South Florida
5th Big East7-5
Florida
7th SEC7-5
South Florida @ Florida preview
Ben Hill Griffin Stadium
Before Florida jumps into conference play next week, it faces a formidable test from an instate team that would like nothing better than to knock off the Gators.
South Florida, which briefly rose to a top 10 ranking three years ago, is not what it was then, but it still has plenty of that good ol’ homegrown Florida talent. After finishing 8-5 last season, the Bulls stomped Stony Brook in the opener, 59-14.
Florida eventually ran away from Miami (OH) last week, 34-12, but was far from impressive in doing so. The Gators, who dropped four spots to No. 8, committed turnovers on their first two possessions, and quarterback John Brantley and new center Mike Pouncey struggled with bad exchanges all day. Making his first start, Brantley threw for only 113 yards last week with just two completions greater than 20 yards.
Florida entered the fourth quarter last week with just 25 yards of total offense – and Miami was atrocious on defense in 2009. The RedHawks, not exactly an offensive juggernaut, had more first downs than the Gators, who converted on just three of 12 third downs. It wasn’t until Florida running back Jeff Demps’ 72-yard touchdown burst in the fourth quarter that the Gators put away Miami, which was 1-11 last season.
You can bet that Florida coach Urban Meyer emphasized cleaning up the sloppy play in practice this week and expects Brantley and the offense to be sharper against South Florida. But the competition will be stiffer. Out of the Big East, South Florida ranked 19th in the country in scoring defense last season and although they lost several players to graduation, the defense is full of playmakers led by linebackers Jacquian Williams and Sam Barrington and defensive backs Quenton Washington and Kayvon Webster.
South Florida also possesses some nice weapons offensively, starting with sophomore quarterback B.J. Daniels, who threw for 264 yards and two touchdowns last week. The Bulls passed for 383 yards in the game, which was the first under new coach Skip Holtz. Evan Landi led the team with five catches for 92 yards.
Florida needs to work out the kinks from last week and look more like the Florida we’re accustomed to, because, If the Gators play like they did last week, South Florida clearly has enough talent to pull out a victory.
South Florida, which briefly rose to a top 10 ranking three years ago, is not what it was then, but it still has plenty of that good ol’ homegrown Florida talent. After finishing 8-5 last season, the Bulls stomped Stony Brook in the opener, 59-14.
Florida eventually ran away from Miami (OH) last week, 34-12, but was far from impressive in doing so. The Gators, who dropped four spots to No. 8, committed turnovers on their first two possessions, and quarterback John Brantley and new center Mike Pouncey struggled with bad exchanges all day. Making his first start, Brantley threw for only 113 yards last week with just two completions greater than 20 yards.
Florida entered the fourth quarter last week with just 25 yards of total offense – and Miami was atrocious on defense in 2009. The RedHawks, not exactly an offensive juggernaut, had more first downs than the Gators, who converted on just three of 12 third downs. It wasn’t until Florida running back Jeff Demps’ 72-yard touchdown burst in the fourth quarter that the Gators put away Miami, which was 1-11 last season.
You can bet that Florida coach Urban Meyer emphasized cleaning up the sloppy play in practice this week and expects Brantley and the offense to be sharper against South Florida. But the competition will be stiffer. Out of the Big East, South Florida ranked 19th in the country in scoring defense last season and although they lost several players to graduation, the defense is full of playmakers led by linebackers Jacquian Williams and Sam Barrington and defensive backs Quenton Washington and Kayvon Webster.
South Florida also possesses some nice weapons offensively, starting with sophomore quarterback B.J. Daniels, who threw for 264 yards and two touchdowns last week. The Bulls passed for 383 yards in the game, which was the first under new coach Skip Holtz. Evan Landi led the team with five catches for 92 yards.
Florida needs to work out the kinks from last week and look more like the Florida we’re accustomed to, because, If the Gators play like they did last week, South Florida clearly has enough talent to pull out a victory.