Five things to watch for: No. 13 Gators vs. FAU

We made it. The No. 13 Gators open the 2021 season against Florida Atlantic in the Swamp at 7:30 on Saturday.

Normally, this will be the time of the week where I’ll offer you my keys to victory for the Gators. However, since anything other than a blowout win against an inferior opponent like FAU would be a major letdown, I’m going to do something a little different for the first two games of the season.

Below you will find the five biggest storylines that I’ll be watching closely on Saturday. These are the things I will use to determine if the Gators had a successful night or not. I’ll also give you my score prediction at the end.

1. Emory Jones’ accuracy

I might as well start with the player that is guaranteed to be talked and written about the most on Saturday night regardless of what happens.

Jones brings a running element to the position that the Gators haven’t had since Jeff Driskel or Tyler Murphy. He also has an extremely strong arm that allows him to make every throw imaginable. Because of his physical tools, Jones will make his share of explosive plays.

But the biggest thing to watch with him is his accuracy. Dan Mullen hinted at his inconsistencies in decision-making and accuracy throughout fall camp. Mullen is optimistic that the big plays that Jones will make will outweigh the throws that he misses.

The Owls ranked 16th in the nation in pass defense last year, so Jones could have some tight windows to throw into at times.

More than anything stat-wise, I want to see Jones make all of the simple plays that you expect an SEC starting quarterback to make and not walk out of the Swamp feeling like he was capable of much more.

2. The Wesley McGriff and Jules Montinar Effect

The last time we saw UF’s secondary, they were wrapping up one of the worst passing defense seasons in program history. They were painful to watch all year long, with poor communication, coverage busts, poor tackling, terrible ball awareness and stupid penalties.

Mullen cleaned house in the secondary, replacing both of the coaches. Cornerback Kaiir Elam is the only returning starter, and there are seven newcomers.

I want to see a secondary that plays with more discipline and swagger than what we saw last year. I want to see them play more physical in press coverage, know their assignments, tackle well in open space and avoid making self-inflicted mistakes.

Florida Atlantic was one of the worst passing teams in the country last year, but that could change this year with Miami transfer N’Kosi Perry starting at quarterback. He has a strong arm and figures to show it off several times against the Gators.

I’d love to see them limit Perry to around 150 passing yards and intercept a couple of passes.

3. Offensive line improvement

The offensive line needs to be much better this season. The passing game won’t be as dominant without Kyle Trask, Kyle Pitts and Kadarius Toney, so the Gators are counting on the offensive line to pave the way for at least 200 rushing yards per game and keep Jones upright.

The Owls will be very young in their front-7 on defense, with four freshmen starters and two more listed as backups.

This is the type of team that UF’s offensive line should dominate. And yet, they haven’t dominated these types of teams since 2018.

In particular, I’m going to have my eyes on the three interior linemen. Ethan White, Kingsley Eguakun and Stewart Reese combine to weigh nearly 1,000 pounds, and White and Reese have experience playing in this league.

The trio struggled from what we can tell in fall camp, so I’m looking to see if they can turn it up a notch against a weaker opponent.

4. Defensive line stoutness

There is also plenty of intrigue along the other line of scrimmage. The Gators added three graduate transfer defensive tackles to try to shore up a run defense that got gashed by Alabama and Oklahoma and gave up long runs against a couple of other teams.

However, sophomore Jalen Lee is questionable to play, and graduate transfer Daquan Newkirk also missed some time last week with a minor injury. So, the Gators may have to face what was a decent rushing attack last year shorthanded.

FAU will start a pair of Power Five transfers on the right side of its offensive line, and three of their five starters weigh more than 325 pounds.

Any kind of defensive turnaround this season is going to start up front. The tackles need to keep the linebackers free to make plays and force offenses into third-and-longs.

This won’t be one of the better offensive lines they see this season, but you’d still like to see the Owls have to abandon the running game early on Saturday.

5. Freshmen phenoms

We’ve heard a lot of good things about this freshmen class. Jason Marshall intercepted passes in both of the scrimmages this fall and looks like the next in a long line of NFL corners to come through Florida.

Receiver Marcus Burke and tight end Nick Elksnis made impressive catches during practice and look like future matchup nightmares for opposing defenses.

Donovan McMillon has already cracked the two-deep at safety.

Chief Borders is built like a weakside defensive end but is playing linebacker because of how athletic he is.

Defensive tackle Desmond Watson continues to impress with how well he’s able to get around despite weighing 400 pounds.

Now I want to see some of that translate into a game. I want to see Marshall intercept a pass, Elksnis make a catch while leaping over two defenders over the middle of the field and Watson trample some helpless fellow.

If this game goes the way I think it will, the young players will get plenty of snaps. Which one of them will seize the moment and be somebody that we’re still talking about by this time next week?

Score Prediction

Florida 41, Florida Atlantic 10

I think the Gators get off to a bit of a sloppy start, with Jones struggling to hit his receivers and the offensive line not generating much push.

Eventually, though, the talent and depth disparities will take over, and the Gators will bust the game open in the second and third quarters and cruise to an easy win.

The defense will limit FAU to under 300 total yards, and Demarkcus Bowman and Malik Davis will score on long touchdown runs. Jones will find his groove and pass for more than 200 yards before giving way to Anthony Richardson in the fourth quarter.

Ethan Hughes
Ethan was born in Gainesville and has lived in the Starke, Florida, area his entire life. He played basketball for five years and knew he wanted to be a sportswriter when he was in middle school. He’s attended countless Gators athletic events since his early childhood, with baseball being his favorite sport to attend. He’s a proud 2019 graduate of the University of Florida and a 2017 graduate of Santa Fe College. He interned with the University Athletic Association’s communications department for 1 ½ years as a student and also wrote for InsideTheGators.com for two years before joining Gator Country in 2021. He is a long-suffering fan of the Jacksonville Jaguars. You can follow him on Twitter @ethanhughes97.