By FRANZ BEARD GatorBait Senior Columnist This was more than a win, this stunning 29-21 comeback from 11 down in the fourth quarter that pooped an all-night party that was just about to begin in Lexington, Kentucky. This was a statement game, a statement that says patience, persistence, loyalty and commitment still haven't gone out of style. The poster child for this marvelous statement of stick-to-itness is one Kyle Trask, the perpetual backup who probably wondered if he would ever get a chance to channel his inner Joe Montana. Trask thought that moment had come last November when he was teetering on the verge of getting a start following a nice performance off the bench in a game against Missouri where it seemed Feleipe Franks had found rock bottom. His crowning moment was put on hold when he broke his foot in practice on Tuesday prior to Florida's game with South Carolina. While he recovered from surgery, Franks found his mojo and led the Gators to four straight wins including an MVP performance in a riotously good 41-15 Peach Bowl win over Michigan's Fighting Harbaughs. And this is where the story gets good. Following that late burst of brilliance from Franks and a few glimpses of raw talent that we saw from freshman Emory Jones, the pervading belief was that Trask would enter his name into the NCAA transfer portal in search of a place where he would finally get his chance to prove to everyone, but most importantly himself, that he could play quarterback at a very high level. Actually, that would have been taking the easy way out, but instead of finding a new place to play, Trask elected to stick it out, perhaps a gesture of thanks to the school that gave him an opportunity to come to an SEC school. Not many high school backup quarterbacks are offered scholarships in the SEC, particularly at a school like Florida, which has won three national championships and produced three Heisman Trophy winners. By remaining patient, by never slacking in his work ethic or daily effort in practice, by finishing up what he started in the classroom by earning his degree from the University of Florida, and by remaining true to his Gator teammates, Kyle Trask finally got his moment. Ironically, it came in a game in which the featured backup was the guy on the other sideline, the one who had moments of brilliance while leading Kentucky to a 21-10 fourth quarter lead. Sawyer Smith was the backup du jour and he was only minutes away from becoming a legend in the minds of all those long-suffering Wildcat fans. They celebrated long into the night a year ago when the Wildcats beat Florida in Gainesville, but this one was going to be in Lexington where an all-nighter was in the works. Only the party never happened and its pooping had its origins when Franks had his ankle dislocated when bent backward by a 6-9, 310-pound Kentucky defensive tackle. A year ago, Trask's moment disintegrated when he broke his foot. This year opportunity knocked because Franks got hurt, so on a cool, clear night in Lexington, Kentucky there was a role reversal on Kroger Field. Kentucky's legend-in-waiting was outshone by Florida's newly found legend, who, in an abbreviated big stage debut, led a most improbable comeback. It wasn't the quantity of minutes that counted, but the quality of them and in the fourth quarter when the Gators needed something just shy of miraculous, Kyle Trask was the man for the moment. He threw timely, accurate passes, hitting 9-13 for 126 yards. He hung in the pocket and didn't flinch when the Wildcats brought the house. He bounced back from getting hit helmet first (targeting penalty called against UK) with a 30-yard strike to Kyle Pitts. He looked like a basketball point guard when he drew the Kentucky defense to him then did a two-hand chest pitch to Lamical Perine who blew into the end zone for the first TD of Florida's comeback. Trask ran untouched into the end zone on a quarterback draw for the TD that gave the Gators a 22-21 lead and then executed a jet sweep so perfectly that by the time Kentucky figured out he didn't have the football, Josh Hammond had his shoulders squared, blew through a hole and was off to the races for a 76-yard game-sealing touchdown. That Trask was nearly flawless in his debut on the big stage with a game on the line was a testament to his patience because there were no guarantees he would ever get a second opportunity to lead the Gators. It was a testament to persistence because only a kid who fully understood the concept of next man up would continue to prepare so well that he was equal to or greater than the moment. And, only a loyal, committed Gator would have elected to stay in Gainesville for an opportunity to channel his inner Joe Montana instead of channeling his inner Tate Martell and bailing from fear of the competition. SOME GOOD THINGS First and foremost, the Gators escaped with a win to go 3-0 overall and 1-0 in the SEC. Maybe it was ugly and sometimes brutal, but you never apologize for an SEC win, particularly when you have to do it on the road and you're missing your best defensive player and your quarterback goes down with an horrendous injury. Despite far too many mistakes, it can be said the Gators won in spite of themselves. But it was a win, which is far superior to the alternative. Second, Van Jefferson and Kyle Pitts came up very big in the passing game. Jefferson, it seems, is always open so it's simply a matter of getting him the football. Pitts has tight end size and wide receiver speed so he's a mismatch. It's just a matter of getting him the football. David Reese II was an absolute tackling machine but on consecutive plays with Kentucky needing only a yard to keep a drive alive in Florida territory, he stopped AJ Rose dead in his tracks for no gain. He finished the game with 16 tackles, 13 of the solo variety. On the jet sweep that gave the Gators the 29-21 lead, Pitts and Lucas Krull gave the blocks at the point of attack that opened the hole that Hammond blew threw threw on his way to a 76-yard touchdown. Finally, even though the result of this drive was Tommy Townsend's only punt of the night, the fact the Gators were able to drive the ball from the shadow of their own goal post (4-yard line) out to their own 48 put them in position to win a critical field position battle when they needed it most. On first down, Trask threw a 13-yard dart to Jefferson out of the end zone for breathing room. He had a 20-yard completion to Freddie Swain that also was critical. Then when called upon, Townsend flipped the field with a 44-yard punt that landed like a sand wedge with backspin and was downed at the UK eight. Three plays later, Shawn Davis had his second interception of the game that got the Gators going on the go-ahead scoring drive. SOME NOT SO GOOD THINGS Kentucky's second touchdown came after the pocket collapsed and Franks was hit from behind. He was trying to throw the ball but when it came out sideways it was ruled a fumble. Franks got hit because he had nowhere to step up since Kentucky's nose tackle had such a good push in the middle. The O-line had some good moments in pass protection but run blocking again was very poor. Take away that 76 yard jet sweep and a kneel down at the end of the first half and the Gators had 61 rushing yards on 25 carries. That won't cut it against the likes of Auburn, LSU and Georgia. The Gators absolutely cannot afford injuries in the secondary. Without CJ Henderson to take one side of the field away, Kentucky completed 23-35 passes for 267 yards. The lack of depth and inexperience of backups forced defensive coordinator Todd Grantham to play far more zone than he's accustomed to. The lack of bump and run gave the Wildcats extra cushion to get open early and often. Florida's guards had real problems handling the likes of Quinton Bohana (6-4, 361) and Marquan McCall (6-3, 365). Until the Gators show they can handle big guys in the middle, it's going to be a blueprint for opponents to shut down the running game and pressure the QB. Penalties and a whiffed block. Two touchdowns were wiped out by holding calls (one on Keon Zipperer, the other on Jean Delance). Another potential touchdown drive was thwarted on an offensive pass interference call on Perine. On the next play Perine might have scored a TD on a little wheel route out of the backfield except Stone Forsythe whiffed on the block. After Shawn Davis got his second pick in the fourth quarter he was flagged for excessive celebration. WHAT'S AHEAD Tennessee (1-2, 0-0 SEC) comes to Ben Hill Griffin Stadium next Saturday for a 12 noon start (ESPN). This was once THE game in the SEC but the Vols have fallen on seriously hard times and while the Gators haven't fallen nearly as far, they're still trying to get back to a championship mode. Tennessee got a 45-0 win Saturday over D1AA Chattanooga, so the Vols will be feeling better about themselves. A win over the Gators would go a long way toward restoring their sense of football self-esteem so they will come in here feeling that they have nothing to lose and everything to gain. That's a dangerous team. No matter how bad they were in their first two games, teams that feel their confidence coming back aren't to be taken lightly. The Gators need to come out of the gate in a take no prisoners mood and make it a point to stomp the Vols while they are down.

