Lipstick on a Pig (or Mildcat)

That was one of the worst efforts I’ve seen at the Swamp from an SEC opponent, as Kentucky rolled over early and handed Florida a sloppy shutout win.

Yeah, their starting QB was out, but they knew that all week during practice, and that was the best they could offer on offense?  Pathetic.  Morgan Newton was basically told not to pass after his 3rd pick in the first half, before they finally surrendered and brought in a true freshman to play the 4th quarter.

Florida’s defense didn’t have to do anything but play simple schemes and wait for turnovers.  However, the run defense still remains a serious concern.  Texas A&M had a big day through 3 quarters until their freshman QB was asked to try and come from behind.  Tennessee was having some success until they panicked in the 4th quarter, and even though the Mildcats were mostly a passing team on film, allowing so many yards on draws and to the edges is simply not good enough.  Coach Muschamp said as much at halftime, and it’s time to put up or shut up in October, starting with LSU.

There’s a lot of praise going around for Jeff Driskel right now, and most of it is warranted.  But if you look a little closer at the first half again, he missed a LOT of open receivers due to bad timing (very late delivering the ball), and winding up and throwing high, costing the Gators 2 potential touchdowns.  The fans need to patient as he has his ups and downs in October as the competition becomes legitimate, because he’s going to have some struggles.

The best thing about this game was that no serious injuries were incurred.  Trey Burton could sit out due to back spasms, Dominique Easley could rest his knee, and Mike Gillislee could play sparingly so he didn’t re-aggravate his groin injury.  Lots of guys saw some action just in case they are needed later in the season, and many starters could get rotated out as the game got out of hand.

Time to buckle the chinstraps, because it’s time for big-boy football in October.  I’ll be back next week with a preview of the LSU game.

Go Gators!