Brady Ackerman, Gator Country’s football expert and personality, breaks down what was initially a tough game for the Gators against the Miami Hurricanes. Read on for what he liked, didn’t like, and his players of the game:
1st Half
The story of the first half was the ability of Miami to control the clock and run the football. Robert Marve is a “move the chains” guy and he did an outstanding job of keep drives alive and keeping Florida’s offense off the field. Florida capitalized on a shanked punt for it’s first touchdown. Tim Tebow did a nice job of hanging on to the ball until Aaron Hernandez came open on the corner route for the touchdown.
Florida’s offensive line really struggled with the pressure from Miami. The Canes used an effective “run blitz ‘ package that bottled up the Gator running backs. Both teams had “self inflicted” wounds in the first half. For Miami they had several dropped screens, late hit penalty and a punt blocked. Florida had a dropped pass by Louis Murphy that was huge and three penalties. The first half allowed Miami to find out that it could stay in the game and the gained some confidence. Florida’s only run threat has been Tim Tebow.
What I liked-
- Tim Tebow ran the football well. He also did a nice job of hanging in the pocket under duress.
- Deonte Thompson looks like he is ready to be a player.
- Jermaine Cunnigham has been all over the field once again showing a great motor.
- Jeff Demps blocked a punt.
What I didn’t like
- Miami controlled the clock with their offense.
- Florida is losing the battle at the line of scrimmage on offense and the defense is a draw at best.
- UF got the ball back with 40 seconds on the clock at their 47 and went 3 and out.
- Florida’s outside linebackers are non existent.
2nd Half
Florida’s offense is out of sync and a lot of it has to do with Miami. UF has not legitimate ground game. The Gator defense continues to bend but did manage a huge 3rd and 1 stop to get the ball back to the offense. You don’t like the fact that UF came out of halftime and went three and out. Some credit goes to Miami, they are tackling well in space limiting Florida’s big plays. The offense has no rhythm tonight for UF through 3 quarters. The Gator defense has actually benefited from Miami not having great field position because they are not a big play offense right now. Florida only had 8 carries by running backs through three quarters. You have to establish a threat besides Tebow against physical defenses. Florida offense is waking up in the fourth quarter with Tebow passing the football. Louis Murphy shows up after having a tough night through three quarters. The 95 yard drive was a killer for Miami as the Gator come up big with 17 4th quarter points.
What I liked –
- Florida got into a rhythm in the passing game by quick passes to neutralize the rush.
- Percy Harvin showed great burst on the touchdown which was well blocked.
- Aaron Hernandez is developing into a big time player.
- With all the criticism of the defense, through 3 quarters they held Miami to 128 yards.
- Carlos Dunlap looks real active tonight
What I didn’t like-
- Florida opened the half with a 3 and out.
- Miami converted way too many third and fourth downs.
- Florida has not gotten any turnovers on defense.
- Florida’s offense in the redzone could not run block.
Final Analysis:
This was a weird game in that you felt like Miami was doing more offensively than they actually did statistically. Florida’s defense gave up some third downs early but overall came out ok. They need to force more turnovers, like they did against Hawaii. Marve and Harris did not look shaky under pressure. Offensively the Gators struggled to run the ball against Miami’s blitz package. They were on their heels for three quarters ,but Tebow warmed up at the right time for the victory. Tebow’s 35 pass attempts were a career high and he was very sharp. Miami’s defense is going to be good. They are thick at defensive tackle and they tackled well in space. Florida really could have used a big back (Emmanuel Moody) tonight. Florida’s offensive line did not have a great night and they struggled to recognize where the blitzes were coming from. Overall Florida pulled away because of experience and the play of Harvin, Tebow, Hernandez and Murphy. The good thing is that I think Florida can play better and they won ending the losing streak to Miami. Gators win 26-3.
Ack’s Players of the Game:
Offense– Tim Tebow
Defense-Jermaine Cunnigham
Unsung Hero– Aaron Hernandez
Key Stats:
- 0 turnovers in the Game
- Florida finished 8-16 on third down.
- Miami only converted 2 of it’s last 7 third downs.
- Miami’s best field position of the day was on it’s 2nd drive at their own 40 and they went 3 & out
- Florida had 3 scoring drives of over 80 yards.
- Miami had 9 punts and one of them was blocked.