We are going to have to re-evaluate a lot of things defensively. Where we are at right now, I’m going to have to really evaluate some things with our personnel, where we are at, our ability to make plays, make sure that we have all the right guys at the right position to be able to make the plays we need to to get off the field. We can’t give up 13 of 15 conversions on the day and expect to win any game.
– Dan Mullen
The Bad
Press play to set the mood for this section.
The Aggies found different ways to carve up a struggling Gators defense throughout Saturday’s game. We saw Florida give up large chunks through the air, slants on third downs to keep a drive alive, and nearly an entire 10-play touchdown march spent on the ground.
There’s not one simple solution that will fix the defense overnight. Small steps in the right direction will fix the problem. So, where do the Gators start?
The big play. More specifically, giving up plays of 10-yards or more.
I counted 22 plays of 10-yards or more for the Aggies offense yesterday. For greater perspective
- Texas A&M gained over 10-yards on 22 out of 74 total plays (29.7%).
- The 22-play split: 15 pass/7 rush (6/7 rush plays of 10-yards or more occurred in the second half and the Gators gave up 7 plays of 10-yards or more in the first half/15 plays of 10-yards or more in the second half).
First Drive
RESULT: TOUCHDOWN
DETAILS: 7 plays, 75 yards, TOP 3:33
PLAYS OVER 10-YARDS: 2
- Facing a 3rd & 8, Mond hit Wydermyer for a 12-yard strike beating man coverage.
- Mond connected with Chapman deep to set up the Aggies’ first TD.
| Kellen Mond pass complete to J Wydermyer for 12 yards to the TAMU39, 1ST DOWN TAMU (Miller,V.). |
| Kellen Mond pass complete to Caleb Chapman for 49 yards to the UF12, 1ST DOWN TAMU (Wilson,M.). |
Second Drive
RESULT: TOUCHDOWN
DETAILS: 14 plays, 94 yards, TOP 7:09
PLAYS OVER 10-YARDS: 2
After A&M recovered a fumble by RB Isaiah Spiller to open the second quarter, Mond connected on two big pass plays.
- Wydermyer was a tough matchup and a 14-yard reception on third down was a set up a big strike on the next play.
- Smith was all alone on the sideline thanks to a levels concept. Shawn Davis flew over to knock him out of bounds.
| Kellen Mond pass complete to J Wydermyer for 14 yards to the TAMU40, 1ST DOWN TAMU (Davis,S.;Wilson,M.). |
| Kellen Mond pass complete to Ainias Smith for 30 yards to the UF30, 1ST DOWN TAMU, out-of-bounds (Davis,S.). |
Third Drive
RESULT: FIELD GOAL
DETAILS: 14 plays, 73 yards, TOP 4:14
PLAYS OVER 10-YARDS: 5
Five plays over 10-yards allowed on a single drive! The Gators were saved by the bell on this one. The Aggies were only forced to settle for a field goal thanks to the clock.
The running game got involved. Spiller showed flashes of what was to come in the second half with a 17-yard burst.
| Kellen Mond pass complete to Caleb Chapman for 10 yards to the TAMU35, 1ST DOWN TAMU (Davis,S.;Miller,V.). |
| Isaiah Spiller rush for 17 yards to the UF43, 1ST DOWN TAMU, out-of-bounds (Hill,J.). |
| Kellen Mond pass complete to Chase Lane for 10 yards to the UF30, 1ST DOWN TAMU (Hill,J.). |
| Kellen Mond pass complete to Chase Lane for 11 yards to the UF19, 1ST DOWN TAMU (Stewart,B.). |
| Kellen Mond pass complete to Kam Brown for 11 yards to the UF4, 1ST DOWN TAMU (Burney,A.;Houston,J.). |
Fourth Drive
RESULT: PUNT
DETAILS: 6 plays, 29 yards, TOP 1:47
PLAYS OVER 10-YARDS: 2
You would think the Gators would get a break from giving up 10-yard plays on the only series which resulted in an A&M punt, but it wasn’t that kind of day.
| Kellen Mond pass complete to Isaiah Spiller for 18 yards to the TAMU43, 1ST DOWN TAMU, out-of-bounds. |
| Isaiah Spiller rush for 11 yards to the UF46, 1ST DOWN TAMU (Davis,S.). |
Fifth Drive
RESULT: TOUCHDOWN
DETAILS: 10 plays, 75 yards, TOP 5:20
PLAYS OVER 10-YARDS: 4
The running game took over on this drive. Texas A&M ran the ball nine times for 76 yards (extra yardage thanks to a penalty at the beginning of the drive). Spiller toted it five times for 58 yards before punching it into the end zone from three yards out. I thought a 94-yard drive would be the most discouraging thing we’d witness until this drive.
