 2021 season. Saturday night's kickoff at 7:30pm is against Florida Atlantic University and former FSU head coach Willie Taggart. Before kickoff, catch up on this week's edition of GatorBait Magazine, complete with previews, rosters and more. Find it here! Kickoff is set for 7:30pm EST on SEC Network. Tom Hart, Jordan Rodgers and Cole Cubelic are on the call. Stay tuned to this story for notes and observations. It will be updated periodically. Gator Walk The Gators weren't able to take part in the pre-game Gator Walk ritual during the 2020 season, due to COVID-19 concerns. So it's no surprised that even before a smaller game, fans still turned out to welcome the boys to the stadium, as well as welcome back the tradition. Pre-Game Field Notes The line on the game is currently Florida -23.5. Former Gator Sharrif Floyd is on the field, visiting with coaches and players ahead of the game. In warmups, lots of fades to Justin Shorter in the endzone. Expect him to be a big target in the redzone. New guys Daquan Newkirk and Antonio Shelton both named starters on the interior defensive line. Full starters below for defense: BUCK Brenton Cox DE Jeremiah Moon DE Zach Carter DL Daquan Newkirk DL Antonio Valentino S Trey Dean C Kaiir Elam MLB Ventrell Miller LB Mohamoud Diabate STAR Tre'Vez Johnson S Rashad Torrence C Avery Helm Full starters on offense: Tackle, Richard Gouraige Guard, Ethan White Center, Kingsley Eguakun Guard, Stewart Reese Tackle, Jean Delance WR, Jacob Copeland WR, Justin Shorter WR, Trent Whittemore TE, Kemore Gamble RB, Malik Davis RB, Dameon Pierce QB, Emory Jones Andrew Chatfield, who put his name in the transfer portal a couple of weeks ago, is on the field warming up. Players can still practice and even play with their school while waiting to transfer. The school does not have to honor their scholarship while they wait. Athletes can also elect to pull their name out of the portal and stay with a school. Zach Carter, Malik Davis and Ventrell Miller are captains for today's game. In Game Observations FAU wins the toss and defers. Gators on opening drive faced a quick third down, but were able to move the chains thanks to a perfect pitch and catch from Emory Jones to Jacob Copeland for 15 yards. On the very next play, Malik Davis—who was named a starter alongside Dameon Pierce—broke off a 31-yard gain up the right sideline. After a couple more quick decisions from Jones (and an offense that set the tempo to FAST), the Gators were on the goal line. Dameon Pierce punched it in from there for the Gators first touchdown of the 2021 season. That first offensive drive for the Gators started exactly how imagine/fans could hope for. Couple of early jitters, then a quick Emory pass to Copeland for nice snap, a few incredible runs by multiple running backs, good decisions from Jones, blazing fast & a score. Trey Dean was originally shaken up on a play and went into the medical tent, but returned to play. Zach Carter with a twitch before the ball was even snapped that said he was coming. He did and blew up FAU's backfield to cause a sack fumble. He can be the game changer this defense needs. Halftime Observations Gators offense on paper is playing a great game. Has almost doubled up FAU's total yardage—264 to 134—and is showing a run game that was missing in recent years, picking up 188 yards on the ground courtesy of four different running backs, as well as both QB's (Jones and Anthony Richardson). They've also made four trips to the redzone. But have only gotten points on two of the four trips. Both redzone fails were on Jones. The first time, he threw an interception in an area where only a FAU player was stationed. The second time, on 4th and goal from the 4-yard line, he called his own number for a QB power that went nowhere. Even Dan Mullen looked perplexed. On Monday, GatorBait asked Dan Mullen how much leeway Jones would have to make his own calls. Here's what he said: “He has a lot. We'll have a bunch of different things. We’ll have some package plays that are checked together. We’ll have some automatics that he can kill to. I think he knows he has the ability (to audible) if he sees something that he likes or that's different that we weren't planning for. A lot of times you get into a game, especially one that you don't have much film to go watch, you know you have to be very flexible during the course of the game. He’s a guy that I have the confidence in that, if he sees something, he can check to it and go take what he sees.” The Gators defense has played their standard style of bend, don't break. But the difference—at least thus far—from last season is that they've also limited explosive plays. They've kept the Owls out of the redzone the entire first half and picked up two sacks for a loss of 14 yards. Carter and Brenton Cox have been a terror up front, helping the coverage on the backend tremendously. Still, there are too many easy throws to the flat for N'Kosi Perry and the Owls. The secondary will have to play up more in the second half to cut down on those easy pick-ups.

