The struggles on defense continued for the Gators in Columbia on Saturday after giving up 701 total yards last weekend to the LSU Tigers. The Gators started out strong defensively after only giving up 56 passing yards in the first half, but the struggles soon caught up to the Gators as the game went on.
In the second half, the Gators gave up 275 passing yards, 452 total yards and a heartbreaking fourth-down conversion that went on to set up a game-winning field goal for Missouri.
“We were in weak rotation. We’ve got multiple players in the area, and we’ve got four rushing and he found the soft spot in the zone there,” Napier said on the late fourth-down conversion. “Those are things, we’ll look back at a number of plays in this game and we’ll say, we could have done a little bit better. We had our opportunities for sure.”
There’s a reason why Billy Napier expressed extreme patience from the fanbase when he was hired. The Gators arguably have the youngest team in college football and that’s been evident all season. In the SEC, it’s hard to completely grow up and develop as a football player overnight, it takes time.
“That’s what you’re doing. Ultimately, you’re coaching a bunch of guys that had zero experience prior to this year,” Napier said. “That’s what it is. I think we’re teaching football while we’re competing at a high level. I just think you’ve got to continue to compete. I mean, ultimately, we know what the issues are. I mean, whether it’s communication, alignment, eye discipline, fundamentals. We just ultimately got a bunch of guys out there that are playing college football, it’s the first time they’ve done it. So, we’re not going to give them excuses, right? We’re going to keep coaching them hard, keep giving them feedback. We have to all take ownership of this, right? It’s my leadership, it’s my organization in terms of everything that we do. It’s our defensive staff, it’s each position coach. I mean, everybody contributes to what we see out there. I know we’re all quick to zero in on very specific things, but I think it’s what makes it a great game, is it requires a team effort to play.”
One thing the fanbase can’t question is the fight this team plays with every Saturday. For what should have been a win for the Gators, the determination this team plays with gave them a chance regardless of poor execution on defense at times.
Offensively, the Gators generated a total of 15 explosive plays against the Tigers and were toe to toe with the ninth-ranked team in the country for 60 minutes. Three of those explosive plays came from backup quarterback Max Brown.
“Again, you can’t complement the kids enough,” Napier said on the competitiveness of this team. “Didn’t tuck their tails and run away. Nobody ran and hid. Let’s put the backup in and let’s go. Ultimately, we found a way to generate two more possessions, 10 more points after that. That’s what I’m getting at. I know the scoreboard; our record is not what we all know Florida football should be. But I know what’s in there and I think they’ve shown that pretty consistently. Gotta believe there’s some good comes from it. But right now, we got a bunch of kids that are hurting – hurting in here. There’s a lot of guys who played their butt off out there tonight.”
With Graham Mertz now sidelined with a collarbone injury, redshirt freshman Max Brown will face a big test against Florida State this upcoming weekend.
The lessons learned from Saturday were vital for the Oklahoma native and will only make him more prepared for what he will see when the Seminoles travel to Gainesville.
“It builds confidence,” Max Brown said on leading this team late in the game. “I think going out there when you get any type of reps and going out there and playing actual live football, it gives you confidence. Going out there, playing, it’s just football at the end of the day.”
The Florida Gators (5-6, 3-5 SEC) have one last opportunity to correct some of the issues we’ve seen on defense with Florida State losing quarterback Jordan Travis to injury. This team is still one win away from a bowl game and has a great chance to head into next season with some confidence. The constant mistakes on defense must be limited if the Gators want to pull off an upset in the Swamp.