Getting Offensive With Demps

From here, by the author of TIMTEBLOG:

At the snap, the number called wasn't Tebow's, but Jeff Demps', who scampered into the end zone untouched around the left end. Tie game. Momentum shifted.

Even for Tebologists who follow No. 15's every step, this felt like a moment of clarity for offensive coordinator Steve Addazio: Florida doesn't have to depend entirely on Tebow to win games. In fact, recent history tells us Demps' stiletto style is a necessary contrast to Tebow's sledgehammer -- it wasn't until Demps and Chris Rainey emerged late in the win over Arkansas last year that Florida's offense really spread its wings and took off into the death phoenix it would become en route to the SEC and BCS championships.

People keep saying that this team is missing its "Percy Harvin," that versatile figure who can stretch the field in the passing game, and the Gators have already held below 24 points -- their lowest point total throughout 2008, against Oklahoma in the BCS title game -- three times. I would argue, though, that the game-tying moment on Saturday illustrated why Jeff Demps is as dangerous as Harvin -- if not as a receiver, then as a runner, and as a change of pace from the onslaught of Tebow that often defines the Gator running game. It is worth asking why Demps doesn't get more touches per game.

Tebow would be Tebow on the Gators' final, game-winning drive: A couple of runs right in line with his four-to-five-yards-per-carry adjusted average for the game, with a couple of completions to Riley Cooper (including the key play on 3rd and 10 to put the Gators in field-goal range -- a great play, but hardly a "Heisman moment.")

The point is this: Even if Arkansas was the "trap" game -- although if you win, it's positioned in hindsight as a "wake-up call" -- it is clear that both the coaches and Tebow are going to ride Tebow's legs all the way to Atlanta for the SEC title game. Theoretically, I would love to find out if Tim Tebow could win an SEC title (or BCS title) all by himself. As a practical matter, he can't. Now that Tebow has re-established himself as the team's thunder, it can't afford to forget about the Harvinesque lightning of Demps.

Getting Away With It

The great EDSBS had this spot-on post, with an accompanying song by one of Ode's favorite groups. The thick of it:

The dazed aftermath doesn’t shield a few essentials about Florida, though. Something is terribly palsied in the offense, in the execution, and in the playcalling. Arkansas played like mad bastards, especially Dennis Johnson the rolling water buffalo on rails, last seen bowling through the entire Florida defense, and wideout Greg Childs. The playcalling is relentlessly uninventive, and the line buckled under pressure from the Razorbacks’ d-line, the other set of Ro-beasts hounding Tebow and sacking him six times. This offense is, in the words of Sophocles, “kinda shitty.”

Arkansas deserves not your pity, nor any opining about the officiating. If they hit two field goals, they win this game, horrific calls and all. The one irritating us most: another inane taunting penalty in the first half, moving SEC officiating further away from the application of rules from a handbook, and more towards the spontaneous review of interpretive dance.

They didn’t, and now Florida will fall to where they properly belong: number two at best, and possibly three if you’re partial to Texas. If they faced Alabama tomorrow, the Gators lose by ten. There’s time to improve, but the problems go deeper than Percy Harvin demonstrating his mutant skills in the NFL. For now, we’re the Iowa of the SEC, and like Iowa, we’re getting away with it for the moment. As dirty as it feels, it is better than the alternative.

Coordinators

Anyone notice that Mullen's new offense scored twice as many points as ours against LSU? Here's a nice love letter to UF's current best coach. The Spurrier and Miles quotes:

"I told Urban Meyer this summer that Charlie is a better coordinator than he was three years ago," said Steve Spurrier, who was Strong's boss from 1991-94. "He said, 'You're right.' ... They seem to know what the other team is doing all of the time.

"Charlie, like all good coaches, if there is a better way to do something, he looks for it."

In a lot of ways it's a perfect storm, Strong evolving constantly and having all of the checkers to line up in whatever defense makes sense.

"The way he attacks you," said LSU coach Les Miles, "he's constantly stirring the pot looking to be better."

OH MY!!! The Pat Dooley Show With The Voice Of The Gators

Some good observations here by Mick which include the differences in interviewing the various UF coaches, calling games in different venues, and the origins of "OH MY!"

(Sorry, I've had trouble embedding these videos.)

Dr. Saturday On Similarities Between '09 Arkansas and '08 Ole Miss

I had also called '09 Arkansas the most likely candidate for our annual SEC West upset. One big difference that should be added to this scenario is that Ole Miss played a close game with the Gators in '07, whereas Florida at Arkansas last year wasn't close (though it was for awhile).