As the No. 13 Florida Gators kick off their 2021 season on Saturday, the defense is bound to look much different. Since the words “Florida Gators” and “defense” appeared in the same sentence, we know your blood pressure probably just spiked, so we’ll repeat the second part of it again; “the defense is bound to look much different.” Frankly, it had to because the alternative wasn’t acceptable. After a year in which the defense could only be described as abysmal, taking a unit that had spent the past 10 years in the Top 30 and above, dropping them to 100th in FBS, the defense has no where to go but up. Defensive Coordinator Todd Grantham knows that. While he hasn’t changed his entire coaching style—decades in the coaching ranks creating habit prohibit that—but he’s brought along a defense with a full offseason, something he couldn’t say last fall. And that’s given him confidence once again. “We feel pretty comfortable, we’ve evaluated everything that we do, we feel comfortable with what we’re doing. The players worked hard today on our first and second-down gameplan, and we’ll continue to add our gameplan as we move forward, and we look forward to playing on Saturday.” “Whatever he calls, we’re going to go out there and execute,” promised safety Trey Dean III. “He’s going to put his playmakers in positions to make plays, and we’ve just got to go out there and make the play. Like I say, I think he’s the best defensive coordinator in the country. So, he got a lot of tricks in the hat.” If Grantham is going to work some magic this season, at least he’ll have some new tricks in that hat of his. There are sweeping changes around the Gators defense, courtesy of new faces. As you get ready to watch the Gators kickoff their season, hoping to defended their SEC East title, here’s are the changes to be aware of on the defensive side of the ball. CORNER AVERY HELM Avery Helm is a Texas native, but he’s always known where to look for DBU. “Everybody know that Florida was considered DBU, so I always knew about them. But when I got an offer from them, it was like 'wow.' And then when I took a visit it was somewhere I really wanted to be. So, that's how I ended up here now.” After ending up at Florida, Helm had enough talent in front of him that the assumption was he’d have time to learn and grow; earn a few stripes before stepping in to start. Then Jaydon Hill tore his ACL in fall camp. All of a sudden, the redshirt freshman Helm was getting the signal; he would need to start opposite Kaiir Elam this fall. “Avery’s a guy that has really good speed that’s really progressed every time he’s had an opportunity to play,” bragged Grantham this week on his new starting corner. “You like the way he takes scrimmage 1 and the things he did there and improves on scrimmage 2. A really conscientious guy that works hard everyday to be the kind of guy you want, and then obviously being able to have Jason Marshall backing him up. As far as being able to rotate those guys, along with Elijah Blades coming in, we feel like we’ll be able to continue to compete at that spot.” Helm steps onto the field with another former Gator in the back of his mind, hoping to emulate the gators last defensive All-American. “I used to always watch Vernon Hargreaves when I was younger, like when I first started playing corner, that's who I used to watch. And he always brings excitement.” Hargreaves revived a legacy—begun by Janoris Jenkins and Joe Haden—of freshmen dominating at corner for the Gators. Since VH3, C.J. Henderson, Marco Wilson and even Trey Dean III have all shown out as freshmen at corner. Helm, a four-star recruit who picked Florida over Alabama and Arkansas, knows that there will be some baptism by fire at one of the toughest positions on the field. But he has a plan to carry on that tradition. “You just build,” he told reporters this week, ahead of his first start. “I'm just going to see how the first game goes because it's my first college game that I'm starting off in. Just to see how I start off, and then I'm gonna just learn as I go. It's gonna be an all-in learning experience for me. “You just go the way the season goes. You just go in at the best you can do, and as long as you're at the best you can do it then you're gonna be good, you're gonna be successful." STAR TRE’VEZ JOHNSON The Gators haven’t had the right “unicorn” at star since Chauncey Gardner-Johnson roamed the field in 2018. There was an experiment with Trey Dean that went nowhere. Marco Wilson finished out the 2019 season on a high note at STAR but 2020 was…well, we’ve already discussed that. Now, the Gators are turning to a young guy who saw ample time on the field as a freshman. Now a true sophomore, Tre’Vez Johnson looks to bring back the tenacious play that is necessary at the nickel STAR spot. “That’s kind of like a hybrid position so you gotta be able to do a lot of things,” explained Johnson during fall camp. “So I’m just trying to improve my game whether it be covering, whether it be me being in the box tackling, fitting up and being physical. And just watching how Chauncey and other guys in the league doing it at a high level I just try to take a little bit from their game too. But, yeah, it’s not too much of an adjustment. You just gotta stay in there and watch the guys. And really whatever the coach calls, just do your job.” As a true freshman, the safety played in all 12 games, finishing with 15 tackles, two pass break-ups, one tackle for loss and an interception. He was recruited as a safety, but played closer to the line at times last season as well. It’s a transition that Gardner-Johnson made as well, creating the mold for a competent STAR. The similarities are why Todd Grantham wants the former baseball player in the versatile role. “Tre’Vez is a guy that you know, really can play multiple positions. You always talk about how can you get your best players on the field. You know he's been able to go through a spring practice and all season, you know, last year he was kind of thrown in the fire, and kind of learned on the run a little