LEXINGTON, KENTUCKY—Megan Mullen paced in the Florida Gators tunnel, taking quick peaks at the field before turning back around in nervousness. On the sideline, specialists for the Gators began to gather, preparing to be called upon any moment. Kicker Evan McPherson (1-2) hung back by himself, sipping Gatorade and walking in small circles to keep moving, anticipating he’d be needed to answer what looked like a coming Kentucky field goal. The No. 9 Florida Gators (3-0, 1-0) held their breath, glancing at the scoreboard that read 22-21, Florida leading Kentucky, with 0:56 left to play in the game. Then they glanced at the Wildcats, lined up for a go-ahead 35-yard field goal. And then, the improbable unfolded in such a way that was befitting the full moon which hung over Lexington. Kentucky’s kicker, Chance Poore, pushed it wide right. There was a moment of confusion when Cats fans thought it was good because from the sideline it was a hard angle to surmise. But once the officials waved off the attempt, the Gators sideline erupted with defensive coordinator Todd Grantham giving the air a passionate fist pump. “Told you he wasn’t making it. It’s a full moon tonight. No way it was happening,” one player gleefully shouted. The celebration had barely dissipated when Josh Hammond (90 all purpose yards, one touchdown) took a jet sweep and raced 76-yards, stepping out of a tackle near the goal line but carrying too much momentum to be stopped by any force at that point. The Gators won 29-21 over Kentucky (2-1, 0-1). The play call on the game winner? Simple, according to Hammond. “Stay in bounds. It was just a jet sweep. We ran it the first time and saw that they didn’t really bump so the next time we knew we could get it and he just told me to stay in bounds.” The Wildcats threw some quick outs, hoping to get into the endzone in the remaining 0:33 seconds, and go for a 2-point conversion to tie. But freshman corner Kaiir Elam showed off his coverage skills yet again with a second interception in as many weeks. His pick at the UF 9-yard line meant Florida could end this one in victory formation. It was a bittersweet victory though as it came at a price. Starting quarterback Feleipe Franks was lost for the year with what head coach Dan Mullen described as “a break and some dislocations” in his right leg/ankle that have ended the redshirt junior’s season. Franks was attempting to pick up a first down, diving on 4th and 1, when his 6’6” frame was bent back over a defensive player. He fell to the ground and didn’t move as trainers immediately went to him. Receivers Van Jefferson, Freddie Swain and Tyrie Cleveland went to Franks side and kneeled, praying for him, as trainers placed Franks in an air-cast. As tears streamed down his face, Franks was loaded onto a cart with the entire Gators team around him. He watched the remainder of the game from the locker room. After the conclusion of the game, Franks stood on his crutches and gave the team a message. "He was in the locker room. He sang the fight song with us,” explains Hammond. "He was good. Obviously he's down from being hurt but he's all about the team. He just told us, 'make sure you stay together, don't take anything for granted. Be ready to play your plays like it's your last play because you never know when it could happen. He's definitely devastated but he's with us 100-percent. He's still that leader. He’s going to try to do whatever he can to help us.” Adds linebacker Jon Greenard, “how he went out, him trying to get that first down and I respected that so much more. I respected him so much more because he's laying it all out there on the line for us. Just to see him go down like that, in that fashion, we had to go out and put everything we had into that game to come out victorious and make him happy. He's still in high hopes. He understands what's going on. We’re going to continue to play. Next man up.” Franks went 12-17 for 174 yards with a touchdown and an interception through the air 23 yards on eight rushes. He had two rushing touchdowns called back for penalties—one for holding on tight end Keon Zipperer and one for holding on offensive lineman Jean Delance. It is that stat which tells the larger story of this game. The Gators would create a positive play, gain momentum, and then take two steps back. In the first quarter, on a Cats drive that would end the period, defensive lineman Jon Greenard (six tackles, one sack) had a sack on Kentucky quarterback Sawyer Smith (23-35, 267 yards, two TD, 3 INT) for a loss of eight yards, back to the UK-10. The next play, now 3rd and 21, Smith found Ahmad Wagner for a 23-yard completion. The Gators opened the second quarter with a 31-yard explosive pass from Franks to Van Jefferson (7 receptions, 93 yards), only to have a blown coverage on the next play get Franks sacked, leading to a fumble. The defense seemed to catch a break when Smith badly overthrew Lynn Bowden in the 3rd quarter, only to see him find Wagner over Marco Wilson again, this time for 21 yards. To add insult to injury, safety Donovan Stiner came in late on the hit with head lowered and was ejected for targeting. He’ll have to miss the first half of next week’s game against Tennessee as part of the penalty. And so on, and so forth. “We weren’t very good on third down,” says Mullen. "We did a lot of things poorly, really bad on third down all night long on defense until we found a way to be good and then we were good until the end. Offensively we killed ourselves with some penalties at critical moments. Every time they would hit it, it was like a holding penalty, 'hey we’re in the red zone at first and 25'. So that was kind of disappointing.” But as they did against Miami in Week 0, this scrappy Florida team found a way to make the most important plays at the most important times and pull out a win. In the madcap world of college football—and cutthroat SEC league—that’s the stat that matters most. Greenard says on the sideline, there was never a doubt. They know what they did wrong. But they also knew it could be overcome. “In our mind, we knew we were gonna come back. We just had to play our game and not do anything out the ordinary. Stop the run, stop big plays and stuff like that. We gave a couple of plays to them throughout the entire game. But once we started playing our game and stopped the mistakes then we were good. “I think we were trying to think too much and not just understanding just playing football. It came from pass rush, we weren’t getting back there like we wanted to. We wanted to get the push up front like we wanted to. Secondary had to tackle, make the big plays. And jump balls, had to win those. Just plays, we could control, mental things we already went over. Mental things that we already went over, we just had to put it to play in the game.” After Franks was carted off the field, Kyle Trask lined up behind center and proceeded to go 9-13 for 126 yards while adding a four yard touchdown on the ground. It was fitting that on the week former Gator great Neiron Ball passed away to a burgeoning brain disease, Trask scored in his No. 11. While Trask he won’t get credit in the boxscore, it was a heads up move from Trask that gave running back Lamical Perine touchdown in the 4th quarter to make it a one possession game. As Trask was being tackled, he flipped the ball up to Perine who was running out on an option. Since the running back had not been apart of the play, he was uncovered and walked the eight yards into the endzone untouched. “Yea, that was definitely improvisation,” grinned Trask. “It was just an option to the left and he was playing between us and I tried to cut it up in between, but he crashed down on it and I managed to get it out to Perine…It is split second and I was trying to knife it up in there. And they just weren’t having that one so I managed to get it out to Perine and good thing I did because he’s pretty dangerous with the ball in his hands.” As the Florida Gators head home with an as yet unblemished record, their new leader Kyle Trask is bringing a message with his team. Don’t doubt the Gators and don’t count them out. “I don’t want people to think like you know, we’re just gonna wait till we get down nothing like that. But I really think what it is, is you know, we just have a lot of resiliency in our team and we know how to finish games and we all came together. It was a tough fought game. This is the SEC, nothing comes easy, especially on the road and I was really proud of our team how we came together in the second half to really finish this game the right way and go 1-0 in the SEC.”

The No. 9 Florida Gators starting quarterback, Feleipe Franks, was carted off the field in Lexington Saturday night. It was late in the 3rd quarter against the Kentucky Wildcats. The Gators were trailing the Cats 21-10 at the time and Florida elected to go for it on 4th and 1 from the UK 38 yard line. Franks dropped back to pass and with no where to go, went left. Officially he was tackled by Calvin Taylor but it was a scrum that saw the passer cracked back. As players dispersed around him, Franks stayed on the field in obvious pain and staying still. Wide receivers Van Jefferson, Tyrie Cleveland and Freddie Swain immediately came back out and kneeled around their quarterbacks head, seeming to be praying. Meanwhile trainers put an air cast on his right leg. Typically a cast of that sort being put on right away indicates a serious injury. A cart was then brought out and trainers had to lift the crying Franks on to leave the field. Before the cart left, the entire Gators team came over from the sideline to wish Franks well. Franks has been 12-3 as a starter since Dan Mullen's arrival. So far in 2019, he'd completed 77.8% of his passes and accounted for four touchdowns. Through 2.5 quarters in Lexington, he'd gone 12-17 for 174 yards and a touchdown. Kyle Trask came in to finish the game in Franks' absence.

