Florida has lost back-to-back games for the first time under Dan Mullen and seeks to get back on track Saturday when South Carolina and former UF head coach Will Muschamp visit the Swamp. (Photo: Jay Metz/UAA Communications)
Gators About to Find Out What They Have Left
Wednesday, November 7, 2018 | Football, Scott Carter
GAINESVILLE, Fla. – In a speech to the Ocala Quarterback Club in late August, Megan Mullen told her captive audience about how her husband has drastically improved over the years, especially since the couple's children were born, at transitioning from coach to normal person after a game.
The moments Dan Mullen usually struggles most in that aspect is after a game that goes about as well as a beach trip in a thunderstorm. Not simply a loss, but the kind of defeat that can upset a coach's stomach. Megan said on those nights she'll sometimes intervene in the wee hours of the morning and tell her husband to stop watching film, turn off the computer and get some sleep.
Based on the events of last Saturday, Megan might have had to pull an intervention.
In her husband's words after Florida's 38-17 loss to Missouri, the Gators lacked a sense of urgency and efficient execution, had too many penalties and were horrible at situational football, primarily on third down.
"That's all about coaching,'' he said.
The No. 19-ranked Gators (6-3, 4-3 in the Southeastern Conference) returned to practice Monday in preparation for Saturday's game against South Carolina (5-3, 4-3) and former UF coach Will Muschamp. In a span of two weeks and back-to-back losses to Georgia and Missouri, discussion around the Gators has gone from upbeat to rapid-fire hot take overload.
The Gators got outscored 74-34 in the two games and played lethargically in the homecoming loss to a Missouri team that came to town winless in the SEC. In the aftermath, an uncertain quarterback situation and concerns whether the Gators can reverse their slide have dominated the conversation on local sports-talk radio.
Mullen has an idea of what it's going to take.
"If you look at how we've been so far this year, when we come out and we play well and execute at a high level in all three phases, we're a pretty darn good football team,'' Mullen said. "If we don't, we're not at the point where we can just not play well and cover up with just, like, phenomenal playmakers. The light comes on, and all of a sudden, we hit a switch … that's not where the program is right now."
While the Missouri loss serves as the low point of Mullen's first season as UF's head coach, the Gators have three regular-season games left plus a bowl game. If they can refocus and string together four consecutive wins to close the season, they will finish with 10 wins, which can't be classified as anything other than a successful season considering Mullen took over a program that finished 4-7 a year ago.
The road to recovery starts with the Gamecocks, who are coming off a 48-44 win at Ole Miss that probably caused the defensive-minded Muschamp to have nightmares. South Carolina needs one more win to become bowl eligible, which would make Muschamp only the second coach in program history to take South Carolina to a bowl game in three consecutive seasons. The other one is former Gators coach Steve Spurrier.
Muschamp isn't into the coming-back-to-Florida storyline that was also popular in 2016, his first season at South Carolina and first game back at the Swamp since his four seasons in charge of the Gators ended after a loss at FSU in 2014.
"For me, it's another SEC opponent,'' Muschamp told reporters this week. "I know that you all have a hard time believing that, but it really is. It's another great opportunity for our team on the road. If you want to continue to move the program forward, you need to win tough road games."
Meanwhile, Mullen has preached the importance of protecting Florida Field to his team. The Gators have lost twice at the Swamp this season and will have to play much better on Saturday to avoid a third straight defeat.
South Carolina quarterback Jake Bentley is coming off his best game of the season (22 of 32, 363 yards, 2 TDs) while Florida's defense was shredded for 471 yards by Missouri and quarterback Drew Lock (24 of 32, 250 yards, 3 TDs).
"We weren't as physical as we needed to be in winning one-on-one battles up front against the run," Mullen said. "We didn't affect the quarterback the way we needed to, getting after him and getting him out of his comfort zone. I think those would probably be the biggest two factors [in our defensive performance]."
Mullen reiterated again on Wednesday during his weekly appearance on the SEC media teleconference that Feleipe Franks and Kyle Trask are both taking snaps at practice and "digging into the plan."
On Monday, Mullen said "we might play two quarterbacks. We might play three. We're still putting the game plan together."
Franks was benched in favor of Trask in the Missouri loss, and in the loss to Georgia, true freshman Emory Jones made an appearance. Franks has started every game but in the last two, he has completed 22 of 43 (51.2 percent) for 189 yards, one touchdown and one interception.
Whoever starts at quarterback will need more help than the team gave against Missouri.
"I've got two games left in the Swamp. I've given my all to this program,'' said redshirt senior tight end R.J. Raymond, one of six players left on the roster who joined the program in Muschamp's final season. "I might come off wrong on this, but it's not time to make friends. At the end of the day, it's time to win a football game. It's time to play for pride, to play for this Gator logo. You've just got to push everybody and bring everybody up to that standard."
Mullen is all in favor. He could use a better Saturday than the last one.