bit, but he's a very conscientious guy. He's really worked hard in the offseason to understand the nuances of that position along, along with understanding those things as well as developing in the weight room. “You know he's a year older, a year more mature. It's allowed him, you know, in his cover skills to be a little bit firmer. So, that position is one that you've got to be able to come up and set the edge on perimeter bubbles, and those kind of things. You got to be able to blitz a little bit, and then you've got to be able to cover. So we obviously asked a lot of him but we feel comfortable with his talents that he'll be able to do those things and we look forward to watching him show his progression as we move forward to the season.” SAFETY TREY DEAN Trey Dean has been a corner, a STAR, a backup safety, a benchwarmer, a freshman phenom and veteran letdown. He’s been it all and then some. But he couldn’t leave just yet. He returned for his senior year with a very specific goal in mind. “I didn’t come back for no reason. The No. 1 goal is to win the national championship, first win the SEC championship. Before that just win the East. It’s going to be great, our crowd is going to play a big factor especially every game, not just the big games, but every game, like I said, nothing like the Swamp.” Grantham has often talked about the finding ways to get Dean on the field, just to take advantage of his natural talent. But he was put in the wrong position at times. To help the Gators achieve his goal, Dean had to be at his best. And that meant going back to where he previously at his best; at safety. “First off, it’s really just all God. It’s not a place I’ve never been before, just take it for the team, that’s just a stepping stone to show them my ability, show people what I can do,” predicted Dean. It’s the position he played in high school, and where he’s most useful, allowing his cerebral approach time to diagnose a play before blowing it up. “He has all the measurables, size and speed, tremendous energy,” braces secondary coach, Wesley McGriff. “Sometimes you have to tone him down, which is great quality. But to have an opportunity to have a young man like that in your room and coaching him that’s what you live for, that’s what you dream of. “I’m excited about coaching Trey and watching him take the next step and guess what, Trey’s excited every day about getting better. I mean, he comes to the building ready to work, does a good job in the classroom studying tape, asking questions, so he’s very engaged. You can find him on the practice field because he’s going to give 110 percent every play.” THE TRANSFERS ON THE LINE “The two new guys, Daquan Newkirk and [Antonio] Valentino, I thought those guys embraced the role. They stepped in and just took over right from Day 1. Those were Dan Mullen’s comments at the beginning of fall camp, on his two new transfers on the defensive line. Since then, the Gators struck again in the transfer portal, where they’ve dominated the past couple of years, adding Tyrone Truesdell. The additions allow Zach Carter to move back to defensive end, where his tall frame—albeit now bulked up slightly from his year on the interior line—and quick get off can get around tackles and into the backfield. Each guy has the potential to start right away. ANTONIO VALENTINO A Penn State transfer, Valentino appeared in 40 games for the Nittany Lions, accumulating 51 tackles (17 solo), 12.5 tackles-for-loss and six sacks. At 6-3, 312, he’s hoping to emulate a former Gator who is already making waves as a rookie with the Green Bay Packers. “I’ve watched a lot of film on TJ [Slaton],” revealed Valentino during fall camp. “I think our play styles are pretty similar, and I think that TJ was very good in his techniques. TJ was one of those players where, you know obviously he made plays and he got drafted fairly high, he made his plays when he had to make them, but I think where TJ—and where Coach T [David Turner] said TJ made the majority of his money from, is causing disruption. “Like, TJ wouldn’t make the play but he would make the play. Like if they were zoning to his side, he would stick his foot in the ground and make the running back have to cut back to where the rest of the defense is. So I think I can do things similar to that, it’s just getting 100 percent comfortable with the playbook and anticipating things before they happen and knowing when to react to things.” Slaton is a great example of a monster lineman, which can be par for the course in the SEC. Valentino joked he used to roll his eye’s at the “SEC bias” in college football while in the Big 10…then he participated in one padded practice with the Gators. “It was just like, ‘Yo, these dudes is moving, like everybody’s an athlete’. It’s just a superior athlete I guess that you can just find down here. No disrespect to the Big 10 or anything, it’s just one of those things where you just have to see it to understand it.” The other two Florida defense line transfers have seen it, they do understand it, and it will help them make an immediate impact in Gainesville. DAQUAN NEWKIRK An Auburn transfer, the redshirt senior played in 30 games with the Tigers from 2018-20, racking up 40 tackles (12 solo), five for loss, with two and a half sacks. He remembers what it was like to lose in the Swamp as an opponent in 2019, and is excited to be on the other side of the field and closer to home (Orlando). Still, he knew he couldn’t just stroll in and take a job. He was more than happy to earn it, as he recalled during fall camp. “I