A GET EVEN KIND OF GAME Dan Mullen has been telling us the 9th-ranked Florida Gators (2-0, 0-0 SEC) aren't looking at Saturday night's close encounter of the Southeastern Conference kind up in Lexington, Kentucky has nothing whatsoever to do with getting even for what the Kentucky (2-0, 0-0 SEC) did last year in Gainesville. In case you have forgotten, the Wildcats outscored the Gators 20-6 in the second half, ran practically at will (303 rushing yards) and scored a convincing 27-16 win that broke Florida's 31-year winning streak over the Wildcats. So, are you buying that Mullen isn't looking for a little revenge? He might not say the word revenge and he might not talk openly about getting even but that's because he wants his team focusing on what they have to do to win their SEC opener. You can bet the farm that during practice this week Mullen has made it abundantly clear that he remembers all too well what the Wildcats did at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium last year. You can also count on the fact he's let the Gators know without perhaps saying it outright that by going up to Lexington and giving the Wildcats a beatdown it will go a long way toward erasing the bad memories of 2018. Make no mistake about it, this is a game the Gators need to win and the more convincing they can be in winning, the better it will be for the rest of the season. When this game is complete, 25% of the regular season will be in the books. What Mullen wants and needs is a confident team that is building momentum from one week to the next. Obviously, it's important to win even if it's by a single point, but a win by two or more touchdowns sends out messages loud and clear that the Gators are a very dangerous team moving forward. The Sayer Says Sooth:It might be close for a half, but by the time the band cranks up “We Are the Boys” at the end of the third quarter, UK quarterback Sawyer Smith will think his body is a continuous bruise from the tips of his toesies all the way to the upper extremeties. The Gators get seven sacks, Feleipe Franks throws for three, runs for one and the final is something like FLORIDA 31, Kentucky 14. THE SEC SOOTHSAYER #2 Alabama (2-0, 0-0 SEC) 35, South Carolina (1-1, 0-0 SEC) 7: Ryan Hilinski is about to discover how the Christians felt when they released the lions in the old Roman Colosseum. #3 Georgia (2-0, 1-0 SEC) 42, Arkansas State (1-1) 10: To honor the late wife of Arkansas State coach Blake Anderson (she died of cancer about three weeks ago), they've asked everyone at Sanford Stadium to make this a pink out. It's a lovely gesture but it won't help Arkansas State make this game any closer. #4 LSU (2-0) 59, Northwestern State (0-2) 0: This could be worse except that Northwestern State is Coach O's alma mammy so he'll let the tuba section and the Golden Girls take all the fourth quarter snaps. #8 Auburn (2-0, 0-0 SEC) 49, Kent State (1-1) 3: Call this the cure for the freshman quarterback (Bo Nix). At least Clark Kent State is a Division I team. #16 Texas A&M (1-1, 0-0 SEC) 41, Lamar (2-0) 10: There's nothing like a game against Hedley Lamar to take the sting out of butt stomping at Climpson. Mississippi State (2-0, 0-0 SEC) 24, Kansas State (2-0) 21: You can flip this script if it turns out that Tommy Stevens can't go and MSU is forced to play a backup QB. Ole Miss (1-1, 1-0 SEC) 38, Southeastern Louisiana 13 (1-0): By halftime most of the alums will be back in The Grove seeing if MoJo Pork goes well with sour mash. Missouri (1-1, 0-0 SEC) 55, Southeast Missouri State (1-1): Mizzou people will be clamoring for every all too early Heisman poll to include Kelly Bryant after he throws for about 400 yards and 4-5 touchdowns against a D1AA team. Arkansas (1-1, 0-1 SEC) 20, Colorado State (1-1) 17: If the Hogs find a way to blow this one, Chad Morris might want to have his wife start interviewing real estate agents for a faster exit when firing day arrives. Tennessee (0-2, 0-0 SEC) 35, Chattanooga (1-1) 20:If Jeremy Pruitt figures out a way to lose this one will he claim the Vols were looking ahead to playing the Gators in Gainesville next week? COUNTDOWN TO FIRING DAY: EDITION THREE ON LIFE SUPPORT Phil Montgomery, Tulsa: If he had lost to San Jose State last week, he'd be gone already. Will they forgive him after he gets his doors blown off by Okie State this week? Bob Davie, New Mexico:He has heart issues. He won't make the trip to Notre Dame this week and there is no telling when or even if he coaches again. Expect the New Mexico administration to avoid firing by announcing Bob will take a position in the athletic department. Lovie Smith, Illinois: Lovie could be gone Saturday evening if the Illini lose to Eastern Michigan but even if he wins, there's only one other winning game (Rutgers) on the schedule. Chris Ash, Rutgers: Open dates are wonderful things for a coach whose seat is so hot his fanny is on fire. Jeremy Pruitt, Tennessee:Pruitt was talking about the Titanic at his Monday press conference, something that you don't do when you have Phattus Maximus believing that only he can save Tennessee football. If the Vols are 1-5 or 1-6 out the gate, it will be buyouts be damned and Phil to the rescue. Brent Brennan, San Jose State:Nobody in San Jose has quite figured out that poorly paid coaches, rotten facilities and a lousy recruiting budget have everything to do with why this is a graveyard. ENDANGERED SPECIES LIST Clay Helton, Southern Cal: Lynn Swann “resigned” as the athletic director and the first thing the interim AD did was a vote of confidence for Clay, who, by the way, is 2-0 after obliterating Stanford, which was ranked and coached by Willie Shaw. The USC prez and boosters are desperate to try to lure Urban Meyer out of retirement. The cool thing here would be for Clay to go 10-2 or better. It would be like giving the finger to the people who want him gone. Randy Edsall, UConn: They won't have Randy Edsall to kick around this week! No, they didn't fire him although they would like to. The Huskies don't play. That's why. Justin Fuente, Virginia Tech:The Hokies get a game with Paycheck Tech (Furman) this week so nobody will be talking about firing Fuente. That is, unless, the impossible happens and they lose. Mike Bobo, Colorado State:These are the country cousins of Colorado, which is off to a 2-0 start. If Colorado does well, the folks in Fort Collins feel obligated to do well, too. The Fighting Bobos need to go at least 6-6, which might be a tall task. Tony Sanchez, UNLV: Given what's ahead for UNLV, Sanchez is probably a defibrillator away from On Life Support. After Northwestern, it's Wyoming, Boise State, Vanderbilt, Fresno State and San Diego State. It will be a small miracle if he's still gainfully employed in November. Matt Luke, Ole Miss:The win over Arkansas last week was a reprieve from all the criticism from the season opening loss to Memphis. There will be no good will if the Rebels somehow find a way to lose to D1AA Southeastern Louisiana this week. BEADS OF SWEAT FORMING Charlie Strong, South Florida:If the Bulls somehow manage to lose to South Carolina State this weekend, Charlie is all but a goner. Kalani Sitake, Brigham Young: The win over Tennessee buys him time, but he still needs some good wins to make people forget he got hosed by Utah. Derek Mason, Vanderbilt: Firing is so distasteful at a school where white wine, brie and grapes are standard fare for tailgates. Mason probably doesn't have to worry until November but if he can't do better than four wins, he might be encouraged to find a new place to work. SAVED BY THE BUYOUT Willie Taggart, Florida State:Did you see Willie celebrate when FSU got a win over Lousy Monroe in overtime thanks to a missed extra point? You do those kind of things when you know you've got a $17 million buyout and not enough rich boosters to pony up the cash. Chad Morris, Arkansas: If he goes 2-10 or 3-9, one of their megarich boosters might elect to write the $12.25 million check it will take to send him back to Assistant Coachville. Chip Kelly, UCLA: The Chipster will be 3-12 after Oklahoma lays waste to UCLA and leaves the Bruins in a heap in the weeds on the side of the road this weekend. As if that matters. UCLA is a basketball school and couldn't afford the $8 million it would have taken to