There’s no question the defensive line dominated last weekend against Missouri, especially in the second half. Sophomore defensive lineman Princely Umanmielen played a big part in the success of that group, finishing the day with four solo tackles, three tackles for loss, and a big sack to help put the Tigers away.
Umanmielen has made tremendous progress throughout the season and his game is quickly starting to come around. The Gators will need another great performance from Umanmielen and the defensive line this Saturday as they take on the Tigers of LSU.
“I feel like just making my practice habits better because practice habits equals game time performance,” Umanmielen said of his game. “So like I would just take practice throughout the week more seriously and make sure, try to attack every rep and make it work out.”
It seems as if this Gator defensive line knows what its capable of as a group, while also recognizing its flaws. After last week’s performance it sure looks like this group has made some changes in their approach to practice.
“It’s going to be very important because sacks really help during games,” Umanmielen said on how important it is to keep the momentum they have. “I feel like our pass rush is going to be very important. We have to work on that throughout the week and take every rep and make every rep of pass rush count.”
Princely Umanmielen and the Florida front four were in the backfield constantly last weekend, particularly in the fourth quarter. It’ll be key for this defense to keep that momentum going into the Swamp this weekend.
Watching film is extremely important in terms of execution and being able to play the game naturally, as cornerback Jaydon Hill put on perfect display last Saturday. Making time for film study is a necessity for this staff and its players, as it should be.
“I just feel like, when we watch film of teams, they dig really deep,” Umanmielen said on their preparation watching film. “One team had a new offensive coordinator, and they were going back to like where he was at three schools ago and things like that. I know PT going to do some digging, figure out a game plan.”
This defensive scheme has changed dramatically under Patrick Toney and this new defensive staff. Umanmielen thinks the Gators may match up better against the Tigers this year as opposed to last year.
“I think our defense now is really like stop the run and then pass because we really emphasize — like versus LSU we were struggling against the counter play, and we really emphasized like being tight against the tackle and matching the tackles down and spilling the pullers and boxing pullers,” Umanmielen said.
Patrick Toney and his scheme have also been a huge help in the red zone for this Florida defense.
“I feel like the scheme I feel like just the way PT draws it up and the personnel we put in there, everybody we put in there has a different skill set. Like I’m not even in goal line plays, but everybody in there that is in there has certain skill set to help us out in that area,” Umanmielen said on the improvements in the red zone.”
We’ve all said it, this team could easily only have a couple wins on its record, while they could also be without a loss. This football team understands how close they were from being undefeated if it weren’t for simple mistakes.
“We talk about it amongst like teammates and things,” Umanmielen said on players discussing their record and success as a team. “It’s a hard pill to swallow, but we realize how small mistakes can be big differences, and we just realize that, whenever we — like upcoming games, we just have to be better and stop making so many mistakes because the two games that we did lose, it wasn’t just like — I feel like we beat ourselves more than the other team beat us.”
Third and long has been a nightmare for this entire Florida defense. The level of frustration on the lack of success has quickly turned into a better practice approach.
“It’s very high,” Umanmielen said on the level of frustration. “That’s an area that I feel like we’ve got to emphasize getting better on this week because last week we had too many instances where we had them in third and ten or longer and they converted. That’s a big thing that helps you win a lot of games. You’ve got to get off the field on third down. This week we’ve got to really focus on getting better on that.”
“I feel like these past few weeks as a team, we’ve been practicing harder as a team. So, yeah, practice habits do a hundred percent go into the game,” Umanmielen said.
This coaching staff has done a great job in terms of putting players in the position to succeed. These players just have to do a better job in terms of executing, especially on third and long.
“Of course they’re not happy about that,” Umanmielen said on coaches being frustrated. “They just tell us we have to get off the field on third down. It’s not like people aren’t there. We really have to work on tackling.”
Princely Umanmielen is a player who has done a 180 in terms of his approach on the practice field after missing out on a start against Eastern Washington. He’s ready to keep wreaking havoc.
“My coach [Coach Spencer], he pulled me aside and obviously talked to me,” Umanmielen said on not starting two weeks ago. “It’s not like he just did it. It was for a reason. After that week and beyond, I changed my practice habits and came to practice ready to work and on my A game, and that has shown throughout the past two weeks in the game.”
“I like how he just pulled me to tell me. It left a small, little bitter taste in my mouth, but it is what it is. Like I have to make the decision to go hard and change that within myself,” Umanmielen said.
This Florida defense really looks to have made significant changes when it comes to its preparation, and its slowly starting to show in different aspects of the game each week.
Having a player and leader like Ventrell Miller back on the field for the Gators has been huge for everyone that plays around him. The energy Miller brings to the table has been contagious for this defense.
“Throughout the week he was like — he’s always been vocal, but he was way more vocal this week,” Umanmielen said on Miller. “He was just very energetic throughout the whole week. Like right now if you try to talk to him, he doesn’t have a voice, like he can’t talk right now for real. He’s a great leader when it comes to like just leading the team. So when he leads, it just shows why he’s a leader on the field.”
This defense will once again have to come together and have the best week of practice they’ve had this season if they want to go out there and beat LSU this Saturday.
This Tiger team currently ranks 34th in the nation in third down offense, compared to a Florida defense that ranks 125th in third down defense. Gator fans will see if this defense has made the necessary changes in practice and are ready to flip the switch.