think guys just accepted their roles, honestly,” said Newkirk as to how he and Valentino were able to fit in so quickly. “I know my role in the weight room and that’s what I love. I’m a team player. I’m down to do whatever. If I would have came here and I didn’t win whatever – if I was a backup – that was fine. I’m just coming here to do my role.” As for what that role will actually be? That can change, depending on whatever is needed at any given time, according to Newkirk. "I play mainly three-tech, but I play all across the line in different schemes. So, I don't really prefer anywhere, I'm just an everywhere guy. So wherever they want to put me at, I can play it pretty much." TYRONE TRUESDELL Newkirk was joined just this week by his former Auburn teammate, Truesdell. The 6-2, 326 lb. defensive lineman can come in and play right away, after only a week of practice. Don’t believe us? Ask Todd Grantham. “He'll play Saturday, he’ll play Saturday…he was a guy that we were excited about trying to get here, and then we're, you know certainly happy and fortunate that it finally came about and we look forward to watching him play on Saturday.” A graduate student, Truesdell started his final two seasons on the plains at defensive tackle. Overall, he played in 44 career games with 67 total tackles (30 solo), nine for loss, with two and a half sacks and two fumble recoveries. “He's a big bodied guy that can give us some stoutness in the middle, allow us to maybe expand some roles of some guys in there, and you know you never can have enough depth at that position as you go through the season,” said Grantham. For at least right now, depth will be Truesdell’s primary role. His implementation into the line will be staggered, Grantham went on to say, not wanting to cause harm by going too fast. He’ll play on Saturday, but it will begin with limited packages. “I’m a big believer in as you learn, you learn the concepts. So this, you might have to play this one technique, but it applies to maybe four different defenses, and as you learn that you’re maybe learning three to four concepts, then all the sudden you know eight to 10 defenses and we’ll be fine with that. So it’ll obviously be a limited package with him in there,” explained Grantham. Truesdell’s experience in the SEC will help, so the DC will work on making him comfortable and letting his instincts go from there. “We’ll make sure he’s comfortable with it. I’ll make sure I go over the calls with him and make sure he knows exactly what to do and just let him go play and have fun. It’s been a long road for him to get here and we’re certainly excited we can add him to that unit to give it some depth.”

If you are inclined to believe the college football writers at most of the major media outlets, the only thing remaining in the Southeastern Conference is whether the championship trophy will be engraved to say Alabama or Georgia. Nobody is exactly giving the Florida Gators a lot of love. Phil Steele, who claims to be the most accurate preseason forecaster on the planet, doesn’t even have the Gators in his top 25. Thank goodness games are played on the field and not in the preseason minds of the media because there are good reasons to believe the Florida Gators have what it takes to make 2021 a very special year. You don’t have to see the world through orange and blue glasses to realize that in his fourth year at the University of Florida, Dan Mullen has the most talent top to bottom of his roster that he’s had since arriving from Mississippi State in December of 2017. There is just enough distance between the tough games on the schedule that if Florida can stay healthy, can avoid a COVID-19 nightmare and can catch a break or two along the way, Mullen just might be able to prove the preseason prognosticators wrong and make believers out of every Gator fan on the planet. Here are five reasons to believe 2021 can be something special. 1. THE HEAD COACH Let’s begin with the obvious. He won 69 games in nine years at Mississippi State and for several weeks in 2014 had the Bulldogs ranked No. 1 in the nation. You equate winning at Mississippi State similarly to the way they figure dog years to human years. An eight-win season at Mississippi State is like a 12-win season at Alabama. Nobody wins at Mississippi State consistently, but Mullen did and he took MSU to eight consecutive bowl games, which is unheard of in Starkville. Obvious observation No. 2. He’s 29-9 in three years at Florida with three New Year’s Six bowls. Yes, the Gators lost their last three games of 2020, but let’s put that into perspective. It was a weird season for everyone. Midway through the year, the Gators had two unexpected weeks off due to COVID-19 that forced a re-shuffling of the schedule. Mullen has talked on more than one occasion how difficult it was for the players, not knowing from week-to-week if there was even going to be a game, not necessarily because there was a COVID outbreak at UF but one at the next opponent. Kids worried about family members back home who had come down with the virus. Players and coaches alike had to isolate and far too many meetings were via Zoom and not in person. And still, Mullen was 8-4, but more importantly maybe six plays away from 11-0 and the SEC Championship. And now Mullen starts year four at Florida, playing for the first time with a team that is made up mostly of kids he recruited. These are kids who were brought to Florida specifically to play in Dan Mullen’s system and the system in place – a hybrid of the one he learned as Urban Meyer’s