buy out Jamie Dixon. They darn sure don't have the more than $9 million it will take to ask Mr. Kelly if he'd like to try running a convenience store or a Dunkin Donuts rather than coach football. Will Muschamp, South Carolina:His job is safe but having an $18 million buyout doesn't hurt. GOOD QUOTES FOR FRIDAY From Dana O'Neill of The Athletic on the latest revelations regarding Arizona, its head coach Sean Miller and the college basketball corruption scandal: “There should be outrage. There will be no outrage, not from the general public that has been numbed to the nonsense of college athletics; not from coaches, who have no problem verbally undressing a manager if the clipboard doesn’t materialize during a timeout but who go Marcel Marceau when it’s time to castigate their own; and not, most assuredly, from the University of Arizona. The school has dug its heels in deeper than the desert sand, denying, distancing, rebuking and rebutting any and all accusations that have threatened to unseat its head coach, Sean Miller. While the university’s reputation flails in the wind with each new accusation, the administration refuses not only to budge but also to acknowledge anything.” From Sheil Kapadia of The Athletic on the remarkable first week performance by Baltimore Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson: “Let’s put his performance (17 for 20 for 324 yards, five touchdowns and no interceptions) into context. Jackson averaged 16.2 yards per attempt (YPA). That’s the highest mark of any quarterback in a single game over the last 10(!) seasons. Yes, I am aware the Dolphins stink, but this was still an epic performance by the second-year QB. There have been a lot of bad defenses over the past 10 years, and still no quarterback ever averaged 16.2 YPA. It’s not like every receiver was wide open either.” From Jenna West of Sports Illustrated talking with Urban Meyer about how he misses waking up in the morning when he doesn't have that daily “fight” to prepare for practice, games and recruiting: “The morning is the hardest time of day. You're not in a fight. I've been in a fight for 33 years, and now you're not in that fight. So how do you fulfill that fight? And I feel that every morning. Every morning … It's all about a win and a loss for 33 years. I mean every day was. Not just you're getting ready for a game. No, no, no, no. You're recruiting every day. You're going against Alabama and Clemson every day, The Team Up North every day. Now you're not. That’s the number one void, is you're not in a fight." RANDOM THOUGHTS: Former Gator Pete Alonso, who hit two home runs Monday for the Major League lead (47), is 0-13 since. Thursday afternoon, after a bad third at bat against the Arizona Diamondbacks, Alonso shaved his mustache in a gesture of superstition. He struck out and grounded out in his next two at bats … Florida State, which is an 8-1/2 point underdog for Saturday's game at Virginia, ranks near the bottom of every NCAA defensive category. This week the Seminoles will have to stop UVA quarterback Bryce Perkins, who threw for 2,640 yards and 25 touchdowns last year while rushing for 923 and nine more … Tonight's non-conference matchup between 20th-ranked Washington State (2-0) and Houston (1-1) pits Mike Leach against his protege Dana Holgorsen.

This a cred game for the Gators and they need to make a bit of a statement to earn the respect of CFB influencers in their Lexington contest. That means winning, scoring at least 30, sacking Sawyer Smith or throwing him for a loss 3-4 times and Feleipe Franks taking care of the football. They are 8-point favorites and should be able to do it.

By HUNTER TURNER GatorBait GameDay Coordinator Game Preview: The Florida Gators will take on the Kentucky Wildcats Saturday at 7 p.m., looking for redemption as they head to Lexington for their first road game of the season. The Gators are enjoying a six-game winning streak for the first time since 2015 when they won seven in a row. Their loss to Kentucky last year snapped a 31-game winning streak against the Wildcats. Kentucky last beat Florida in Lexington in 1986. Florida has not lost consecutive games to Kentucky since 1976 and 1977. Florida leads the series 51-18 overall. Time and Channel: 7:00 PM on ESPN with Steve Levy play-by-play and Brian Griese/Todd McShay as analysts as well as Molly McGrath reporting. Ticket Prices: Tickets cost between $135-$535 on www.StubHub.com. Betting Line: Florida opens as a -9.5 point favorite. Weather Forecast: 86 degrees is the daytime high and 64 degrees is low with a 30% chance of rain in the morning. The forecast for kickoff is for partly cloudy skies in the evening with only a 10% chance of rain. Franks Facts: Feleipe Franks completed 25-27 passes for 270 yards and 2 TDs. The 92.6 percent completion percentage is a school record (minimum 20 passes thrown) eclipsing Tim Tebow’s record of 88.6 percent in the 2010 Sugar Bowl. Feleipe Franks has thrown for at least 250 yards in the last 5 games. Franks ranks sixth nationally in completion percentage 77.8 and behind only Joe Burrow and Anthony Gordon among those who have 40 attempts. Franks is the first player since Mackenzie Milton to complete over 90 percent of his passes. Offensive Fact: The Gators have 500 yards of offense in 4 of their last six games. Florida already has passing plays of 60-plus yards this year. That is the highest total since 2016. Defensive Facts: The Gators are leading the FBS in sacks with 15. The Gators took five games last year to record 15 sacks. This was the defense’s first shutout since 2016. Jabari Zuniga is Florida’s top disrupter with 3 sacks and 4.5 tackles for loss and leads the SEC. Florida is the only SEC team with four players with 1.5 sacks. In 15 games under Todd Grantham, Florida has 5-plus sacks in seven of those games. Opponent Facts: Kentucky has lost two players for the season, QB Terry Wilson and S Devontae Robinson who was injured this past summer. The Kentucky Wildcats are 12-3 over the past 15 games, which is tied for second in the SEC during that period only behind Alabama. Kentucky’s 10-3 record last year is its best in 41 years, and only third 10-win season in program history. Kentucky going 5-3 last season was its best record in the conference since 1977. WR Lynn Bowden jr. was able to reach 1,000 receiving yards and is only three catches away from reaching 100 career receptions. Hunter’s Predictions: This game is a big one for Florida to get the taste of last year’s loss out of its mouth. Also, the Gators still haven’t lost in Kentucky since five years before I was born. I expect Florida to try to establish the run game. I would like to see them pass to open up the run because I believe the offensive line is better at pass protection. I believe that Florida will run for over 100 yards against Kentucky. Feleipe Franks will throw for at least 250 yards and 2 TDs. Florida will get at least one turnover and continue the winning streak in Lexington. I predict the Gators will win, 28-14. Key Matchups: Sawyer Smith will get his first start as a Kentucky Wildcat on Saturday Night. Smith is a graduate transfer from Troy where he threw for 1,669 yards as a starter. He threw 14 touchdowns and 6 interceptions last season. He will take over for the injured Wilson, out for the season. He completed 5x9 passes for 76 yards and 2 TDs in mopup duty against Eastern Michigan. Kentucky’s defense is ranked 5th in the SEC in sacks. Kentucky’s defense is led by inside linebacker Kash Daniel who is the inside linebacker. Kash had 5 tackles and 1 interception in the game vs. Eastern Michigan. Daniel also has 119 tackles in his career. Wide receiver Lynn Bowden Jr. will need to have a great day to help out Sawyer Smith. Kentucky will also need help from the running game and will turn to AJ Rose and Kavoisey Smoke as well as Chris Rodriguez. Kentucky will use a running back by committee approach. Jon Greenard will be looking to stop the running game for Florida along with Jabari Zuniga who continue to be Florida’s disruptors on the defensive front. Look for Van Jefferson and Trevon Grimes to step up for Florida on the offensive side of the ball with the absence of Kadarius Toney. These players will need to make their presence felt for each team on Saturday night to earn the victory.

