It's funny to say after a 21-7 loss to our in-state rival but that was one of the better games Florida played all year with one glaring exception... 4 interceptions!!
Only 4 penalties for 25 yards in the entire game. That's a big improvement over some of the midseason numbers. The defense looked amazing! The "other team" attempted 46 rushes for only 30 yards while passing for only 65 yards. Even though they were held under 100 total yards for the game, those 4 interceptions set up 21 points. The first scoring drive went for 20 yards. The second scoring drive went for 4 yards. The third score was an interception return for touchdown. And there you have it, 24 yards on offense and 21 points.
John Brantley had his worst game of the season, 3 interceptions in just under one half of work. After the second interception I thought we might see Brissett at some point. It turns out after the third interception, Brantley was injured and so Brissett did get snaps. The offensive line didn't open any running lanes and losing 2 linemen to injury during the game didn't help.
Florida's only score also came after a turnover, the only one the Gators were able to force. After middle linebacker Michael Taylor forced a fumble, the offense took over at the opponent's 21 yard line. First down saw a 15 yard pass interference penalty moved the ball to the 6 yard line where the Gators completed a 6 yard pass for a touchdown.
So all of the scoring for the day came after turnovers and the longest drive for points was 21 yards. Definitely a day dominated by the defenses. The difference was the turnovers. Bottom line: their defense outscored our defense.
I didn't hear it mentioned very often throughout the season but Florida was playing with only 72 players on scholarship, with a few of those being walk ons that earned scholarships this year. For those who don't know, 85 is the maximum allowed as well as the standard that most teams keep. With only 72 scholarship players, depth was an issue all year long. The team was also a young team with only 17 seniors and 17 juniors on scholarship. This needs to be a huge recruiting class with enough talent to push the current young guys who are starting. Whether or not the growing pains of the season will lead to lessons learned and more cohesive play won't be known until next year. I'm hopeful that this season is akin to 2007 when the Gators were coming off of a championship season with a very, very young team that was pushed around at times. After the growing pains of 2007, 2008 was a championship season and 2009 was nearly so. The bowl game will be interesting. There isn't a 6-6 team out there that Florida should not shut down defensively. On offense I'd like to see Brissett start the game so they can get a jumpstart on next season. That would be a slight to Brantley in his senior season however so maybe the freshman can play the second half.
Well, that was Florida football for 2011. I suspect Muschamp & Co. will need to win at least 8 games to keep the fans hopeful that this is moving in the right direction next year. I don't believe next year's schedules are finalized with the 2 new SEC members, Missouri and Texas A&M joining the conference. I suppose the good news is that Alabama should definitely be off of the schedule next year.
Just Joe
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