In the early weeks of each new football season, Florida Gators players and fans look forward to one particular SEC matchup—Tennessee. This year, it is so much more than just an intense rivalry game. It is a game that could define the rest of Florida’s season.
The Gators started the 2017 season 0-1 after a 33-17 loss to Michigan nearly two weeks ago. It ended Florida’s streak of 27 consecutive season opening wins, which dated all the way back to 1990.]
Northern Colorado was the next team on the schedule, but due to Hurricane Irma and its looming impacts on the state of Florida, the game was cancelled. The focus shifts back to football this week, but after the performance against Michigan, the Gators desperately needed a game against an overmatched opponent before diving a rigorous SEC schedule.
Instead, Florida has no momentum to build from and must try to create some against Tennessee. That task will be a lot tougher, but it is critical to the remainder of the season.
“It’s very critical,” said redshirt junior defensive lineman Khairi Clark. “Just knowing that we’re down, we just have to prove ourselves and that we can accomplish anything we wanna accomplish if we just play together, have that mindset and get both sides of the ball running, man.”
It’s been 46 years since the last time the Gators started a season with an 0-2 record. In 1971, Florida lost its first two games (actually, first five) and went on to finish 4-7. That is not the last poor season the Gators had over the next 46 years, but losing the first two games makes chances for a strong season a lot slimmer.
Florida players know how important it is to turn things around this week.
“Yeah, you could look at this game as almost like a do or die type of game,” said sophomore linebacker David Reese. “It’s like a real big point, a fork in the road.”
Unfortunately for the Gators, the college football world does not stop for a disastrous hurricane. The storm no only affected the players’ lives outside of football and wiped a confidence-boosting game off the schedule, it also took away much needed practice time ahead of this game.
The team got back to work on Tuesday, but is now having to try to cram a normal week’s worth of practices into a shorter span. Florida is treating it like a Thursday or Friday game week.
“Cramming it in is probably a good way to put it,” said head coach Jim McElwain. “No matter how hard you focused on what was about to come up, as the battery power lasted on our computers or whatever, you’ve got to rely on your offseason breakdowns as well. Our guys are going to go play hard. We are going to put a good thing together to give them an opportunity to play fast and release some of their energies and bent-up frustrations as well. And as we come out in The Swamp, I think our thoughts in this game go a lot farther than the selfish reasons you play a game, but more so the big-picture reasons you play a game and hopefully give some relief to some people whose lives have been changed forever.”
Not only is this game a great way to ease the minds of the people who were devastated across the southeast, it is an opportunity for long awaited revenge on the Volunteers and a chance to start conference play on the right foot.
The Gators are looking to punch their third straight ticket to Atlanta, and holding an advantage over Tennessee could be crucial as the season moves forward.
“It’s definitely a big game for us,” said sophomore wide receiver Josh Hammond. “It’s our SEC opener as well, so especially on the East, we definitely have to approach this game with a little chip on our shoulder. We have to show that we’ll be ready to play. I think we’ll be ready to play. We’ve prepared so far this week pretty well. We just have to come out, play hard and know it’s going to be a four-quarter game.”
Florida’s 38-28 loss to the Vols last year was far from a four-quarter game. It was a tale of two very different halves. The Gators let off the gas after leading 21-0 late in the second half. Tennessee stormed back to score 38 unanswered points.
That loss also came at a pivotal point in the season, and it likely would have been avoided had Florida not abandoned a game plan that was working. The Gators don’t want to make the same mistake twice.
“Just go out there, and if we’re gonna throw bombs, throw bombs,” sophomore defensive back Chauncey Gardner said of the key to this game. “If we’re gonna continue to blitz, continue to blitz. Just do what we gotta do. Do what we did in the first half in the second half. Keep applying constant pressure, and we’ll win the game. That’s all it is.”