No other college football arena has been more electric over the past 20 years than Ben Hill Griffin Stadium. So many great crowds, so many great wins, so many great moments.
I must be honest, however, when I say there seems to have been some energy missing this season at The Swamp. A two-game losing streak on Florida Field, where the Gators rarely lose, would tend to put a damper on things.
I think the juice will be back Saturday night, because the collective hair of Gator Nation will be on fire. That fire was lit earlier this week by Urban Meyer’s fiery comments in his plea for fans to all wear blue for a “Blue Out” and take back The Swamp to help the Gators make history.
“I’d like to make this one go down in the books,” Meyer said. “Obviously, the football team’s gotta do their part, which is the most important one, but I’d like to see this stadium absolutely out of control. The best home field advantage in America, let’s use it to the maximum. Unless people got something else to do, I’d love to see a couple hundred thousand people here, packed house.”
Not sure where those 200,000 would sit, since fewer than half would fit in the stadium, but it’s fact that when the Gators played in Baton Rouge in 2009 there were estimates of up to 80,000 OUTSIDE Tiger Stadium. So I guess it’s possible.
This gets us all pumped. The chance to beat Steve Spurrier’s South Carolina Gamecocks and earn a trip back to Atlanta after such a mid-season slump is not only a mulligan – it’s like somebody throwing a lifeline to a drowning man. And the drowning man winding up on the Queen Mary II.
This promises to be one of the biggest games played on Florida Field in a long, long time. The problem is that it’s also the biggest game Spurrier’s team has played since he’s been at South Carolina – and would go down in history as one of his biggest wins ever in the place he nicknamed.
Don’t be misled into thinking that just because Arkansas put a spanking on Spurrier that his Gamecocks will show up here any less prepared or motivated to knock off the Gators.
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For those folks who may have been a little discouraged about the Gator defense, you may start feeling a little better when you look around the country at what LSU did to Alabama’s defense — and at that wild and crazy Big 10 game between Michigan and Illinois where 136 points were scored.
Florida’s defense, on the other hand, seems to be getting better at this time of the season. The linebacker play has continued to improve. And with players like Terron Sanders starting to get back into the flow and the return of Jaye Howard, this defense will only be getting stronger.
Alshon Jeffery is a stud receiver and Janoris Jenkins will have his hands full covering him Saturday night. And Marcus Lattimore is a capable running back. But an improved rushing defense a veteran secondary of Jenkins, Ahmad Black and Will Hill will give Gamecock quarterback Stephen Garcia and his receivers all they want.
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I realize it was not exactly Alabama or LSU they were playing in Nashville, but I saw some things on defense last Saturday that were really encouraging.
Among other things I saw some big plays by the offense, defense and special teams. And also some big hits by the defense, like the one delivered by Lerentee McCray that resulted in a fumble picked up and returned by big Terron Sanders for a touchdown.
We also saw Shariff Floyd playing at another level. He is on his way to a remarkable career at Florida. And we’re beginning to see fellow freshmen Ronald Powell, who is also capable of a breakout game any time.
Trouncing Vanderbilt may not seem all that big, but this team needed a game like that to raise its confidence, regain its composure and build up a little swagger for this showdown: Championship Week in Gainesville, Fla.
(Scot Brantley was an All-SEC linebacker for the Florida Gators and a 10-year veteran of the NFL/Tampa Bay Bucs. He does commentary for the Gator Radio Network and is the defensive analyst for GatorCountry.com)