"We get a great opportunity to see where we're at as a program right now," he said. "More than just as a team, also as a program. We've got three more games to go play here in the regular season, and then we get a bowl game. We get to go see what we're all about as a team, what this team's made of and where the program is at with all of us pushing and moving forward."
The moments Dan Mullen usually struggles most in that aspect is after a game that goes about as well as a beach trip in a thunderstorm. Not simply a loss, but the kind of defeat that can upset a coach's stomach. Megan said on those nights she'll sometimes intervene in the wee hours of the morning and tell her husband to stop watching film, turn off the computer and get some sleep.
Based on the events of last Saturday, Megan might have had to pull an intervention.
In her husband's words after Florida's 38-17 loss to Missouri, the Gators lacked a sense of urgency and efficient execution, had too many penalties and were horrible at situational football, primarily on third down.
"That's all about coaching,'' he said.
The No. 19-ranked Gators (6-3, 4-3 in the Southeastern Conference) returned to practice Monday in preparation for Saturday's game against South Carolina (5-3, 4-3) and former UF coach Will Muschamp. In a span of two weeks and back-to-back losses to Georgia and Missouri, discussion around the Gators has gone from upbeat to rapid-fire hot take overload.
The Gators got outscored 74-34 in the two games and played lethargically in the homecoming loss to a Missouri team that came to town winless in the SEC. In the aftermath, an uncertain quarterback situation and concerns whether the Gators can reverse their slide have dominated the conversation on local sports-talk radio.
Mullen has an idea of what it's going to take.
"If you look at how we've been so far this year, when we come out and we play well and execute at a high level in all three phases, we're a pretty darn good football team,'' Mullen said. "If we don't, we're not at the point where we can just not play well and cover up with just, like, phenomenal playmakers. The light comes on, and all of a sudden, we hit a switch … that's not where the program is right now."
While the Missouri loss serves as the low point of Mullen's first season as UF's head coach, the Gators have three regular-season games left plus a bowl game. If they can refocus and string together four consecutive wins to close the season, they will finish with 10 wins, which can't be classified as anything other than a successful season considering Mullen took over a program that finished 4-7 a year ago.
The road to recovery starts with the Gamecocks, who are coming off a 48-44 win at Ole Miss that probably caused the defensive-minded Muschamp to have nightmares. South Carolina needs one more win to become bowl eligible, which would make Muschamp only the second coach in program history to take South Carolina to a bowl game in three consecutive seasons. The other one is former Gators coach Steve Spurrier.
Muschamp isn't into the coming-back-to-Florida storyline that was also popular in 2016, his first season at South Carolina and first game back at the Swamp since his four seasons in charge of the Gators ended after a loss at FSU in 2014.
"For me, it's another SEC opponent,'' Muschamp told reporters this week. "I know that you all have a hard time believing that, but it really is. It's another great opportunity for our team on the road. If you want to continue to move the program forward, you need to win tough road games."
Meanwhile, Mullen has preached the importance of protecting Florida Field to his team. The Gators have lost twice at the Swamp this season and will have to play much better on Saturday to avoid a third straight defeat.
South Carolina quarterback Jake Bentley is coming off his best game of the season (22 of 32, 363 yards, 2 TDs) while Florida's defense was shredded for 471 yards by Missouri and quarterback Drew Lock (24 of 32, 250 yards, 3 TDs).
"We weren't as physical as we needed to be in winning one-on-one battles up front against the run," Mullen said. "We didn't affect the quarterback the way we needed to, getting after him and getting him out of his comfort zone. I think those would probably be the biggest two factors [in our defensive performance]."
Mullen reiterated again on Wednesday during his weekly appearance on the SEC media teleconference that Feleipe Franks and Kyle Trask are both taking snaps at practice and "digging into the plan."
On Monday, Mullen said "we might play two quarterbacks. We might play three. We're still putting the game plan together."
Franks was benched in favor of Trask in the Missouri loss, and in the loss to Georgia, true freshman Emory Jones made an appearance. Franks has started every game but in the last two, he has completed 22 of 43 (51.2 percent) for 189 yards, one touchdown and one interception.
Whoever starts at quarterback will need more help than the team gave against Missouri.
"I've got two games left in the Swamp. I've given my all to this program,'' said redshirt senior tight end R.J. Raymond, one of six players left on the roster who joined the program in Muschamp's final season. "I might come off wrong on this, but it's not time to make friends. At the end of the day, it's time to win a football game. It's time to play for pride, to play for this Gator logo. You've just got to push everybody and bring everybody up to that standard."
Mullen is all in favor. He could use a better Saturday than the last one.
"We get a great opportunity to see where we're at as a program right now," he said. "More than just as a team, also as a program. We've got three more games to go play here in the regular season, and then we get a bowl game. We get to go see what we're all about as a team, what this team's made of and where the program is at with all of us pushing and moving forward."
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