From here:

• Arkansas at Florida.
Arkansas was already designated the Official "Trap" Game of Florida's mythical championship run, a status the Razorbacks solidified by hanging unbeaten Auburn out to dry last week, 44-23. With that score, the 'Hogs have put up 40-plus as underdogs against Georgia, Texas A&M and Auburn in a four-week span, and continue to look alarmingly like the Ole Miss outfit that upset Florida at home last year. The scenarios are a little eerie:

• Florida is coming off a big road win. (Over Tennessee in '08; over LSU in '09).
• Ole Miss, while not hyped at all coming into the season, returned four starting offensive linemen, a deep set of maturing receivers with a lot of catches to their name and eight starters on defense from 2007. Arkansas, with only slightly more respect coming into this season, returned three offensive linemen, a deep set of maturing receivers with a lot of catches to their name and nine starters on defense. from 2008
• Both teams have revamped offenses built around a big, hyped slinger who transferred from his original destination. (Jevan Snead in '08; Ryan Mallett in '09)
• Ole Miss consistently hit Tim Tebow with one of the best rushers in the SEC, Greg Hardy, who had two sacks and made the cover of Sports Illustrated on another hurry. Arkansas has one of the best pass rushers in the SEC in Malcolm Sheppard, who already has three sacks and 7.5 tackles for loss despite drawing more attention following his All-SEC breakout as a junior.

Still, Ole Miss needed three Gator fumbles and a missed extra point to pull out an improbable win then. Even if Arkansas gets that kind of fortune, the otherwise high-flying Razorback offense was tied up in a burlap sack and beaten within in an inch of its life in a 35-7 loss at Alabama, and the only defense on par with 'Bama's at the moment is the one the 'Hogs get here Saturday.

(Dr. Saturday predicted a 38-18 Florida win over Arkansas.)

S.B. and Football (hint: it's not "Super Bowl")

Interesting overlap, but a different appraisal on the benefits of SB. Check this Meyer quote against the Shannon video below:

Meyer said he made the mistake early in his coaching career at Florida by not having injured players attend meetings during the season. Naturally, the danger in that is having players fall even further behind in the playbook.

Now, Meyer makes it mandatory for players like Patchan (knee), Andre Debose (hamstring), Jeremy Brown (back) and Carl Moore (back) to attend meetings and to be around the team as much as possible, so when they return they’ll be ready to play.

“The worst thing that can happen to a football player is he sits home and watches TV or ‘Sponge Bob’ or whatever the heck those kids watch,” Meyer said.

Pick 6: Week 4 (Arkansas)

Week 3 (LSU) Results:

Touches: Demps
Yards: Demps & Hernandez
Receptions: Hernandez
TDs: Cooper
Margin: 10

Mary: 9 (2 Defensive Points for Spikes' 2.5 sacks and 11 tackles)
Sean: 9 (2 Def. pts. for Haden's int.-- I picked Haden twice.)
Galapagos: 7 (2 Def. pts. for Spikes' output listed above)

Totals:

Mary: 19
Sean: 15
Galapagos: 11
Brad: 9
Michael: 4
John: 4
Mark: 1

Note:

I've tweaked the defensive scoring on sacks. Instead of 2 sacks equaling 1 point, 1.5 sacks now equal 1 point.

Here is the defensive scoring (you make 2 defensive picks like you do for the other categories):

8 Tackles (solo and assisted)= 1 Point
1.5 Sacks= 1 Point
1 Interception= 1 Point
1 Score (TD or safety)= 1 Point

And here are the other categories:

Yards from Scrimmage
Touches from Scrimmage (runs + receptions + passes)
Receptions
TDs (including returns/blocks)
Point Margin (list one guess--earn 2 points for being within 3, 1 point for being within 6)
(No QBs)

Stats

You can use the comments section on this post to make your picks for the Arkansas game.

Play On!

Is this really the offense?

Apparently so.

This Week's Pat Dooley Show (with guest James Bates)

What Might a Brantley-led Offense Look Like?

link

Mumme Poll

Thanks to Smart Football for this link. The 2 main criteria for the poll:

1. The first vote does not take place until after the games of Week Six have been played. Voters are not asked to evaluate teams based on preseason expectations and are not expected to use those as a baseline from which to rank teams for the rest of the year.
2. Rather than being required to rank twenty five D-1 teams in order of preference, Mumme Poll voters submit ballots of the top twelve teams in the country, without ranking (other than to designate the top five of those twelve, for use as a tiebreaker). The poll rankings are then compiled by means of approval voting; that is, the teams are ranked in the order of the total number of times they appear on voters’ ballots.

link

Best Upsets of the Decade

Pick 6: Week 3-LSU (Including Defensive Changes)

Week 2 (Kentucky) Stats:

Touches: Demps
Yards: Demps
Receptions: Hernandez
TDs: Rainey (off punt block), Hernandez, Cooper
Margin: 34

Participants' Week 2 Points (Total Points in Parenthesis):

Brad 6 (9)
Mary 5 (10)
Michael 3 (4)
Sean 2 (6)
Galapagos 1 (4)
Mark 1 (1)
John 0 (4)

The Gainesville Sun did not declare a Defensive MVP so no points were allotted for that category for the Kentucky game. However, we will include a defensive category for the future, starting this week. Participants will continue to select 2 players (same player may still be selected twice). Points will be allotted for those defensive picks if the players that are picked achieve any of the following:

8 Tackles (solo and assisted)= 1 Point
1.5 Sacks= 1 Point
1 Interception= 1 Point
1 Score (TD or safety)= 1 Point (Just defensive scores, i.e. Haden getting a direct snap TD on offense does not count)

Quick example:

I pick Haden for both of my selections. He intercepts a pass and returns it for a TD. I get 4 total points for this output.