offensive coordinator, the one he implemented at Mississippi State and the one he’s running now at Florida – is getting the job done. The national media is viewing this edition of the Gators with a certain amount of caution, based on the three-game losing streak at the end of last year, the loss of first round talents like Kyle Pitts and Kadarius Toney and record-setting second round QB Kyle Trask, and a defense that played as if it were under a social distancing mandate for all but a couple of games. The Gators are just outside the top ten in nearly everybody’s preseason rankings, largely because no one really knows what to expect. What they should know is Dan Mullen has this habit of winning when less is expected. Nobody expected him to win at Mississippi State but he did. When he arrived at Florida not exactly as the top choice – Chip Kelly (to UCLA) and Scott Frost (to Nebraska) – there were also tempered expectations. Now that there are numerous unknown factors heading into 2021, no one in the media really knows what to expect. You don’t hear Dan Mullen bellyaching about the lack of respect, at least publicly. Don’t think for a second he isn’t selling the disrespect card every day in practice, letting the Gators know that they’re sort of second class citizens who need to play football this year with a mega-sized chip on their shoulders. In public, Mullen is saying all the right things. You know the drill … I have confidence in our guys … we’re working hard … we can’t wait to play … and so on. What he isn’t doing is sounding the least bit cocky. He wears this grin. Sort of like the cat that ate the canary. Sometimes what you don’t say says everything and what Dan Mullen isn’t saying is he has the Gators right where he wants them. That’s a reason to believe. 2. MAT DRILLS, SPRING FOOTBALL, OFFSEASON: THE SAVAGE EFFECT Stewart Reese transferred to Florida from Mississippi State because he wanted to play a year of college football with younger brother David, wanted to be close to family down in Fort Pierce and wanted to be reunited with the coaches who recruited him to Starkville – Dan Mullen and John Hevesy. COVID-19 was the hit from the blindside that he never saw coming. It eliminated spring practice, eliminated offseason workouts with Nick Savage, who had whipped him into great shape at Mississippi State, where he started 26 straight games, and left him to make far too many midnight runs to the McDonald’s drive-thru. He was 15-20 pounds over his ideal playing weight when it was decided football would be played, but there was also a COVID quarantine that saw him add another 10 pounds and balloon all the way to 370. He never was in good physical condition in 2020 and it showed because he lacked quickness and stamina. Thanks to mat drills, spring football, offseason workout regimen and good nutrition, Reese will be playing somewhere between 335-345 this year. He’s feeling stronger, feeling like knocking people off the ball at right guard, and if necessary, right tackle. Ethan White, who came to UF at 400 pounds in 2019, was 360 last year but he was injured and didn’t play nearly as much as he or the coaches expected. White is 319 this year. He’s got abs. Nick Savage has him looking like a lean, mean blocking machine. Desmond Watson was an early enrollee at UF back in January, almost a walking eclipse who was so big he could block out the sun. He was 440 pounds in the spring. The roster has him listed at 400 right now, but teammates say he’s somewhere around 390 and continuing to drop weight. He may wind up as Florida’s version Mount Cody, the legendary Alabama nose tackle who was a stone wall who eliminated two gaps in opponents’ running game. Another Nick Savage special. Unlike last year when the Gators seemed to run out of gas in fourth quarters, this Florida team will be in excellent physical condition. Just as important, the Gators are going to be tougher. Mullen has been mentioning this as have some of the assistant coaches. Physically strong teams that have stamina tend to be very tough. The Savage Effect is one more reason to believe. 3. MANNA FROM HEAVEN: THE PORTAL GIVETH When it comes to strategically adding transfers to fill gaps in the roster, Dan Mullen has been way ahead of the curve, even before new NCAA rules created what amounts to free agency. In 2018, Mullen supplemented the Florida roster by adding wide receivers Van Jefferson (Ole Miss) and Trevon Grimes (Ohio State). In 2019, he added EDGE rushers Jon Greenard (Louisville) and Brenton Cox Jr. (Georgia). In 2020, running back Lorenzo Lingard (Miami), wide receivers Justin Shorter (Penn State) and Jordan Pouncey (Texas) and O-lineman Stewart Reese (Mississippi State). And all this was BEFORE free agency. What Mullen did to plug holes in the roster for 2021 is nothing short of brilliant. Start with the D-line where he’s added three huge interior guys who were multi-year starters at their former schools – Antonio Valentino (6-3, 312, Penn State), Daquan Newkirk (6-3, 308, Auburn) and Tyrone Truesdell (6-2, 326, Auburn). Just like that a D-line that gave up a whopping 170 yards a game on the ground in 2020 looks like one that will eliminate running the ball up the gut. The secondary was leaky in 2020 and several experienced players moved on to the NFL. So, Mullen brought in Jadarrius Perkins (Missouri) and Elijah Blades (Texas A&M). Both will be in the regular rotation when the season starts against FAU and it shouldn’t be a shock if they both are starters before the end of September. If nothing more they are