By KASSIDY HILL GatorBait Special Reporter The feeling in Ben Hill Griffin Stadium was primed for excitement. As the Florida Gators rolled towards the fourth quarter already up 31-0 on UT-Martin, the remaining strains of Tom Petty hung in the air and the offense took the field just nine yards shy of the goal line. Quarterback Kyle Trask dropped back and delivered a dart over the middle to receiver Jacob Copeland; touchdown. The requisite fireworks went off, the band struck up the fight song, arms went into the air as fans celebrated. But nowhere in the Swamp at the moment was the excitement more real and overwhelming than on the Gators sideline. Copeland, the redshirt freshman who battled through injuries and obstacles, had finally made the debut fans and players alike had been waiting for and notched that memorable first touchdown. Senior receiver Van Jefferson had to be held back by strength and conditioning coach Nick Savage, so as not to receive a penalty for going too far past the sidelines. “Jacob Copeland, I mean I thought he had a great game today. Got his first college touchdown,” bragged Jefferson. “I was running on the field man, trying to run on the field but Coach Savage was holding me back.” Once on the sidelines, Copeland was bombarded by his teammates with a celebration that didn’t let up for the remainder of the game, as receiver Tre Grimes explained. “I don’t think we stopped talking to him after his touchdown. It’s phenomenal you know he’s been through a lot with his injuries and stuff like that. To see him back on the field, going hard and going strong is phenomenal and like I said we’re very happy for him.” The long road to a night with 38 total yards (one rush, three receptions) and one touchdown has winded for a year and a half, since Copeland first arrived as the 4-star wide out from Escambia, the cherry on top of Dan Mullen’s first recruiting class. Copeland has existed largely in the shadows. As the highest rated recruit in that 2018 class, the hope was that he would make an immediate impact. Yet he was injured as a true freshman then tweaked the injury again in spring practice, meaning so little has actually been seen Copeland as a Gator. His freshman year saw only one catch for 16 yards and one kick return for 26 yards against Idaho. He did see snaps against FSU and Michigan and was able to redshirt. Teammates, specifically fellow receivers, made it a point to keep Copeland involved in every possible way they could off the field and give encouragement when needed. "It’s hard. It’s more of a mental game. I’ve been through it,” said Grimes. “I had an ACL injury coming out of high school. I talk to him, that’s my roommate when we go to the hotel and we talk a lot and it’s a honor for him to be able to go out there and show what he has to do. There was a couple of times where he got a screen and to get like an extra 15 yards.” What he has to do couldn’t come at a better time for the No. 8/9 Gators. After losing do-it all scat cat Kadarius Toney to a shoulder injury (Toney will be out for at least a couple of weeks according to head coach Dan Mullen) Copeland’s skill set provides an answer to the loss. Safety Donovan Stiner, who faces Copeland in practice, was careful not to force Toney’s game on Copeland, commenting—“I’m not going to necessarily say that they’re the exact same player. I think they do different things, but yeah, I think he can. He’s really talented, so I think he’ll make a lot of plays,” but added the following. “He’s really talented. He can make a lot of things happen. He’s really talented. He’s strong, he’s fast, so I’m looking forward to seeing what he can do since KT is out for now.” Added Mullen, “He’s a physical guy. Has size. He has that ability where he’s a little bit multiple. He’s still learning how to be an every-down receiver. But a lot like Kadarius in that way, you can do different things, put the ball in his hands and he can make things happen. A little different style than Kadarius. It’s not like hey, we’re going to plug him in with what things Kadarius was doing. But there are some things that he does pretty well with the ball in his hands.” During limited snaps his true freshman year, Copeland primarily saw time at receiver and was also used as a kick returner. But on Saturday night, he took snaps at both receiver and running back, showing a versatility that defensive players have already seen in practice. “You can put him anywhere on the field and he’s gonna make plays,” noted corner Marco Wilson. "That was really only the first time he got to do something serious in a game and that’s only the beginning for him, I think that guy is gonna be a great player for the season to come.” Coaches and players alike have teased what the redshirt freshman has done in practice, giving hope to fans as to what he’d do when finally on the field. Receiver coach Billy Gonzales said in spring practice, “one of the practices I was blown away. I was like ‘wow’, you kind of forget like a little kid when you forget about that little toy that you haven’t had in a while. Oh my gosh. He was explosive, in and out of breaks.” But for quarterback Feleipe Franks, seeing what Copeland was able to do on the field when healthy was never as impactful as seeing how he was off the field while hurt. “It’s just more his grit, the way when players get injured and things don’t go the way they want, how do they respond? I think that he’s responded in all the right ways by continuing to keep his body healthy, continuing to do the right steps to maintain his body healthy. "I think that’s important when you first get to college and things don’t go the way you want them to go. Just continuing to have that mindset of, you know, ‘I’m not going to stop here just because I’m hurt. I’m going to continue to battle through this, get healthy again and just continue to grind.’ I think he has done a really good job of that.” Now though the path has straightened to give Jacob Copeland an opportunity to finally make the impact Gator Nation has been waiting to see. As Tre Grimes put simply, “he’s a phenomenal player and he’s gonna be one of the best when it’s his time to come.”

It’s a new year and a new era for the Florida-Kentucky rivalry. After Mark Stoops Wildcats beat the Gators in Ben Hill Griffin Stadium last season, ending a 31-year win streak by UF, the narrative around the most lopsided game in college football changed. Now the Gators travel to Lexington, looking to avenge the loss while not focusing primarily on revenge. They’re looking to extend their win streak to 3-0 and open up their SEC—and more importantly, SEC East—slate with a crucial win. Before the 7pm kickoff on Saturday, here are five last things to remember. One Thing to Remember Kentucky’s defense is still stout. After the departure of edge rusher Josh Allen to the NFL, it’s easy to think the defense has fallen off but the Cats returned much of their front line and have a strong linebacker corps in the middle. That corps is led by veteran Kash Daniels. The senior has nine tackles and an interception, numbers slightly below average but it’s his off the field leadership that has kept this defense point in the right direction. The Cats gave up only 49 rushing yards to Eastern Michigan, an area where the Gators offense has struggled thus far. One Florida Player to Remember Shawn Davis has had a sneaky great two games to open his junior season. Filling in while Jeawon Taylor recovers from injury and Brad Stewart served suspensions, Davis stepped in next to Donovan Stiner to take significant more snaps at safety. He’s had eight tackles, a quarterback hurry and a pass break up through the first two games. His tackle for loss on the opening play against UT-Martin set the tone for the shutout game. But it’s his pressure on the backend that has really helped him elevate his game. Davis credits coach Ron English and staff for giving him confidence to play smarter and faster, not relying just on his wrecking ball hitting ability. “They saw something in me that I didn’t really see in myself,” says Davis. “It made me feel like ‘Oh, since they see it in me, I have to play to a higher level’.” One Kentucky Player to Remember Sawyer Smith has the weight of Big Blue Nation on his shoulders now. The Troy transfer has had the starting quarterback role thrust upon him with the season ending injury to Terry Wilson. Smith isn’t as much a mobile threat as Wilson—he’s only rushed once for five yards this season—but can attack the Gators secondary through the air. The best news for Florida is that he’s only thrown nine passes all season. They can attack early and rattle him against his first SEC defensive line as a starter. The bad news for Florida is that he’s only thrown nine passes all season. There’s a lot of unknowns around the junior; like will he average the 62.9% completion rate that he did as a sophomore at Troy. Or will be cripple under the blitz heavy defense Grantham is sure to bring? He’s the Wildcat wildcard here and could be the difference maker in a close Kentucky win or a blowout Gator win. One Big Question Can quarterback Feleipe Franks be the game changer? Head coach Dan Mullen has been inspiring more and more confidence in the passer and he could use a break out game to convert wayward naysayers. This could be that game. It sounds weird to say he needs a breakout game the week after he went 25-27 and two touchdowns. But doing something along those same lines against a SEC defense will really say he’s here to make some noise. Against this Cats defense—specifically the aforementioned linebacker corps—and with the Gators offensive line still struggling to establish the run game, this could very well be the game Franks has to take over and win through the air. One Last Prediction As much as the Florida players want to say they aren’t dwelling too much on last years loss, it’s on their minds. It can’t not be; and it’s already been seen that Mullen likes to build up rivalry games. He’ll do the same this week. The scare Kentucky gave Florida last season is also a good reminder to not take the Cats lightly. That being said, Stoops’ squad also has the monkey off their back now and isn’t afraid of the Gators. They know they can beat UF and are expecting to do so again. At the end of the day though, with a new quarterback and no Benny Snell, I don’t think Kentucky has enough to win this one, although it’ll be close. The Gators close it out in the 4th quarter and win by a touchdown.

OK, this feel-good story is warm and fuzzy — and we all loved the initial idea. But it’s now beginning to sound like a PR person is maybe maximizing the opportunity to offset some bad press. Or maybe I am getting cynical in my old age.