Another example would be if I picked Dunlap and Spikes and Dunlap got 2 sacks, including 1 for a safety, and Spikes intercepted a pass and got 12 tackles. My total points would be 4 again, according to these stats.

Sacks and safeties also count towards tackles, of course.

Here is a handy site for stats, including tackles.

Use the comments section for this post to give your picks for Week 3, the LSU game.

Play On!

On Tebow's Concussion

The best thing I've come across that sums things up. It also references this piece from the NY Times, which shows this issue is about a lot more than Tebow, but, as EDSBS smartly argues, it is because of Tebow's celebrity that a point can be made about the problem of brain injuries in football and how they are dealt with.

Oh, and Brantley is able.

Also, Harvin has had head issues throughout his life in the form of migraines.

Harvin said he had suffered migraines since middle school and that he has been able to sleep them off in the past. But he required medical attention after a severe bout as a sophomore. Harvin said he experienced nausea and dizzy spells along with the headaches and spent time in the campus health center. He received painkillers, medicine and fluids to combat the effects.

“By the sixth day, my mom and everybody was just crying,” he said at the time. “There was nothing anybody could do. I just had to cry myself to sleep some nights. It got that bad.”

Big Day For NFL Gators

Coaches Poll Sucks

and more

Gators' Tebow discharged, returning home

Gators' Tebow discharged, returning home

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UF QB Tebow taken to hospital after hard sack

UF QB Tebow taken to hospital after hard sack

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Prediction Week 4

The two biggest questions this week are: Will Meyer open up the Florida offense this week and show some trust in some of his other playmakers? And, How will the flu, that now seems to have hit Tebow, Haden and Wright just prior to game time, affect the Gators performance this week against Kentucky?

The answer to the first question is yes. Sometimes Meyer gets “meyered” in his own “old school” conservative upbringing and the offense suffers. How many times in the past have we heard him say we have to consciously think to get the ball in this playmaker’s hands or throw to that receiver more? I think last week’s conservative game plan was not planned, but developed as the game unfolded.

The answer to the second question is impossible to predict: Who knows how sick these players really are?

Now, let’s talk match-ups.

Florida’s offense vs. Kentucky’s defense
This again will be the key match-up to determine whether this is a blowout or a close game. Kentucky has a highly touted defensive back in Trevard Linley, but that is where the similarity between their defense and Tennessee’s defense ends. Kentucky does not have the speed or talent on defense to contain Florida’s backs or handle Tebow’s runs. Plus, Florida coaches worked hard on getting freshmen receivers Omarius Hines, Frankie Hammond Jr., and T.J. Lawrence game ready this week by giving them the majority of snaps. The talk is they responded. I look for Hines to have a breakout game and Florida’s offense to sail.

Florida’s defense vs. Kentucky’s offense
Kentucky has a few weapons. All-purpose offensive threat Randall Cobb and the speedy Derrick Locke, who anchors a running-back-by-committee approach for the Wildcats, can score from anywhere on the field. But Florida’s defense may be the best in college football. They are two-deep across the board in quality players. What team could have an All-American linebacker the caliber of Spikes miss most of the game and have his back-up win SEC defensive honors for the week? Points will be at a minimum for Kentucky this week, though I think they are a little better than Tennessee on offense.

Special Teams
Both teams have special players returning kicks: Locke for Kentucky and Brandon James for Florida. Locke returned a kickoff 100 yards for a TD last week. The key though, is that Kentucky has allowed more big returns than Florida this, giving up a 65-yarder already this year, whereas the longest return against Florida has been 25 yards. Florida has the edge.

Intangibles
Streaks: Florida has beaten Kentucky 22 straight years and has won 13 straight ball games.
Playing No. 1: Kentucky has played a No. 1 team 11 times and won three of those games. The last one was a 43-37, 3-OT win over LSU in 2007. Kentucky has played Florida two other times when they were No. 1 and lost 65-0 in 1996 and 55-28 in 1997.
Last year: The Wildcats expected to play Florida tough last year, based on their overall steady improvement (re: OT win over LSU the previous year), but Florida crushed the Wildcats 63-5 in Gainesville.

Prediction: Florida, 48, Kentucky 10

'The Percy Position'

On why he could be the Vikings' most valuable. By Smart Football's Chris Brown, with videos.

Rich Rod On Spread Runs

I know his team is not very popular to Gator fans, but this video is helpful.

Mullen's New Offense

For those curious. Thanks to Smart Football for the link. Before getting to nostalgic, especially after the Gator offense struggled, remember that the margin wasn't close on many of these plays and Tennessee arguably has a better defense than Auburn.

Big Football Bias

Kiffin up to his old tricks

Follow the link to a Scout.com story about Kiffin calling a Florida commit asking him to visit Tennessee on the "down low."

Meyer named coach of the year by Sporting News

No exact date of when the magazine will be here other than sometime this week.