Although it is not a specific part of Urban Meyer’s plan to win, it probably should be. Florida’s ability to take charge of the game with big first quarter plays has sent shock waves through Florida’s opponents the last five weeks, allowing the Gators to ride that early momentum to commanding leads.
Fast starts have everything to do with the third-ranked Gators (8-1, 6-1 SEC East) march to the Southeastern Conference East Division championship. The Gators have the momentum of a five-game winning streak going for them Saturday when they play host to 25th-ranked South Carolina (3:30 p.m., Ben Hill Griffin Stadium, CBS).
Since a stunning 31-30 to Ole Miss in game four, the Gators have outscored opponents 80-0 in the first quarter and 125-13 in the first half. Getting off to the fast starts has been a collective effort by the offense, defense and special teams. All three units have played on edge and they’ve all done their part to get the Gators going early.
Against Arkansas, Florida’s offense drove the ball 64 yards for a touchdown on its first possession to take a 7-0 lead. A week later against LSU, it was a 70-yard Tim Tebow to Percy Harvin touchdown pass that got the Gators off to a great start. The defense did its part by forcing three straight three-and-outs as the Gators took a 17-0 first quarter lead.
Defense, special teams and offense all got into the act in the first quarter against Kentucky. The defense forced four three-and-outs by Kentucky; special teams blocked Kentucky’s first two punts; and the offense scored all four times it had the football as the Gators had the game in the bag with a 28-0 first quarter lead.
Special teams and defense set the stage for Florida to take a 7-0 first quarter lead against Georgia. Chas Henry’s punt pinned the Bulldogs inside the 20 and the Florida defense followed that up with a three-and-out that set up a touchdown drive that ended on a 13-yard touchdown run on a jet sweep by Harvin.
Last week against Vanderbilt, it was the collective effort of the offense, defense and special teams that got the Gators a 21-0 first quarter lead. The defense forced three three-and-outs, special teams blocked two punts and the Florida offense scored on all three possessions.
Meyer says the fast starts have been invaluable. When the Gators seize that early momentum, they’re next to impossible to beat.
“That’s something that I give a lot of thought to and that’s management of the game,” said Meyer after Thursday’s final practice for South Carolina. “Momentum I think is worth 14 points, whether it’s a pass to Percy Harvin against LSU, whether it be a blocked punt against Kentucky or a three and out or a blocked punt against Vanderbilt … Georgia, it’s the stop and then the offense going down to score. Momentum shifts as I grow older and more experienced, I think are worth 13-14 points per game.”
HEALTHY AND READY TO GO: Meyer declared the Gators ready to go Thursday after what he described as a week of focused practices.
“We’re ready,” said Meyer, who said the Gators will be healthy going into the game.
Good health includes left guard Carl Johnson, who strained an MCL last Saturday at Vanderbilt.
“Carl Johnson was a pleasant surprise,” said Meyer. “We thought we might have lost him for this game but he practiced full and he’s ready.”
Freshman defensive tackle Omar Hunter, who wasn’t expected to play in the game, hyperextended an elbow during practice this week. This latest injury has Meyer considering a redshirt for the 300-pound nose tackle from Buford, Georgia, but with three regular season games to go, the SEC Championship Game and a bowl game still on the horizon, Meyer said it’s too early to say for sure that Hunter will redshirt.
“I think likely [redshirt], but there’s a lot of football left,” said Meyer. “You can’t [go ahead and redshirt] when you’re at a championship level. We’re playing for the SEC championship. You do what you gotta do to win the game and our players know that.”
EMERGING REDSHIRT FRESHMEN: For the second straight day, Meyer praised redshirt freshman guard James Wilson and redshirt freshman defensive tackle Jaye Howard. In the past couple of weeks, the two youngsters have begun making their presence felt.
Meyer said their development is right on schedule.
“Jaye Howard had his best two days of practice,” said Meyer. “James Wilson has had his best two days of practice as well which is the normal progress. Both of those guys are redshirt freshmen that didn’t do much last year and everybody says go play. It’s not that easy. With James Wilson it was injury. With Jaye Howard it was just getting used to the tempo of college.”
QUOTE OF THE DAY: Asked if South Carolina is a more dangerous team because it has nothing to lose, Meyer responded that teams are “most dangerous when they have good players. When they have nothing to lose and they have lousy players, I like playing those teams. The problem is they [South Carolina] have good players.