Looking at the game this weekend, you know it’s going to a battle. Florida is down (for their standards) and UK has been on the up (for our standards) this season and this is one game that UK sportswriters and fans alike simply agreed that this was one we weren’t going to take. But as the weeks of the college football season developed, Florida started looking more and more vulnerable, as UK began looking more potent. Now several “experts” are putting the Fightin’ Perpetrators on upset alert, and the Cats are looking at this with a new sets of expectations. I will be breaking down some match-ups within the game that could very well decide how this game goes, and who tips the scales in their favor.
UK run offense v. Florida’s run defense- Upperclassman anchor Stuart Hines will not be making the trip down to Gainesville, and Moncell Allen’s status is as unclear as it can get, but Florida lost 5 players from the defensive line it had last year. The Gators (like they usually do) brought in a recruiting class with lots of talent, but a young defensive line against anyone in the SEC is a dangerous proposition. Derrick Locke will do what he always does: get yards and make people miss with his new found B-button (that’s the spin move on Madden for you old folks).
Florida’s run offense v. UK run defense- Problems stopping the run have already presented itself throughout the first 3 games, but Urban’s crew is reloading on the O-line and hasn’t been able to push people around like they usually do. RB Jeff Demps only has 2 TD’s on the season so far, that could be an indicator that their red zone push may not be as strong as they hope. That being said, Demps is averaging over 8 yards per carry (although against a UT defense he only averaged 2.8 on 26 rushes)
Mike Hartline v. Florida’s Secondary- Having only 3 players listed at safety could be considered a little thin; having 2 of those players with only one year in the program under their belt means they could be exploited. 6 players with 7 catches or more means Hartline knows how to find the open guy; if Sanders can dial up some interesting routes the UF secondary might get confused and give up a big play, something necessary in a potential upset.
Randall Cobb v. forces of evil- His dazzling freeze ray eyes and power of levitation will cause problems for Teryl Austin, first year D-coordinator. His humility and honor for the gods will curry favor with Zues, and he will send lighting bolts from the heavens to hopefully strike the Florida locker room, causing a blown fuse and creating confusion in their ranks, distracting them enough that they come out unfocused.
So maybe that last one is a stretch, I know that the fuses in Ben Hill Griffin Stadium have surge protectors. But what we an hope for is a quick start from the Cats, and then a strong running game with our stable of workhorses to drag the time of possession out to somewhere between forever and reading a Matt Jone’s diatribe about somebody hurting his feelings (get over it, you will always have people that will trash you). This streak is almost as long as Tennessee’s and if it doesn’t happen this year, then you can start talking about another lifelong scourge of domination.
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