At the University of Florida, the goal is to win SEC and national championships and be the program that all others are trying to catch.
For the last 12 years, Alabama has been that model program. The Crimson Tide have won six national championships and seven SEC Championships since 2009. Many have tried to chase them down and some have temporarily usurped them, but no one has found a way to knock them off of their pedestal for long.
That’s what makes Saturday’s clash in the Swamp between No. 11 Florida (2-0) and No. 1 Alabama (2-0) a tremendous challenge but also a tremendous opportunity. With a win, the Gators will shoot up to near the top of the weekly polls, have the inside track to make the College Football Playoff and perhaps bring some hardware back to Gainesville come wintertime.
Naysayers believe that Dan Mullen and his staff don’t recruit well enough or coach defense well enough to beat the nation’s best. This is a chance to shut down that narrative.
“It’s always fun,” Mullen said. “You always want to challenge yourself against the best, and this is a great opportunity for us to go challenge against the No. 1 team in the country and see where we’re at right now as a team this year. And you know that I love these. These games are fun for me. You get the opportunity to go out there and go play in an unbelievable environment against an unbelievable team, the crowd going crazy. This is what it’s all about. This is why we do this.”
The Gators came heartbreakingly close to shocking the Tide last year, losing 52-46 in the SEC Championship Game. It was the only time all year that Alabama didn’t win by double digits. If the game had been two minutes longer, UF might’ve beaten them.
This week, some of the Gators have talked about how the disappointment they felt on that night in Atlanta motivated them over the offseason. They lost because of a missed block here, a poor coverage technique there, a third-down penalty here and a turnover there. They are determined to not let those handful of decisive plays go against them this time.
“We’ve been talking about this game for a long time, all offseason,” defensive end Zachary Carter said. “Obviously, it’s one of the most anticipated games this year. It’s a big game, but we just have to play our game. We can’t let the stage be too big. Like I said earlier, this is why you come to Florida, to play in games like this.
“It’s always tough when you were that close to victory and you just fall short. So, it was definitely motivation in the offseason throughout the team, just how close we were. We know can play with them, and we know what we can accomplish.”
Of course, being motivated is one thing, but being good enough to actually dethrone Alabama is another. And that’s where the challenge lies. As usual, Alabama’s roster is stacked with All-Americans, future postseason award winners and first round NFL Draft picks to be.
The experts in Las Vegas have the Gators as more than a two-touchdown underdog on their home field. The Gators understand that Alabama is a very good team, but they won’t be intimidated by them.
“We can have all odds against us,” receiver Jacob Copeland said. “We can be the underdogs all day. At the end of the day, they’ve got to play just like we’ve got to come to play, and, at the end of the day, I feel like we’re going to come execute well. And me, personally, I fear no one.”
Added linebacker Mohamoud Diabate: “That’s what somebody else thinks. They don’t know what goes on in our building. They don’t know what goes on [in] Alabama’s building. They’re just judging off a couple games. We played two teams that weren’t really too good of teams, so I’m not surprised that they are unsure about it. We’re not worried about what they’ve got to say. You chuckle at it, but, at the end of the day, we’ve got our own motivation. Momma’s going to be in the stands. Do you really need any more motivation than that?”
Running back Dameon Pierce actually takes being a 15.5-point underdog as a compliment.
“Everybody ’Bama plays is what, like 20-plus-[point underdogs]?” he said. “They’re showing us love.”
After the SEC Championship Game last season, Mullen talked about the trenches being the deciding factor in the game. Improving on both lines of scrimmage was one of the biggest points of emphasis this offseason. They’re off to a good start, but this game will reveal all.
“I think it will be a good test for both teams up there,” he said. “I think we’ve played solid up front defensively. I think our front-seven has been solid defensively through the first two games. Offensively, I think we’ve been solid and been able to run the ball and protect the quarterback for the most part. It will be interesting to see. It’ll be a good test and a good matchup to see where we’re at and where both teams are at.”
Everything at Alabama starts with an offense that can beat you in a million different ways. The Tide have a young but enormously talented receiving corps. The headliner is junior John Metchie, who many experts are projecting as a first round draft pick. He’s caught 11 passes for 146 yards and a touchdown this season. Ohio State transfer Jameson Williams has hauled in seven passes for 157 yards and two scores.
Behind them is perhaps the greatest freshmen class of receivers ever. Ja’Corey Brooks, Agiye Hall, JoJo Earle and Christian Leary were all ranked in the top-75 of the 247Sports composite rankings. Earle has already made an impact, catching nine passes for 110 yards.
