Just last Saturday, the University of Florida suffered a streak breaking loss, that stands to reason could be a season changer, to the Tennessee Volunteers. The game started out as the Gators had dreamed; a 21-point lead with it’s to defense to lean on for the second half against their hungry SEC East rival. However the Gators could not hold on, surrendering 31 unanswered points and a initiating a bushel of questions surrounding the offensive game plan as well as the depth of the secondary. The second half debacle has seemed to ruffle the feathers of some already anxious Gator fans. The game against Vanderbilt this Saturday holds a high bar for excellence as the Gators plan to bounce back with much still to play for in this young season. The Tennessee loss no doubt took a toll on Jim McElwain and the Florida Gators who must remember what Coach Mc said, “What you learn in failure are the greatest lessons in life, and we failed.”
Learning from failure will be something the 2016 edition of the Florida Gators will have to do with a lot of play still looming. Though the September loss – the first September loss since 2014 against the Alabama Crimson Tide – came as a shock to the Gators their response this upcoming Saturday against the Commodores will tell the tale of this team’s resiliency and focus going into the latter part of the season.
Historically, October has always been the month that plagued the Gators, and coming off of a tough loss against the Vols in September, could either set the Gators up for a rebound win or an early October loss which is unaffordable for Jim McElwain.
“Don’t forget, no matter what you do every single day, you have to take care of the now to help you in the future.”
Taking care of the now would mean getting back on track against a Vanderbilt team that gave the Gators several challenges last year in The Swamp. Just like in 2015, the Gators are looking to secure the SEC East Title but, this year has a different and possibly more telling implication: their response after a loss. Just how will the Gators bounce back? After an abysmal second half for UF on both sides of the ball against Tennessee, a perfect way to get back on track would be to establish the offense early. Which they did against Tennessee; the Gators jumped out to a hot offensive start connecting on deep balls and getting a good push on the offensive line, but those plays were nowhere to be found in the second half. It wasn’t just the lack of offense after the half, the defense looked tired and unenthusiastic and proceeded to give up one of their worst passing defense performances in recent memory. Hopefully the “D” will be able to regain some confidence against a Vanderbilt team that struggles to pass the ball…. the Gators should be licking their chops.
With Tennessee now solely in the lead of the SEC East, the Gators will need some help to get back to Atlanta. In looking at the Vols upcoming schedule, help seems to be on the way. Tennessee travels to Athens this weekend to face the Georgia Bulldogs, a game Tennessee has had problems with in the past. UT then goes to College Station to face the impressive Texas A&M Aggies, then to end the tough stretch, the Vols face top ranked Alabama at home. Looking at the games that the division leading Volunteers have left on their schedule, the Gators have to take advantage of their upcoming schedule because while the loss last week may have caught them off guard, it’s time to bounce back and prove to themselves and all involved in college football, that the Gators are still a force to be reckoned with.