Friday, November 10, 2017 | Football, Scott Carter
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In the final SEC game of the season, the Gators face the Gamecocks and former UF head coach Will Muschamp.
By: Scott Carter, Senior Writer
COLUMBIA, S.C. – The options are rather gloomy in terms of losing out.
If the Gators lose Saturday at South Carolina, they'll hear how even their much-maligned ex-head coach now has the upper hand. If they lose next week at home to UAB, they'll hear how they got beat by a school that didn't even have a team a year ago. And if they lose the regular-season finale against Florida State, well, you know what is coming. They'll hear how they couldn't beat the worst FSU team in years.
Yes, it's that point in the proceedings where the Gators need a win. Any win.
Speaking of Muschamp, when he gathered his team Monday to discuss Saturday's visit from the Gators, he told the players to forget about Florida's four-game losing streak. Forget about the Gators' 42-7 loss to Georgia and their 45-16 spanking at Missouri.
While only a handful of players remain on Florida's roster from Muschamp's final season at UF three years ago, he knows the distractions that come during a midseason coaching change.
Interim head coach Randy Shannon leads the Gators into South Carolina on Saturday as they try to snap a four-game losing streak. (Photo: Tim Casey/UAA Communications)
"They've had a lot of uncertainty off the field and certainly, having been through it, it is a distraction and will take its mental toll,'' Muschamp said. "But again, that's why the consistent message from me all the time is about our preparation and how we prepare and how we go about our business and our preparation for the game is going to determine the outcome of the game and not about what the other team does."
Meanwhile, Gators interim head coach Randy Shannon is charged with navigating the Gators through the final month of a regular season that has not gone as planned. Florida (3-5, 3-4) visits South Carolina (6-3, 4-3) with an opportunity to remain bowl eligible with a victory.
Fans and media have written the Gators off as a lost cause for the rest of the season. They did little to thwart that general consensus a week ago at Missouri.
Still, Shannon is hopeful the Gators will respond with a more passionate performance on Saturday.
"The guys are focused,'' Shannon said.
The current tone around the Gators is as much about the future as the now. With Athletic Director Scott Stricklin busy conducting the search for Florida's next head coach, Shannon and the players answered more questions about distractions this week than South Carolina's offense or defense.
Shannon said despite the outside perception, Florida remains a program that can strike back quickly.
"It's probably still going to be one of the top programs in the nation because you're able to go and recruit nationally," Shannon said. "There's a lot of talent still on this football team. It's young talent … future-wise, it can be unbelievable.
"It comes down to recruiting and keeping the team healthy."
Fourth-year defensive tackle Taven Bryan, one of those Gators recruited and signed by Muschamp, agrees.
"Honestly, I think it'd be easy to turnaround," Bryan said. "There's just some small things."
Back to the present, nothing would do more for the current team than a win over its former coach. It would be a small step in the big picture, but a step nonetheless in the right direction.
Here is a closer look at the Florida-South Carolina game in this week's edition of The Opening Kickoff:
Q: What makes the Gators' head coaching job unique? Tim Tebow A: I think it's a great job, it really is a great job, but it's a hard job. It's not easy and the people close to the program know that. They know it takes a big personality, someone who really believes in their convictions and stands by them.
Q: What kind of pressure did you see the job have on Urban Meyer?
A: I saw how much pressure he put on himself. It is a seat that is very unique. The administration is always going to be supportive but it's still very hard. Look at what's happened. Spurrier hardly ever lost. Urban won more [national] titles than anyone else [at Florida]. Gator fans think the next guy should just be able to do that. It's just not that easy to bring the Fun 'N' Gun back.
Q: What does your induction into the Florida Sports Hall of Fame mean to you?
A: It's something special. Florida has been home for so long and so many of my best sports memories are here in this state, from high school and the journey to the University of Florida. Even in Denver [his first NFL stop], one of my first starts was in Miami.
Editor's note: Q&A compiled from Tebow's appearance at the Florida Sports Hall of Fame induction ceremony on Wednesday night in Ponte Vedra Beach via Jacksonville.com's Garry Smits.
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THREE STORYLINES
It's now or never for the Gators if they are going to earn a bowl bid. Florida has lost four in a row and with only three regular-season games remaining, needs to win out to avoid a losing season. The Gators have South Carolina, UAB and Florida State left on the schedule.
