Who could blame Steve Addazio if he broke into his best Rodney Dangerfield impersonation after scanning the preseason All-SEC team selected by the Southeastern Conference coaches? First teamers? Nada. How about second teamers? Nope. Third teamers? Jim Tartt and Phil Trautwein were picked. A pair of third teamers is better than none at all, but considering what the Florida offensive line did last year, this is definitely a case of no respect.
It’s not just the coaches that are showing little or no respect. Take a look in any preseason magazine and count the Gators that made first or second team All-SEC in their predictions for 2008. You might find Tartt on the second team and if they have a third team, you might see Trautwein mentioned, but that’s it.
Now, if the Florida Gators were coming off a mediocre offensive performance in 2007, maybe the lack of respect could be justified, but a look at the 2007 numbers tells you the Gators were among the best offensive units in the entire country.
And the numbers don’t lie.
Take a look at what the Gators did in 2007:
Florida led the Southeastern Conference in total points (552), points per game (45.2), total offense (457.2), offensive touchdowns (75), yards per play (7.0), passing efficiency (170.2), pass completion percentage (66.5 percent) and third down conversions (53.4 percent).
The Gators were the only team in the league to average better than 200 yards per game both rushing and passing (200.2 rushing; 257 passing).
The Gators averaged a league-best 9.3 yards per pass attempt and they finished second in average per rushing attempt (5.3). Only Arkansas, which ran the ball 65 percent of the time and had two first round draft picks sharing the tailback position averaged more yards per rush (6.0). The Gators were third in the league in rushing behind Arkansas and national champ LSU.
Only Tennessee, which averaged just 6.9 yards per pass attempt to Florida’s 9.3, gave up fewer sacks (4) than the Gators (13).
Nationally, the Gators ranked #14 in total offense, #3 in scoring offense, #3 in offensive touchdowns, #23 in rushing offense, #38 in passing offense, #2 in passing efficiency, #2 in yards per play, #1 in yards per pass play, #8 (tie) in yards per rushing attempt, #5 (tie) in fewest sacks allowed and #1 in third down conversions.
Want more proof?
The Gators did their blocking for Tim Tebow, the first quarterback in NCAA history to run for more than 20 touchdowns (23) and throw for more than 20 (32) in one season. Tebow rushed for 895 yards and passed for 3,286 for a school-record 4,181 yards (321.6 per game) of total offense. He led the Southeastern Conference in passing efficiency, touchdowns responsible (55), total offense, rushing touchdowns and scoring (138 points).
Nationally, Tebow finished second in passing efficiency, 10th in total offense, second in points responsible (25.38 per game) and third in rushing touchdowns.
Oh, and by the way, he did become the first sophomore in history to win the Heisman Trophy and he did it in only his first season as a starter.
And there was Percy Harvin, too. Percy rushed for 764 yards while averaging an eye-popping 9.2 yards per carry and he caught 59 passes from Tebow, good for another 858 yards (14.5 per catch). You don’t put up those kind of numbers without a superb offensive line.
So why can’t the Gators get any respect this year? Three starters (Tartt, Jason Watkins and Maurkice Pouncey) return. Trautwein, who started all 14 games in 2006 but sat out last season with a stress fracture in his foot, returns at right tackle. The fifth starter will be Mike Pouncey, a key backup in 2007 until game nine when he shifted to nose tackle on defense with one day’s notice and started the rest of the season.
There is tremendous size (they average 6-5, 303), quickness and plenty of experience (Tartt has 29 career starts, while Watkins and Trautwein have 15 each and Maurkice Pouncey has 11).
Tartt made second team All-SEC last year as a junior. What did he do to regress to third team?
Jason Watkins should have made at least second team last year when he started all 13 games and allowed only three sacks.
Trautwein, who sat out 2007 with a stress fracture, was second team All-SEC in 2006, the year the Gators won the national championship. He was projected first team All-SEC in the preseason last year.
Maurkice Pouncey was selected Freshman All-America at right guard and now he moves to center, which might be his natural position.
The depth is probably the best in the SEC. The Gators have six very capable backups, all of them big, strong, mean and aggressive.
Logic would tell you the Gators should have some first and second teamers in the preseason selections.
Tennessee has a first team pick in Anthony Parker, a second teamer in Ramon Foster and a third teamer in center Josh McNeil. Tennessee finished fifth in the league in total offense, sixth in third down conversions and ninth in the league in rushing offense.
Auburn has two second team picks in Lee Ziemba and Tyronne Green. Auburn finished tenth in the league in total offense, fifth in rushing offense, ninth in passing offense, eleventh in third down conversions and seventh in the league in sacks allowed.
Ole Miss has a first teamer in Michael Oher and a third teamer in John Jerry. Ole Miss finished 12th in scoring offense, seventh in pass offense, 11th in rushing offense, ninth in total offense, eighth in third down conversions and ninth in sacks allowed.
You look at numbers like that and you have to wonder, why is it that the Gators get so little respect? The numbers don’t lie. Florida’s line did its job magnificently and the proof is there in the stats.
It’s too late to do anything about preseason selections. It’s true that preseason all-this or all-that doesn’t really mean anything but in this case it probably will. It probably will because Steve Addazio is going to do his best Rodney Dangerfield and turn his linemen into a bunch of Dangerfield clones.
And rather than gripe about the lack of respect, expect them to take it out on those poor defensive linemen that have to line up against them. Paybacks are hell, baby, and when you have this group of big, nasties feeling like they’ve been dissed in front of God and all mankind, the results could have somewhat of a righteous effect.
If you’re a betting man, put your money on Addazio turning disrespect into motivation to turn his offensive linemen loose on the SEC. Look for a lot of able-bodied d-linemen to become football’s equivalent of dead roaches (on their backs, feet and hands pointed skyward). By season’s end, instead of Dangerfield clones, these guys might be college football’s version of the Orkin men.