They’ve got the right trigger man to get them the ball. Sophomore Bryce Young was the top-ranked quarterback in his class. He’s completed 70.8 percent of his throws for 571 yards with seven touchdowns and no interceptions. He has a cannon for an arm, he’s mobile, and he seems to have a calmness and a football IQ that belie his youth.
If the Gators devote too many defenders to the passing game, the Crimson Tide will blast through them with a running back room that goes four-deep and an offensive line that is gigantic and experienced. Brian Robinson leads them with 22 carries for 130 yards and a touchdown, while Trey Sanders has added 15 carries for 71 yards and a score.
They are only averaging 4.2 yards per carry as a team, though, so this might be one area that the Gators can take advantage of.
“Regardless of who the coordinator is, the offense doesn’t change from that perspective,” UF defensive coordinator Todd Grantham said. “There might be a new guy in the seat, but, from a core, philosophical standpoint, it’s going to stay the same. So, there’s carryover for the players, and there’s continuity for the players.
“They’re physical up front and are able to move you at the point of attack. They’ve got guys that can get the hard yards, but they can also create double-digit runs and keep them on track to where the quarterback’s never really in stress or he feels like he’s got to go make a play to win the game. And they’ve got skill outside that can take the ball down the field, and, because of the skill outside, the quarterbacks have confidence to throw it up for the 50-50 balls, and their guys make plays.”
The Tide are so good on offense that it makes you change the way that you define good defense. Giving up 450 yards and 35 points would be a win for Florida’s defense this week.
Alabama is going to pile up the yards and put some points on the board. The key is to take advantage of every opportunity you get to get off of the field. The Gators can’t have any penalties or blown assignments on third down like they did against them last year.
It’s imperative that the Gators don’t dwell on a big play that they just gave up and move on to the next play. This offense will test their resolve and mental toughness.
“If you’re up three, ‘What do I got to do to keep the lead?’” Grantham said. “If you’re down three, ‘I’ve got to get the ball back.’ So, whether it’s 10-7 or it’s 33-30, at this moment, that’s the score. And that’s really a mental toughness thing that you have to have within yourself to continue to play about the next play.”
Meanwhile, after a few years of merely being really good on defense, the Tide might finally be elite again on that side of the ball this season.
They’re giving up just 13.5 points and 253 yards per game so far, and that’s with having already played a Power Five opponent in Miami.
Up front, the Tide are very stingy against the run, giving up just 79.5 yards per game and 2.3 yards per carry. Florida leads the nation in rushing at 381.5 yards per game, so this might be the most important matchup of the entire game.
“Physical,” Pierce said. “That’s Bama; that’s their identity, got some big guys. But, other than that, they play a defense that we’ve done seen before, that we feel like they don’t run any crazy things. They don’t run no crazy stunts or nothing. They run the same blitzes [that] probably everybody plays, four-down defense, primarily four-down. When they get to odd, they like to bring some pressures or whatnot. But, they’re trusting their front-four.”
They will be playing without one starting linebacker and possibly two. Christopher Allen, who led the conference with 13 tackles-for-loss in 2020, is likely out for the season with a fractured foot. Will Anderson is “day-to-day” with a knee injury, according to coach Nick Saban. He ranked third in the SEC in sacks last year.
On the back end, Alabama is tied for the conference lead and tied for fifth nationally with four interceptions. UF quarterback Emory Jones threw four interceptions against Florida Atlantic and South Florida, so this is a huge concern.
“They do a good job mixing it up, mixing up all their coverages, mixing up some of the pressures, playing multiple fronts,” Mullen said. “They’re going to play you in multiple fronts and not give you a lot of the same looks over and over again. I think they’re very multiple that way. When you’re multiple of showing all the different looks, but then, when you combine that with great players, like you said, they have depth at every position, and they’re a very veteran group.”
The Gators are going to have to play nearly flawlessly in all three phases to have a chance at defeating Alabama. Mullen is cautioning his team not to let whatever happens on Saturday define them, good or bad.
If they lose, they can still run the table, get to the SEC Championship Game and have a chance at making the playoff. If they win, there will still be plenty of things that they’ll need to clean up so that they don’t slip up somewhere down the road.
“Any time you get the opportunity to play the No. 1 team in the country is a great, great deal,” Mullen said. “I think it’ll be great for this team to see where we’re at at this point of the season. Obviously, it’s a long year. The outcome of this game certainly is not going to define the season in either way. There’s a lot of football to still be played throughout the course of the year, but it’ll be a good measuring stick to where we’re at at this point of the season with this team.”
This isn’t a must-win game, but, boy, would it feel nice to win it.