experienced, older players who will blend in well with the talented kids. An already loaded running back room got stronger with the addition of Demarkcus Bowman (Clemson), who used to light people up at Lakeland and is potentially the best breakaway runner the Gators have had since the 1980s. Placekicker Jace Christmann came in from Mississippi State, where he is the all-time leading scorer. Mullen and his staff have been criticized far too often for their recruiting when, in fact, they’ve done a very good job of filling all the holes in the depth chart by combining talented high school kids that can be developed with ready-to-play transfers. Now that kids can transfer once without having to sit out, Mullen will be holding anywhere from 5-7 scholarships per year to take advantage of talented transfers. He has tested those transfer waters regularly in the past three years and has yet to be burned. And, because Mullen and staff are so good at identifying immediate needs, they’ve been able to capitalize by finding guys who fit perfectly in both scheme and the Florida football culture. Counting the special teams, there are 48 players on the two-deep roster. You can figure 11 or 12 of those spots will be filled with guys who began their collegiate careers somewhere other than UF. It’s not a sign of weakness that Mullen and staff will rely so heavily on transfers. It’s actually a sign of strength and knowing how to plug a hole with a ready-to-go player who is experienced. Because Mullen is light years ahead of most coaches in the country when it comes to not just finding transfers, but the right transfers, is just another reason to believe. 4. THE OFFENSE: EVIL GENIUS, PART DEUX Back in the day, Steve Spurrier was known as “The Evil Genius” because whatever opposing defensive coordinators wanted to throw at him, he could dial up something that made them look silly. Dan Mullen is cut from the same cloth. Show Mullen an exotic defense and it seems like he will find 50 ways to make the coordinator on the other sideline rue the day he decided to take up coaching. A year ago, Florida’s offense was essentially everybody breathing goes out for a pass. Opponents basically had two choices: (1) Blitz from every conceivable angle or (2) drop seven or eight into coverage. No matter what they tried Mullen dialed up something that would counter and Kyle Trask would find Kyle Pitts, Kadarius Toney or some other receiver wide open for an easy pitch and catch. Trask has moved on to the NFL along with Pitts and Toney and so the offense takes a dramatic shift for 2021. Because Emory Jones and backup Anthony Richardson are gifted runners, designed quarterback runs will be trendy as will triple option pitches to the most talented set of runners Mullen has ever coached. In that respect the offense might look a lot like it did during the Tim Tebow years, when Mullen forced opposing coordinators to account for the quarterback in the run game. When opponents tried to gang up on the run, Tebow made them pay through the air. The offense also might look a lot like Mississippi State 2014-15 when Dak Prescott threw more than Tebow ever did but was still a very effective runner. And don’t think for even one second that all those nifty pass plays designed for Kyle Trask are going to be collecting dust in a playbook on some shelf. Mullen says the ball just jumps out of the hand of both Jones and Richardson. He says both of them can make the same throws Trask made so the Gators aren’t about to abandon the pass although they might throw fewer times. So, what we’re likely to get in 2021 is a concoction that would make Steve Spurrier proud. Figure it’s going to be a hybrid that is part Tebow, part Dak, part Trask and all about Jones, Richardson, that stable of running backs and a room full of wide receivers coached up by Billy Gonzales, who has this habit of developing NFL talent. When Jones and Richardson aren’t taking off on designed quarterback runs they’ll be getting outside the tackles where they can either pitch it to a trailing running back, take off running if the corners and linebackers are too concerned about the threat of the pass, or throw it if the corners and safeties abandon receivers to eliminate the run. The running backs room is the deepest and most talented one-through-five that Mullen has ever had at his disposal with Dameon Pierce, Malik Davis, Nay’Quan Wright, Lingard and Bowman, all of whom are gifted runners as well as excellent pass catchers. There is no Pitts or Toney to throw it to, but circle the names Justin Shorter, Jacob Copeland, Trent Whittemore and Xzavier Henderson. They’re going to have big years. Tight end Kemore Gamble says he’s the best at his position in America and while that might be debatable, what is undeniable is the potential for true freshman Nick Elksnis who seems to have a bit of unicorn in him. No doubt the offense is going to be different. Mullen doesn’t hesitate to tell you that the offense is completely personnel driven and this year’s personnel indicates a wholesale shift from start throwing from the moment the bus makes a complete stop outside the stadium to one that is far more diverse. Nobody could figure out how to stop Mullen when everyone and his brother knew what he was going to do. They’ll have a far more difficult time in 2021 when the offense is far less predictable. Mullen is “Evil Genius, Part Deux” and that is another reason to believe. 