| Isaiah Spiller rush for 13 yards to the TAMU26, 1ST DOWN TAMU (Davis,S.). |
| Isaiah Spiller rush for 23 yards to the TAMU49, 1ST DOWN TAMU (Kimbrough,C.;Houston,J.). |
| Isaiah Spiller rush for 13 yards to the UF38, 1ST DOWN TAMU, out-of-bounds (Davis,S.). |
| Kellen Mond pass complete to J Wydermyer for 11 yards to the UF3 (Houston,J.;Miller,V.). |
Sixth Drive
RESULT: TOUCHDOWN
DETAILS: 10 plays, 66 yards, TOP 5:42
PLAYS OVER 10-YARDS: 2
Eight rushes in 10 plays and once again Spiller was the focal point of the offense with six carries for 30 yards. He would finish with 27 carries, 174 yards, and 2 TDs. Spiller’s 19-yard touchdown in the early fourth quarter gave the Aggies their first lead.
| Kellen Mond pass complete to J Wydermyer for 12 yards to the UF49, 1ST DOWN TAMU. |
| Isaiah Spiller rush for 19 yards to the UF0, 1ST DOWN TAMU, TOUCHDOWN, clock 12:35. |
Seventh Drive
RESULT: FUMBLE
DETAILS: 3 plays, 16 yards, TOP 1:28
PLAYS OVER 10-YARDS: 1
A third down completion for a first down resulted in a fumble that seemed like it would be the pivotal play in the game.
| Kellen Mond pass complete to Ainias Smith for 11 yards to the TAMU41, fumble forced by Stewart,B., fumble by Ainias Smith recovered by UF Wilson,M. at TAMU41, Wilson,M. for 4 yards to the TAMU37 (Caleb Chapman). |
Eighth Drive
RESULT: TOUCHDOWN
DETAILS: 4 plays, 75 yards, TOP 1:44
PLAYS OVER 10-YARDS: 2
Chapman served as Mond’s go-to deep threat against shaky coverage. The 51-yard yard strike tied the game up at 38-38 with approx 4:30 left.
| Kellen Mond pass complete to Caleb Chapman for 13 yards to the TAMU49, 1ST DOWN TAMU (Johnson,T.). |
| Kellen Mond pass complete to Caleb Chapman for 51 yards to the UF0, 1ST DOWN TAMU, TOUCHDOWN, clock 04:30. |
Ninth Drive
RESULT: FIELD GOAL
DETAILS: 8 plays, 40 yards, TOP 3:40
PLAYS OVER 10-YARDS: 2
When Gators CB Tre’Vez Johnson blitzed off of the edge and tracked down Spiller in the backfield for a two-yard loss, it looked as if the Florida defense may finally come up with a critical stand. The loss pushed the Aggies back to the UF 35-yard line.
Facing a 3rd & 8, Mond completed a 16-yard pass to Chase Lane to get A&M into field goal range. Spiller tacked on an 11-yard run the following play to set up the chip-shot winner from kicker Seth Small.
Fitting that two 10-yard plays would put the nail the Gators’ coffin.
| Kellen Mond pass complete to Chase Lane for 16 yards to the UF19, 1ST DOWN TAMU (McWilliams,C.). |
| Isaiah Spiller rush for 11 yards to the UF8, 1ST DOWN TAMU (Dunlap,M.;Stiner,D.). |
Mullen spoke about “re-evaluating a lot of things defensively.” That type of comment is not uncommon after a loss and let’s hope those words lead to a real change going forward. If the Gators are struggling to get home on the blitz and the coverage is vulnerable, I’d like to think we could expect to see a shift to a more conservative, coverage based effort.
Seems like a viable solution, right?
Perhaps, but I’m not counting on it just yet. Mullen knew who DC Todd Grantham was when he hired him and it’s hard to imagine a complete philosophical shift coming from a guy who seems to have fully embraced his “3rd & Grantham” persona for well over a decade (check out Will Miles’ piece on Florida’s third down struggles).
To Grantham’s credit, when his style of play is clicking, it’s a fun-brand of defensive football, but in an offseason restricted year where depth is already a concern, the defense needs to focus on simplifying to avoid getting gashed.
Defensive struggles are not uncommon throughout college football this season. On Saturday alone: Bama gave up 647 total yards and 48 points to Ole Miss, North Carolina ran up 656 yards of offense and 56 points on a typically proud Virginia Tech defense, and for the second time this season, LSU gave up over 400 yards passing and over 40 points to a team thought to be in the lower tier of the SEC, this time with all-world corner Derek Stingley Jr. in the lineup.
