And just like that, the wheels have fallen off and the season suddenly stands on the brink of an epic disappointment. Florida suffered another embarrassing defeat, this time losing at home 38-19 against a reeling South Carolina team that was able to get well in The Swamp. Shane Beamer gets a temporary stay of execution courtesy of the Gator defense, while Florida stares down at the abyss……again.
Once again, Florida’s defense was terrible, allowing QB LaNorris Sellers to look like Patrick Mahomes while piling up 318 yards of total offense and 5 total TDs (4 pass, 1 run). This is now looking alarmingly just like what Todd Grantham, Patrick Toney, and Austin Armstrong rolled out as previous defensive coordinators going back to 2020. Poor tackling, inexplicably bad pass coverage, and an inability to get off the field on 3rd downs. I was not kidding when I mentioned last week that Jon Sumrall may have to do something drastic regarding DC Brad White, and now I believe it’s necessary. These kinds of performances cannot be allowed to continue, and massive changes need to be made. Yes, it’s drastic to do something like that mid-season, but Sumrall needs to take this on head first – and now. There was some improved pressure on the QB with some blitzing and 7-man fronts, but too often Sellers was allowed to escape the rush due to missed tackles, and when he had time to throw it was far too easy to pick apart the Gator secondary. What’s happened to the secondary is beyond words – these players are too talented and athletic to look as bad as they do right now. Meanwhile, the front seven allow Sellers to escape pressure outside the pocket too often, despite knowing the running threat he was. That extended to many drives and you could sense the confidence building in the Gamecocks as the game wore on. Too many breakdowns, too many missed assignments, and another second half fade to black.
The Florida offense had some moments in the first half, but those came mostly through the passing game, as Carolina made sure to load the box and force Aaron Philo and a banged-up group of receivers to beat them….and they couldn’t. Philo did show some toughness with by far his most rushes in a game this season, but that just showed how teams are focused on shutting down Jaden Baugh. After closing the gap to trailing 17-13 early in the 3rd quarter, the offense couldn’t get anything going again until garbage time, with Tramell Jones leading a late TD drive. The offense never could establish the running game, and had too many drives sabotaged by penalties on the O-line, putting the offense off-schedule. This was a point of emphasis after the loss at Missouri, and unfortunately failed again. The O-line again was physically pushed around, and the lack of talent that OC Buster Faulkner and OL Coach Phil Trautwein were previously able to mask are now being exposed. The final total yards and passing stats by Florida were similar to Carolina, but did not tell the story played out on the field.
Well, it was nice of Florida to be such an accommodating Homecoming host and allow the Gamecocks to perhaps save their season from a complete downward spiral. You could feel the energy and enthusiasm drain out of The Swamp crowd in the second half, as the Gators meekly succumbed – again – to a more physical opponent. And only now is Florida entering the toughest part of it’s schedule. From a 4-0 start, the Gators are staring down a potential stretch of 5 or 6 consecutive losses and struggling for bowl eligibility. Yeesh.
Sumrall’s head has to be spinning, seeing things fall apart so quickly. To his credit he maintained after each of the first 4 games that his team was far from perfect and an unfinished product, but at the same time I’d wager he did not foresee such a collapse by the defense nor the sudden struggles of the running game. IMO this shows exactly what he inherited from Billy Napier – the lack of talent and talented depth at too many position groups along with physical limitations and mental weakness. This is not to excuse some terrible coaching from the defensive staff that could have helped mitigate some of the larger issues, but the coaches are paid professionals, and aren’t doing their job well. Expectations will have to be reduced dramatically. I hate to say it, but it’s time to start looking ahead to 2027 and beyond even now. I would have Jones ready to play more at QB the next 2 games at Texas and against Georgia. Perhaps Will Griffin will need to see some snaps in November, because the current QB play is not good enough to overcome the deficiencies elsewhere – no fault of either Philo or Jones. Roster analysis needs to begin now for the future, even at the expense of some hurt feelings from the holdovers from the previous regime. Fun times.