5. THE DEFENSE: PREPARE YOURSELF FOR IMPROVEMENT Florida’s defense cannot be as bad as it was last year. Period. End of story. Since the Gators already hit rock bottom there is only one way to go and that is up. A year ago the worst Florida defense in history ranked 83rd nationally after allowing 30.8 points and 428 yards per game, which caused what seemed to be a very vocal majority of Florida fans to call for the head of coordinator Todd Grantham on a pike. Much to their chagrin, Grantham is still the coordinator. Is that because Dan Mullen is simply too loyal to his assistants or is it because in the three previous years (2017 at Mississippi State, 2018-19 at UF), Grantham put a very good product on the field? As Mullen’s coordinator in 2017 at Mississippi State, the Bulldogs ranked 10th nationally. In 2018 at UF the Gators were 28th nationally but they cut a touchdown per game off the previous year. The 2019 Gators finished 9th in total defense, 8th against the run. There is a history of success that follows Grantham so safe to say, Mullen considered 2020 an aberration and why not? There was no spring practice, no offseason workouts and defenses everywhere in the country took steps backward. Mullen says much of Florida’s problems had to do with too many “independent contractors” which, translated, means there were too many players out for themselves and not enough functioning as a team. And, despite all their problems, if Florida’s defense makes a small handful of plays the Gators win the SEC championship and go into the College Football Playoff unbeaten and seeded No. 1. Of course, if frogs had wings, they wouldn’t bump their butts every time they jump. So excuses and legitimate reasons aside, 2020 was a bad year and 2021 is a chance to put those bad memories in the rearview. Thanks to an infusion of five transfers from the NCAA portal and Diwun Black from juco, the UF defense will have a brand new look with expectations for vast improvement. Much of Florida’s defensive failures a year ago had everything to do with the inability to stuff the run, which is why the additions of Antonio Valentino, Daquan Newkirk and Tyrone Truesdell are so important. They all three eat up space, fill gaps and are strong enough to get penetration. Having three big guys rotating in the middle with Gervon Dexton, Desmond Watson and Jalen Lee should free up edge rushers Brenton Cox Jr., Zachary Carter, and Khris Bogle to make life miserable for opposing quarterbacks. Linebackers Ventrell Miller and Mohamoud Diabate are both sure tacklers against the run and sneaky pass rushers who can be game changers off the blitz. When there isn’t consistent pressure on opposing QBs, pass defense falls apart. That happened regularly last year. Kaiir Elam is back at corner and Trey Dean III has shifted from STAR to strong safety. Redshirt freshman Avery Helm will start game one as the corner opposite Elam with Rashad Torrence II at free safety and Tre’Vez Johnson at STAR. Elijah Blades and Jadarrius Perkins will be in the rotation along with Jason Marshall Jr., Mordecai McDaniel and Donovan McMillon. Talent will not be an issue nor will depth. It is almost a blank slate for Grantham to work with. Last year is a thing of the past and this year he has better talent and more depth to work with, perhaps as much or more than any of his three previous seasons at UF. A year older doesn’t necessarily make the Gators a year better, but spring practice, offseason workouts, a solid August and all this talent are reasons for optimism, so much so that the prevailing thought is that if Grantham can coach the Gators into a top 30 defense, Florida could be a legitimate contender for the SEC Championship Game and possibly a spot in the College Football Playoff. All indications are that Florida stands to be much improved on defense, just one more reason to believe this could be a special year. IN CONCLUSION Dan Mullen doesn’t lack for confidence, but for a guy so confident he truly embraces the role of the underdog. He knows fully well the Gators are being written off and Georgia is being penciled in as the SEC East champs. He’s not intimidated by that in the least. If anything, he’s using it as motivation to stoke a fire in the bellies of the Gators. Talent plus motivation plus a head coach who is truly one of the real geniuses in all of college football when it comes to calling plays and exploiting a defense and you have a Florida team that seems ready to shock the world. The season probably comes down to three games – 9/18 Alabama; 10/16 at LSU and 10/30 vs. Georgia in Jacksonville – so playing in the SEC Championship Game will be determined by winning two as long as one of the two is Georgia. I don’t see the Gators losing all three and I believe UF can and will win two. If Georgia’s one of the two, then it’s going to be a season to remember.

Kyle Trask, Chris Leak, Rex Grossman, Jesse Palmer, Shane Matthews… Florida Gator quarterbacks by birthright are born virtually as rock stars. They walk on campus as future Unicorns, maybe as heirs to royalty, perhaps with a touch of diva, eliciting the adoration of a Spanish matador. Yet seemingly, they have all been different. This next one for the Gators certainly is. By rough count via the Internet – I never was good with numbers and we certainly know about the dubious nature of online stuff – there have been 94 previous starting Gator quarterbacks. In 1906 Charlie Thompson started it all. Say hello to Emory Jones. Starting QB No. 95, who probably deserves the Nobel Peace Prize for patience. Let me jump in and say, again, that while Emory Jones may not yet totally comprehend the powerful legacy he inherits, I predict he will