A MIND IS A TERRIBLE THING TO BASTE No, I'm not talking about the time Michael Jackson's hair caught on fire, but about my mind, which is all over the pace the last couple of days. So, here are a few meanderings from some of my more lucid moments: A really good reason why the Gators will score a win in Lexington: Everybody in the ball yard last week at Kentucky knew Eastern Michigan was going to get off the bus throwing the football. The Eagles (I like it better when they weren't politically correct and known as the Hurons) chunked it 54 times, gained 337 yards and allowed only two sacks. That was with an O-line from the MAC with only two returning starters. Florida will be able to run the ball on the Wildcats and the O-line will keep Feleipe Franks upright. Franks has only been sacked twice in two games. Expect a really big night. Another really good reason the Gators will score a win in Lexington: This also has everything to do with the passing game. Kentucky starts three newbies in the secondary and if they can't get to Franks with the pass rush by halftime folks at Kroger Field will be asking around to find out who's got spare tickets for Midnight Madness next month. Shall we go for three?: Yet a third reason the Gators will win in Lexington. Liberty, South Alabama, Louisiana-Lafayette, Georgia Southern,Texas State, Appalachian State and Buffalo. Those are the seven teams Sawyer Smith started games against last year, none of which had a pass rush even remotely close to what Smith will see Saturday night against Florida. And because it's Kentucky, Jonathan Greenard is drooling. Ranking the most dysfunctional college football programs (the top five):(1) Tennessee; (2) Southern Cal; (3) UCLA; (4) Florida State; (5) Arkansas. Any school that had a chance to hire Mike Leach and instead got Jeremy Pruitt has to be #1. They want to fire Clay Helton at Southern Cal and all he's going to do is win nine or ten games. UCLA thinks it can compete with Southern Cal in football. They can't even when Southern Cal is dysfunctional. They're a basketball school, damn it! FSU's athletic department is broke and stuck with Willie Taggart. Somebody needs to remind Arkansas that it is in the same SEC division as Alabama, Auburn, LSU and Texas A&M. If Southern Cal has a brain (questionable), they'll hire this guy as their AD: They will do something seriously stupid at USC and hire another former USC football player, who will go down in flames like the previous USC football players.The smart hire would be UCF's Danny White, who has shown how smart he is by hiring Scott Frost and Josh Heupel as his football coaches and Johnny Dawkins for basketball. You may laugh that he proclaimed UCF the 2017 national champ in football, but he's put the school in the national football conversation. If South Florida loses to Bethune-Cookman will Charlie Strong be fired?:Yes. Phil Fulmer wouldn't fire Jeremy Pruitt and name himself the UT football coach, would he?: The short answer is yes. The more detailed answer is if he could get a booster like Jimmy Haslam (owns Cleveland Browns, Pilot Travel Centers) to spring for $10 million (his net worth is in excess of $3.7 billion) it would take to buy out Pruitt, then Phattus Maximus will exact revenge on the same school that fired him as football coach after the 2008 season by hiring himself as the replacement football coach. If I were an AD thinking I might have to hire a new football coach (young guys and head coaches only), I'd have these three guys on speed dial:Josh Heupel, UCF; Miike Norvell, Memphis; Bryan Harsin, Boise State; Nick Rolovich, Hawaii; and Seth Littrell, North Texas. SEC FOOTBALL STUFF #2 Alabama (2-0, 0-0 SEC): Center Chris Owens, who missed last week's game against New Mexico State with an injury, is back practicing with the first team again which moves Landon Dickerson back to right guard. Saturday: at South Carolina (1-1, 0-0 SEC) Arkansas (1-1, 0-1 SEC): Arkansas will try to bounce back from its loss to Ole Miss last week against non-conference Colorado State. On the SEC Coaches Teleconference, HBC Chad Morris said, “I think how we respond will tell a lot about us.” Saturday: vs. Colorado State (1-0) #8 Auburn (2-0, 0-0 SEC):True freshman quarterback Bo Nix is 2-0 and though there have been some rough patches in both games, doesn't seem overwhelmed by anything he's seen. Said HBC Gus Malzahn, “I think you will see him get more comfortable each game … Mentally, the moment hasn’t been too big for him … He can tell you want he saw and when we go to the film, he’s correct.” Saturday: vs. Kent State (1-1) #3 Georgia (2-0, 1-0 SEC):Kirby Smart seemed to be channeling his inner Vince Dooley on the SEC Coaches Teleconference when he stated that Saturday opponent Arkansas State has “as good athletes as we will face.” Dooley wanted everyone to believe a homeless shelter was the second coming of the Vince Lombardi-era Green Bay Packers. Saturday: vs. Arkansas State (1-1) Kentucky (2-0, 0-0 SEC):HBC Mark Stoops says the Kentucky offense won't change at all with Sawyer Smith at QB. Stoops says Smith is a very accurate passer who throws an excellent deep ball. Saturday: vs. #9 FLORIDA (2-0, 0-0 SEC) #4 LSU (2-0, 0-0 SEC):As good as LSU's offense has been, Coach O knows it can be better. “There is another level and it starts with protection; we gave up two sacks we shouldn’t have given up [against Texas],” he said at his Wednesday morning press conference. Saturday: vs. Northwestern State (0-2) Mississippi State (2-0, 0-0 SEC): At this point, it appears QB Tommy Stevens will be able to go Saturday when K-State comes to Starkville. Stevens suffered a first half injury to his arm last week in the Bulldogs' win over Southern Miss. Saturday: vs. Kansas State (2-0) Missouri (1-1, 0-0 SEC): Backup corner Chris Mills suffered a knee injury on a special teams play last week and will be out indefinitely per HBC Barry Odom. Saturday: vs. Southeast Missouri State (1-0) Ole Miss (1-1, 1-0 SEC):MoMo Sanogo's injury (fractured tibia, torn ligament) means Willie Hibler will have to step in at the inside linebacker slot opposite Lakia Henry. Sanogo was injured in the win over Arkansas in which the Rebels held the Razorbacks to 61 rushing yards. Saturday: vs. Southeastern Louisiana (1-0) South Carolina (1-1, 0-0 SEC):D-lineman Kier Thomas (infection in his ankle) is out for the Alabama game. Running back Deshawn Fenwick (shoulder) and D-lineman Brad Johnson (groin) are listed as doubtful while WR Randrecous Davis and O-lineman Eric Davis are listed as questionable. Saturday: vs. #2 Alabama (2-0, 0-0 SEC) Tennessee (0-2, 0-0 SEC): Corner Bryce Thompson, who has been suspended due to an altercation he had with his girlfriend and threats to shoot up the university, has been allowed to return to practice. Saturday: vs. Chattanooga (1-1) #16 Texas A&M (1-1, 0-0 SEC): With Jashaun Corbin done for the year (surgery for a hamstring injury), freshman Isaiah Spiller takes over as the #1 running back. Spiller has 14 carries for 130 yards so far and two receptions for 22 yards. Saturday: vs. Lamar (2-0) Vanderbilt (0-2, 0-0 SEC): Vanderbilt has a week off to shore up some problems in a secondary that has given up six touchdown passes and is allowing 8.9 yards per pass attempt by opponents. Next up for the Commodores is LSU and QB Joe Burrow, who has thrown nine touchdown passes in two games while averaging 11.3 yards per attempt. Saturday: Open GOOD QUOTES FOR THURSDAY From Gary Danielson of CBS Sports on what he's seen so far from Alabama quarterback Tua Tagovailoa: “Tua has improved a ton … is handling the progressions better. He’s taking first-down throws instead of AAU throws. I like to call them AAU throws because it is all flash and dash, and there aren’t consequences if you don’t make the big throw.” From Nicole Auerbach of The Athletic on Rutgers' Australian-born punter Adam Korsak and his stunningly good performance against Iowa last week: “Korsak punted 10 times against the Hawkeyes, with a net average of 46.5 yards per punt. He had seven punts downed inside the 20-yard line, and an astonishing four punts downed inside the 5. His longest was a 69-yard punt that ended up on the 1-yard line.” From Stewart Mandel of The Athletic on the possibility that Chip Kelly of UCLA could lose his job during or after this season: “I don’t think the UCLA administration is anywhere near throwing in the towel on its 3-11 coach, either. This is not Tennessee, where there’s a crazy NFL owner booster and a former national championship coach in the athletic director’s office just itching for an opportunity to don the whistle himself again. UCLA AD Dan Guerrero is not known for an itchy finger. He’s invested a lot in Kelly, whom he outmaneuvered both Florida and Tennessee to get back in 2017. The school itself has invested a ton in its football facilities. And all parties are fully aware that Kelly walked into a full-on rebuilding job in Westwood that was bound to take some time.” From Tim Rohan of Sports Illustrated on whether Florida State should panic with Willie Taggart as its football coach: “Florida State is lucky to be 1–1, but may not be as fortunate going forward. These second-half collapses seem to be symptoms of a larger issue, a lack of composure and discipline across the board, and that falls on the coach, Willie Taggart.” From Ryan Kartje of the Los Angeles Times, former Southern Cal linebacker Riki Ellison on what USC president Carol Folt plans to do now that Lynn Swann has resigned as the athletic director: “She’s setting up Clay Helton now a little bit with more pressure. She’s going to have her own athletic director, and if Clay doesn’t perform, that athletic director is going to pick the new head coach.” From The State (Columbia, SC) newspaper, South Carolina corner Jaycee Horn on the pending matchup with Alabama All-American wide receiver Jerry Jeudy: “As a competitor, you always want to take on the best, just to match yourself up against them, so as a competitor you gotta want that matchup.” From Jose Iglesias of the Miami Herald on the sad state of the Miami Dolphins: “The Dolphins are really bad, OK? A natural disaster. Deal with it.” RANDOM THOUGHTS:T. Boone Pickens, the oil gozillionaire who donated $652 million to Oklahoma State including $260 million to upgrade the football stadium (now named T. Boone Pickens Stadium), died Wednesday at the age of 91 … The Houston Texans have released corner Aaron Colvin one year into a $34 million deal that included $4 million at signing and $18 million guaranteed. Prediction: He will somehow wind up with the New England Patriots and his career will get jump started again playing for Bill Belichick … The US Patent Office has denied Ohio State's request to trademark The (as in The Ohio State University) for use in its merchandise sales … Also denied by the Patent Office was LeBron James' attempt to patent the name “Taco Tuesday,” claiming it's too commonplace to be patented … Florida State reportedly will hire Jim Leavitt to an analyst position to help figure out what's wrong with its defense … A high school swimmer from Anchorage, Alaska was disqualified after winning a 100-meter freestyle event in competition because of what is being deemed a “suit wedgie.” No, I'm not making this up ... Team USA went belly up at the FIBA World Championships in China, losing to France.