In the final SEC game of the season, the Gators face their former coach in Will Muschamp, who is in his second season at South Carolina. The Gamecocks can clinch a share of second place in the SEC East with a victory. Muschamp is 12-10 with the Gamecocks and can secure a winning season with a victory Saturday.
Following the loss to Missouri, UF sophomore linebacker David Reese challenged his teammates publicly to come together and finish out strong. Florida looked lethargic in its 45-16 loss to the Tigers and fell behind 28-6 at halftime. They talked this week about turning up the intensity. Will they, or won't they?
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THREE PLAYERS TO WATCH
Florida receiver Dre Massey is starting to be more involved in the offense. Massey had 38- and 37-yard receptions in the loss at Missouri and is excited for the showdown with the Gamecocks. Massey is a South Carolina native who was recruited by the Gamecocks. He expects to have more than 50 family and friends at the game.
Quarterback Malik Zaire makes his second start for the Gators and fifth of his career. Zaire was 13 of 19 for 158 yards and an interception at Missouri. While the Gators lost their fourth consecutive game, Zaire led the Gators on three scoring drives and made more plays than mistakes.
Gamecocks tight end Hayden Hurst is a favorite target of quarterback Jake Bentley. A Jacksonville native, Hurst has 30 catches and three touchdowns. Hurst had seven receptions for 93 yards in last week's loss to Georgia and is multi-dimensional. He has five rushes for 24 yards and looms as a difficult assignment for Florida's defense.
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THREE DIGITS
111– Ranking nationally for Florida in total offense (338.1 yards per game), which is three spots ahead of South Carolina (114th, 335.2 yards per game).
256 – Season-high passing yards for Gators at Missouri. Starter Malik Zaire threw for 158, backup Feleipe Franks, 98.
6– Times since 1960 the Gators have had a losing record in SEC play. A loss to the Gamecocks would make it seven. Florida is 3-4 entering its final conference game of the season.
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THE QUOTE FILE
"I had a wonderful experience at Florida, despite how it ended. That won't ever change." – South Carolina coach Will Muschamp on his four seasons as UF's coach from 2011-14
"My parents told me they didn't get any negative comments, no death threats, nothing like that. It's cool. We've got a good fan base here." – Gators kicker Eddy Pineiro on aftermath of his missed PAT against LSU
"Just took them out. That's unacceptable when you have an opportunity to score points and you get negative plays. You're in the red zone and those things happen, that's on you." – Randy Shannon on taking out both starting tackles Martez Ivey and Jawaan Taylor on plays they had pre-snap penalties at Missouri.
"We don't win, nobody is going to want to pick up a loser." – UF defensive tackle Taven Bryan when asked about his NFL draft stock
"They are not going to lay down. They are going to come in here and try to knock our heads off." – South Carolina defensive lineman Javon Kinlaw on what Gamecocks expect from Gators
Randy Shannon took over the Gators in the wake of Jim McElwain's departure. Shannon spent four seasons as head coach at Miami (2007-10) and is in third season at UF.
Shannon is the fifth interim head coach in the program's history and first since D.J. Durkin replaced Will Muschamp at the end of the 2014 season and led the Gators to a Birmingham Bowl victory over East Carolina.
A look at the how Florida's interim head coaches have fared over the years:
When Will Muschamp was at Florida, finding a consistent quarterback and keeping him healthy eluded Muschamp except in 2012 when Jeff Driskel stayed on the field and the Gators finished 11-2.
Muschamp has had better success at South Carolina.
Sophomore Jake Bentley is 10-6 as the Gamecocks' starter since taking over as a true freshman midway through the season. Bentley has passed for 1,986 yards with 14 touchdowns and just six interceptions this season. He ranks second in school history with a 63.1-percent completion rate (294 of 466) and offers Muschamp and offensive coordinator Kurt Roper a strong foundation to build around.
Check out the video below to hear what Bentley had to say about the Florida game and more:
Brutal honesty is necessary here. There is not a single iota of evidence to suggest Florida will win this game. The Gators made Missouri look like Alabama as the season reached another low point. Maybe David Reese's comments afterward struck a nerve in the locker room. Maybe Randy Shannon tapped more efficiently into the team's psyche in his second week as interim head coach. Maybe the Gators are just tired of losing and determined to prove that they haven't mailed it in. Whatever it might be, for the Gators to escape Williams-Brice Stadium with a victory, they have to come out with a different approach than at Missouri. No one expects them to win. Maybe that can serve as their inspiration to prove the critics wrong.