contribute mightily to it. He takes the sword Saturday after a three-year wait. And it’s mathematically possible he could play seven years at UF if he wanted to. While possible, it’s very unlikely, given his projected NFL future. At the University of Florida, the standards are set in bronze. It’s hard to miss because the current starter passes the three statues on the way to work, which lionize the trailblazers. Steve Spurrier, Danny Wuerffel, Tim Tebow … Frankly, even though this will be his fourth season, we really don’t know much about Emory. But we are about to find out. As he stood before reporters in the Zoom presser this week, several of my colleagues did their best to extract some flavor of his personality. We got as far as his playlist and a little convo about his piled-up hairstyle vs. that of a bald reporter. He was good natured. Not to be critical of Jones, but he’ll probably be defined by the barometer of Teddy Roosevelt’s “Speak softly but carry a big stick” paradigm. Emory has lived somewhat in anonymity as a backup to Felipe Franks and Kyle Trask. And he’s not exactly loquacious. Maybe even a touch shy. So when the lights turn on Saturday night, what will we see? Emory Jones will speak with his arm and legs. All smart football people I’ve spoken with don’t see a big dropoff in production this season. EJ can spin it and tote the rock. His ability to keep the defense off balance dictates the effectiveness of schemes. Florida will be trying to run the ball more, including with its quarterback, and hopes to utilize an almost embarrassment of running back riches. And that marries nicely with a revived defense that needs more of a respite from the field. This all fits nicely into the Emory Plan. Angus Williams, Haywood Sullivan, Tommy Shannon… The reason he’s at Florida, Emory told us, is Mullen’s acumen for building an offense around the skills of the quarterback. He’s known Mullen since he was barely in high school, been to his camps, studied his offense and although headed for Ohio State out of high school in LaGrange, Ga., as a four-star he flipped to Florida when Dan took the job at UF. Mullen says he feels his ability to adapt to the quarterback’s style provides potential recruits like Jones with the confidence their best skills will be on display. He said: “I think all our quarterbacks know because they sit in the room and they sit there and know how we prepare and put the packages together and we put the plan together … I don’t know that I’ve ever had two that are similar. I think they see we’re gonna build around their individual strengths and there’s a comforting factor in knowing that.” How did Emory feel about playing in this system after waiting over 1,000 days to see how Mullen has tailored this offense around him? “It makes me feel really good,” said Jones. “It’s the reason I chose to come to Florida. He creates his offense around the quarterback. And that takes advantage of my abilities.” Chris Leak, Kyle Trask, Rex Grossman, Jesse Palmer ... While Emory Jones may not yet totally comprehend the powerful legacy he inherits, I predict he will contribute mightily to it. He takes the sword Saturday after a three-year wait. There is also the factor of what, if anything, those bright lights will do to a first-time starter. Not much in his case, I don’t think. Probably because the ingenious way of Mullen’s development style, which is to interject the apprentice at various times in a game without any regular sequence. Just as he will this year with promising understudy Anthony Richardson, whose unofficial reviews have been lofty. That’s how Mullen preps his QBs. “I think you look at what makes quarterbacks successful and a lot of the intangibles that come with that,” Mullen said. “So a lot of our focus is on the intangibles at the quarterback position. Obviously we go out, and we teach the techniques. “We teach the fundamentals of the position. We teach the offensive scheme and make sure that they understand what they’re supposed to do. We set up a lot of our practice around quarterback development. But then it is really important to look and find what are their strengths and what are their weaknesses …” Terry Dean, Kerwin Bell, Wayne Peace, Don Gaffney, John Reaves... Jones is prepped and ready, because he has been placed in various situations at different times. It’s not just the amount of playing time, but the conditions when he enters the game – down, distance, time and score, etc. On that count he’s a veteran, even though he’s never started a game at Florida. Mullen wasn’t afraid to sub him for Trask at key times and let him do his thing. He likes to remind people that on the second series of last year’s SEC Championship Emory was in the game. “Always put them in a position to be successful. And that’s really what we’ve done, and I guess we’ve been really good at identifying the strengths and then have the flexibility within our offense to highlight their strengths and to ask them to do what they do well, I think, is – I mean that’s kind of the secret, I guess.” Jimmy Dunn, Doug Dickey, Angus Williams and Bobby Lance, Clyde Cannonball Crabtree … Bobby Lance? I’ve seen probably half of those 95 quarterbacks in person – maybe because I always yearned to be one. Unfortunately Bob Woodruff didn’t recognize the enormity of my one-star skills as an Ocala High School quarterback. I was very jealous of those spiffy low-cut shoes worn by Bobby Lance as a Gator. And I was pretty sure Woodruff could have adapted his offense around my skills. Because he didn’t have any, nor did I.