“It’s got to really crank up about 10 notches getting into conference play.” That was Florida Gators head coach Dan Mullen’s message following the No. 8/9 Gators 45-0 win over UT-Martin. The shutout and offensive career day looked good on paper but Mullen told his team after the win that it was time for everything to intensify if they wanted to move to 3-0 after opening SEC play. “Kentucky’s an excellent football team. [Head coach] Mark [Stoops] has done a great job with that program. So we have to really kind of crank it up, and it starts Monday morning when we show up. It’s got to be a greater sense of urgency for us. We have a good attitude, I just think we need to have a little more grind and sense of urgency to be exact in every one of our details.” In the kind of full circle that sports often provides, it was a loss against Kentucky last season that really taught this Gators squad how important those details can be in determining wins. “I think it was an eye opener. That we should never take a team lightly no matter what people say about them or anything,” recalls quarterback Feleipe Franks. “There should be a standard at which you play at, every game no matter who you are playing. If you’re playing below that standard, then that’s not right and that’s not how we’re going to win.” Adds senior receiver Josh Hammond. “I think guys just gotta a little bit sense of urgency about the game and who we were playing. I think the loss helped us tremendously because we knew at that point that nobody was gonna come and give us anything, we had to go work and earn everything we were gonna get so I think that kinda changed the motivation to we need to go harder in practice, we need to make sure we execute at a high level in practice and on a day to day basis in practice to continue to win these ball games on Saturday.” That 2018 game came in Week 2, an early conference match for both teams. Kentucky won 27-16 and put up 454 yards of total offense, including 300+ rushing alone as running back Benny Snell and quarterback Terry Wilson (who was injured last week and will be out for the season) ran all over the Gators in Ben Hill Griffin Stadium to end a 31 year Florida win streak. It was a humbling moment for a young team that begot a maturity leading to five straight wins and finishing with a 10 win season. The Wildcats also enter Saturday nights game currently 2-0 but the Gators are bringing with them to Lexington the lessons learned from the loss. “If you come out and play to another team’s level thats what is going to happen. So thats what we really focused on this week, just coming out with a high intensity and play to our standard,” says linebacker Ventrell Miller. “It starts in practice,” explains Hammond. “So it’s the little things, if it’s finishing blocks at practice or making sure the scout team guy knifes as hard as he supposed to knife - giving us those exact looks on how the opponent team is going to do it and get us prepared in the proper way. The biggest thing is paying attention to detail and being more focused on the little things. And guys being able to execute cleanly and properly.” While they’re keeping the lessons, this group of Gators insist they aren’t looking for revenge. They will heed their coaches request for a more intense week of practice and increased urgency, but as Mullen explains, he doesn’t have to ask for motivation. “I don’t have to come in and be a cheerleader to motivate our guys. They’re coming in to work out, they’re ready to go, everybody is getting ready to go, meetings, great attitude going out to practice, ready to work. It is the most minute of details of what you’re doing and whether it’s a practice, whether it’s a walk through, whether it’s a film study, just that ability to focus and make sure I’m exact on every single detail is huge.” For Feleipe Franks, this is the most important aspect of the Florida Gators identity and the key to not replicating last years loss. “I think that if you’ve got to tell somebody to get excited about a game, then something is already wrong. I think we have a team full of guys that are excited to go out there and play Saturday no matter who we’re playing – away, home, SEC or not SEC. You should be excited to get out there. You never want to take that for granted. “Either you have a competitive fire or you don’t. You want to go out there and play every Saturday or you don’t. You want to win or you don’t. It’s black and white, I don’t there’s any grey area in being a competitor, ether you have the passion or you don’t.”