Blame Grantham. Don’t blame Grantham. Either way, it’s evident that a lack of offseason preparation is effecting defenses across the country. The top teams will find ways to make rapid adjustments. Asking Grantham not to blitz or play aggressively reminds me of the story about the frog and the scorpion. I don’t know if it can be done, but let’s hope the Gators can simplify things enough to at least cut down on the big plays.
The Good
Now that we’ve exercised our defensive demons a bit, set your frustrations aside for a moment to appreciate how effective the offense has been this season. It’s national championship level good.
Yes, they turned it over with the game on the line.
Yes, the offensive line and running game are still a work in progress.
But, the depth of playmaking options is something special and after spending a decade wandering the desert in search of anything remotely resembling a viable offense, I hope I wouldn’t have to go too deep in explaining just how good this group is in year three of Dan Mullen.
This offense may fall short of whatever idealized version of perfection some folks hold in their heads, but five touchdowns and a field goal in eight drives should get the job done on most days.
Trask continues to utilize the wide variety of weapons at his disposal. The senior quarterback completed passes to eight different receivers, five of which had multiple receptions. TE Kyle Pitts stormed out of the gate with three receptions and touchdown on the opening drive and did not log his final two catches until the fourth quarter. He appeared to be hobbling before McPherson’s field goal in the fourth quarter. Was his play in the second half was impacted by any injury concerns?
The good news is that it didn’t seem to matter all that much as the offense was only slowed by a first down sack, which led to the three-and-out on the fifth drive, and the unfortunate fumble by RB Malik Davis on the final drive. You never want to excuse a fumble, especially one in a big moment, but give some credit to A&M LB Buddy Johnson on that hit. As Florida LT Stone Forsythe whiffed on Johnson, the Aggies linebacker accelerated laterally and stripped Davis. If Forsythe doesn’t completely miss on his assignment, Davis likely holds onto the football.
Tough finish to the day for Davis, but don’t expect his carries to fall off going forward as Mullen clearly seems to prefer a deep rotation in the backfield. Redshirt freshman Nay’Quan Wright out of Carol City High School (Miami) looks like he could be special. I’d like to see Mullen find ways to get him more touches next week.
The UGAly
The Bulldogs tried to keep it interesting early by gifting a Tennessee a touchdown. Pruitt and the Vols played well in the first half and actually took a 21-17 lead into the locker room before being run out of town in a second half shutout that clearly demonstrated the gap between Tennessee and the elite.
A bad snap from Georgia leads to Tennessee (+12.5) recovering the fumble in the endzone to go up 7-0 #BarstoolSportsbook
https://t.co/Yumqf7sSld— Bet The Pigskin (@betthepigskin) October 10, 2020
Quarterback Stetson Bennett continued to manage the game effectively. He does not actively seek to run, but if the situation calls for it, Bennett has proven to be quite an effective scrambler. On top of an eight-yard second quarter touchdown on the ground, the junior quarterback completed 16/27 passes for 238 yards and 2 TDs. He does exactly what Smart and Monken ask of him and it appears the Dawgs have their man at quarterback going forward…at least that’s the way it appears one week before UGA travels to Tuscaloosa. Things can change quickly….especially in the transfer-happy UGA quarterback room.
I made it clear last week that this would not be a forum to shower praise upon UGA, so let’s talk about George Pickens.
The sophomore wide receiver was at it again today. You might recall Pickens flailing attempt to fight a Tech corner last season and if you haven’t seen Murf Baldwin of Top Billin’s breakdown of that fight, I highly encourage you click here now.
From Harry Lyles Jr. of ESPN:
On first-and-10 from the Vols’ 36, Guarantano raced for a 3-yard scramble before falling out of bounds toward Georgia’s sideline. While Guarantano was on the ground, Pickens was seen walking toward him and squirting water out of a bottle at Guarantano.
“When somebody comes out of bounds and you squirt water at them, what are we? Are we 7 and 8 years old?” Bulldogs coach Kirby Smart said. “I mean, come on, let’s play football. Let’s don’t be silly.”
Although this move is objectively funny in most years, Pickens picked a bad time to help cool off an opponent with a bottle of back-wash.
The Dawgs second-half beatdown propelled them back in sole possession of first place in the SEC East.
Saturday should serve as a wake up call for all Gators. This season was supposed to be about overtaking UGA and winning the East, but Florida fans cannot pencil in wins and need to be on guard moving forward until some answers are found on defense. Until those discoveries are made, feel free to indulge in another listen.
Jack
Fumbles happen but they should only happen when a helmet or a shoulder pad contacts the ball. Occasionally a player concentrating on escaping relaxes his grip on the ball and if the defender happens to punch it out … Unfortunately it came at a crtical time.