A YEAR MAKES QUITE A DIFFERENCE If he could do it all over again and get a re-do on last year's game two with Kentucky, a game the Florida Gators lost, 27-16, there are probably a dozen things Dan Mullen would do differently, but he couldn't prepare for Kentucky's experience and the fact this was only his second game as Florida's head coach. One of the chief reasons Kentucky dominated that game on both lines of scrimmage was the bulk of the players Mark Stoops put on the field were in their second and third year in his system. With only an opening game win over D1AA Charleston Southern to go by, there wasn't much for Mullen to go by. He still didn't know which players were the best fits, who needed more and who needed less playing time, and who could best handle pressure situations. Game two, therefore, was this gigantic flop in which a 31-year winning streak over the Wildcats came to an unceremonious end in front of a stunned Ben Hill Griffin crowd. The glaring difference was in the Kentucky running game where the offensive line opened gaping holes for Benny Snell Jr., who ran for 175 of Kentucky's 303 rushing yards. When Florida tried to pressure UK quarterback Terry Wilson it seemed he always had an escape route. Whatever the Gators ran offensively only seemed to work well between the thirties. Consider it the ultimate learning experience. “Our job is to put guys in the best position to make plays and I don’t think we were doing that,” Mullen said at his Monday press conference. He went on to say that a “lack of knowing all the guys on the team and the experience of knowing the players and how they would react and respond in the game” also factored in the outcome. That wasn't an excuse being offered, just a realistic assessment. A year later, Mullen has an air of confidence about him. For the most part, he knows what his players can do and how they're going to react. It's a veteran starting lineup on both sides of the ball so Mullen knows what those guys can do under pressure and how to scheme to give them the best chance to make plays. Beyond those starters, however, there are a number of kids who figure prominently in the rotations and for some of them, the first road trip will be a brand new experience. “We’ll probably get on the plane and it’ll be some guy’s first time ever on an airplane,” Mullen said. “That’s a distraction. I’ve had it, especially if they really start freaking out.” If Mullen can keep the distractions to a minimum he has a very good chance to open the Southeastern Conference portion of the schedule with a win. Just as you can't put toothpaste back in the tube once it's been squeezed out, Mullen can't do a thing about what happened last year against the Kentucky Wildcats. He can, however, make sure there isn't a similar experience in 2019. SEC FOOTBALL STUFF #2 Alabama (2-0, 0-0 SEC): Despite a 62-10 blowout win over New Mexico State, Nick Saban still found things to grouse about. Monday it was a passing game that produced 285 yards and four touchdowns. “I don’t think we were real crisp in the passing game – I’m not talking about any fault of Tua (Tagovailoa), but just sort of sloppy in protection, sloppy in route-running,” Saban said. Saturday: at South Carolina (1-1, 0-0 SEC) Arkansas (1-1, 0-1 SEC): HBC Chad Morris has made the switch at QB, benching Ben Hicks in favor of Texas A&M grad transfer Nick Starkel. Coming off the bench in the loss at Ole Miss, Starkel hit 17-27 passes for 201 yards and a TD. Hicks was 7-16 for 98 yards. Saturday: vs. Colorado State (1-1) Auburn (2-0, 0-0 SEC): In their 24-6 win over Tulane, the Tigers allowed only 223 total yards and just one trip into the red zone … Auburn has bribed New Mexico State with $1.85 million to come to Auburn and take a beating in 2023. Saturday: vs. Kent State #3 Georgia (2-0, 1-0 SEC): A DUI used to be an automatic two-game suspension at Georgia. No longer. Freshman defensive end Bill Norton, who didn't make the trip to Vandy on opening weekend, played against Murray State … D-lineman Julian Rochester, who has been slowed by a knee injury, has been cleared to play. Offensive tackle Isaiah Wilson is out of the walking boot but isn't ready to play just yet. Saturday: vs. Arkansas State (1-1) Kentucky (2-0, 0-0 SEC):At his Monday press conference, HBC Mark Stoops said the Wildcats will miss injured quarterback Terry Wilson but they won't back down from the Gators. Stoops said, “We’re sad for Terry and it stinks because it’s part of our game, but believe me, we’re going back to work with the intent to win a football game next week, and that’s the way we’re going to approach it every week.” Saturday: vs. #9 Florida (2-0, 0-0 SEC) LSU (2-0, 0-0 SEC): Coach O says LSU didn't have air conditioning in its locker rooms in Austin Saturday night. Texas (big surprise here) issued a statement saying the AC in the locker rooms works just fine. Additionally, Texas put the LSU marching band in the end zone upper deck of Darrell Royal Stadium. Saturday: vs. Northwestern State (0-2) Mississippi State (2-0, 0-0 SEC): The injury to QB Tommy Stevens is to his right (throwing) arm. HBC Joe Moorhead remains hopeful that Stevens will be okay to play Saturday … Former Michigan running back Kareem Walker received notification from the NCAA Clearinghouse that he is eligible to play. Walker was a redshirt freshman at Michigan in 2017. He played at Fort Scott (KS) Community College last year. Saturday: vs. Kansas State (2-0) Missouri (1-1, 0-0 SEC):Of Missouri's 10 penalties for -100 yards in the win over West Virginia, two were for chop blocks. All 10 penalties were flagged in the first half. Saturday: vs. Southeast Missouri State (1-1) Ole Miss (1-1, 1-0 SEC): Linebacker MoMo Sanogo, who broke a fibula and tore a ligament in the first quarter of the Arkansas game, will be out a minimum of 10 weeks. Saturday: vs. Southeastern Louisiana (1-0) South Carolina (1-1, 0-0 SEC): After former DL Josh Belk claimed he left South Carolina because of the threat of losing his scholarship if he didn't work out while recovering from his injury, the athletic department issued a statement that pointed out all athletic scholarships are 4-year agreements that cannot be revoked because of a medical reason. Saturday: vs. #2 Alabama (2-0, 0-0 SEC) Tennessee (0-2, 0-0 SEC): This quote from HBC Jeremy Pruitt is going to go over well with Vol fans. Monday morning, Pruitt said, “There’s not much difference in winning and losing. If you look at Saturday’s game, there’s probably 80 plays on offense and right about that on defense. You never know when the play is going to present itself that could decide the outcome of the game, so that’s why you try to create the right habits in practice and you practice it until you don’t get it wrong.” Saturday: vs. Chattanooga (1-1) Texas A&M (1-1, 0-0 SEC):Sophomore running back Jashaun Corbin is out for the season after suffering a severe hamstring injury in the Aggies' loss to Clemson. His place in the starting lineup will be taken by Isaiah Spiller. Saturday: vs. Lamar (1-1) Vanderbilt (0-2, 0-1 SEC): The Commodores were flagged for 13 penalties for -100 yards in the loss to Purdue and the running game produced only 71 yards on 27 carries. Saturday: Open GOOD QUOTES FOR TUESDAY From Paul Finebaum on WJOX on his belief Tennessee coach Jeremy Pruitt has the Vols on a path toward a disastrous season: “You just don’t want to write someone off this quickly, but you start going week by week and as long as you get past Chattanooga, the schedule is self-explanatory, Florida, Georgia, I mean what, there aren’t any wins there. The danger is the season is going to be over so quickly that the interest in Tennessee as opposed to anything but a side show or a freak show will vaporize. That’s when he goes into late October, early November and is trying to find fans, really anyone to talk about his own ineptitude, that’s when you go from Defcon 4, to 3, to 2, to 1.” From Andy Staples of The Athletic, there is a feeling of hopelessness in Tallahassee with Willie Taggart running the football show: “It drove previous coach Jimbo Fisher nuts that Florida State was so cash-strapped compared to the programs the Seminoles recruit against, so it’s tough to imagine the school coughing up a $17 million buyout of Taggart if the Seminoles aren’t any different in 2019 than they were in 2018.” From Stewart Mandel of The Athletic on the lack of progress for Michigan and quarterback Shea Patterson: “Amid all the buzz coming into the year for Patterson, the offensive line and receivers, people may have minimized the fact Michigan would be relying on completely unproven running backs. Freshman Zach Charbonnet ran 33 times for 100 yards, but the Wolverines’ running backs struggled in pass-protection. He can improve with time. Less fixable, however: Patterson’s ceiling is lower than advertised. Which means Michigan probably has a lower ceiling than that of preseason Big Ten favorite.” From Ross Dellenger of Sports Illustrated on LSU quarterback Joe Burrow, who threw for 471 yards and four touchdowns to lead the Tigers past Texas in Austin: “He is confident. He is brash. And he is a baller, a description used by his own coach. He misfired on just nine of 39 passes Saturday night, and one of those was a dropped touchdown. He used his athletically gifted targets, all of them getting a piece of this spread pie: Justin Jefferson (9 catches, 163 yards), Chase (8-147) and Terrace Marshall (6-123).” OOPS OF THE WEEK The winner – and there is no second place here since the error was so egregious – is ESPN play-by-play announcer Jason Benetti. When some Auburn students spelled out “Ride for Rod” it was a tribute to the late Rod Bramblett, the Auburn radio play-by-play announcer who died in a tragic auto accident during the summer. Benetti saw it and stated this was a tribute to his broadcast partner and analyst, Rod Gilmore. “They’re spelling Rod by the way,” Benetti said. “That’s very nice. It’s for Rod Gilmore. They’re spelling your name. They’ve got a heart for you. I mean that’s just for you.” Gilmore responded, “Oh, for me? Beautiful!” Prior to the game, Auburn showed a tribute video dedicated to Bramblett and his wife, who also died in the accident. ESPN and Benetti have apologized for their insensitivity. RANDOM THOUGHTS: The ESPN staff ranked the teams in all five power conferences from top to bottom of each league. They have the Gators ranked fifth in the SEC (1. Alabama; 2. Georgia, 3. LSU and 4. Auburn). In the Big Ten, they have Michigan ranked sixth. In the ACC, they have Miami ranked seventh and Florida State 14th. It's a 14-team league, by the way … Derrius Guice, who missed all of last season with an ACL tear, injured his other knee in the Washington Redskins' loss to the Philadelphia Eagles. Guice was scheduled for an MRI Monday … Lynn Swann has tendered his resignation as Southern Cal's athletic director after three years on the job … With two home runs against the Arizona Diamondbacks Monday night, former Gator Pete Alonso regained sole possession of the Major League home run lead. Alonso has hit a National League record 47 homers and is within five of Aaron Judge's all-time rookie record.