Gators Notebook: Defending Georgia's QBs, Steady McPherson, More Tidbits

Gators safety Donovan Stiner makes a tackle in the game against Georgia last year. (Photo: Tim Casey/UAA Communications)

Gators Notebook: Defending Georgia's QBs, Steady McPherson, More Tidbits

Tuesday, October 23, 2018 | Football

By: Ethan Hughes, FloridaGators.com Intern

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Georgia quarterback Jake Fromm took over the starting job in the second game of the 2017 season and didn't blink, leading the Bulldogs to an SEC Championship and nearly a national championship.

In 2018, Fromm has been steady if not spectacular, throwing for 1,409 yards with 13 touchdowns and four interceptions. He is second in the conference with a 66.9 completion percentage.

However, modern college football is all about the newer and shinier toy, at least in fans' minds. Last year, that was Fromm. This year, it's freshman Justin Fields. Fields was the No. 1 overall recruit in the country and chose UGA over basically every other school in the country. He's played sparingly in mostly a read-option package so far, attempting just 25 passes.

With two weeks to prepare for Saturday's showdown in Jacksonville and Fromm's struggles in an Oct. 13 loss to LSU (16-for-34, 209 yards, 1 TD, 2 INTs), there's been speculation that Bulldogs (6-1, 4-1 SEC) head coach Kirby Smart and offensive coordinator Jim Chaney might expand Fields' role against the No. 9 Gators (6-1, 4-1).

"If we get more of him in the game, obviously it's a little different player than Fromm in what he does with his skill-set," UF coach Dan Mullen said. "Obviously, like I said, being a little more of a runner in how they utilize him. But, we've got to be ready for both of them."

Sophomore safety Donovan Stiner is confident the defense will be ready for the challenge.

"We all trust Coach Grantham, so we know he'll have us prepared for it," he said. "Whatever we go through in practice, he'll have us prepared for the game. There won't be nothing we won't see."

LIMITING EXPLOSIVES

As good as Florida's defense has been this year under defensive coordinator Todd Grantham, they've been bitten by explosive plays on numerous occasions.

Against Vanderbilt, it was a 75-yard touchdown catch and run on a screen pass. A week prior, LSU running back Nick Brossette ripped off back-to-back runs of 31 and 47 yards to set up a touchdown. Tennessee had a 51-yard pass play, although the play ended with a fumble for a touchback.

In those games, UF was able to overcome the explosive plays by putting up points offensively, dominating special teams and holding opponents to field goals in the red zone.
Make those same mistakes against Georgia, however, and the outcome will likely be different. The No. 7 Bulldogs are also strong on special teams, and their defense will likely be the best the Gators have seen since the loss to Kentucky. Points might be at a premium in a game that could decide the SEC East.

Mullen said winning the explosive plays battle is a focus every week.

"In this league, it's hard to put together 12-, 15-play drives and come away with points," he said. "Explosive plays usually lead to points. So, it's a big thing. We look at both sides of the ball. If you look and we've hit a bunch of explosive plays, we probably were able to put some points on the board. If we did not give up explosive plays, we probably held them to a low-scoring output."

Stiner said limiting the big plays is done during the week through preparation.

"It's really important to eliminate those," he said. "You just focus on the small details and repetition and being consistent," he said.

McPHERSON'S RECRUITMENT

On Monday, Mullen shared details of freshman kicker Evan McPherson's recruitment for the first time.

When Mullen took over the UF program in November, he met with Eddy Pineiro, the most accurate kicker in school history who was eligible for the NFL Draft. Mullen left the meeting feeling confident that Pineiro was going pro. Pineiro ended up declaring for the draft, went undrafted and is currently on injured reserve for the Oakland Raiders.

With no other scholarship kickers on the roster, Mullen pursued McPherson, the No. 1 kicking prospect in the country at Fort Payne (Ala.) High School according to Kohl's Kicking Camp who committed to Mullen at Mississippi State.

"I called Evan and said, 'You're offered a scholarship,' " Mullen said. "But, then the plan is, 'You know the coaching staff. You got to come and make sure you fit in and like the team, like the staff, like the university, love the academics, and then the plan is there's a good chance you're going to have to start as a true freshman.' "

That's exactly what happened. McPherson is 11-for-12 on field goals and 25-for-25 on extra points. His one miss was a controversial kick against Kentucky that appeared to sneak inside the right upright but was ruled no good by the official. Mullen said McPherson has kicked from around 59 or 60 yards in practice, but the game situation will dictate how far he will let him kick from in a game.

"He's been a very steady guy right from training camp all the way through," Mullen said. "He's a guy that has confidence and is always ready to do his part to help us win. And I think that confidence builds from the people around him. He looks at the team, and I think it's how he works, how he prepares and how he's performed. It's been a guy that the team has a lot of confidence in, in what he's been able to do."

Added junior receiver Josh Hammond: "He's a kid that just wants to get better. He's always excited, always smiling, always wants to kick the ball. He's been really big for us, not even just in kicking field goals, even with field position on kickoffs and things of that nature as well."

SLATON MIA

Sophomore defensive tackle Tedarrell Slaton began the season atop the depth chart. However, in recent weeks, his playing time has been greatly diminished in favor of Adam Shuler, a graduate transfer from West Virginia.

Fans have been wondering where the 343-pounder has been. According to Mullen, Slaton's decreased role has simply been a product of Shuler performing better in practice.

"He's got to continue to work and develop to get reps," Mullen said.

MULLEN'S FIRST GEORGIA GAME A TURNING POINT

Mullen's first Florida-Georgia game as head coach has the potential to be huge for the program. It's a top-10 matchup, and a win would put the Gators squarely in the mix for a bid in the College Football Playoff.

Mullen's first Georgia game as Florida's offensive coordinator in 2005 was critical for other reasons. Sure, it jump-started the Gators into one of the most successful eras in school history, but it was also huge for Mullen in his young career.

Up to that point, Mullen had called the same plays he had become used to as Utah's quarterbacks coach from 2003-04, expecting the same results.

"For me as a young coach, probably a little bit of inexperience at the time," he said. "You just think, 'I'm really smart. I know what I'm doing. We've created this scheme that's awesome and nobody could stop at Utah, so we just plug it in at Florida and it works.' "

The only problem was the players he inherited had been recruited for a pro-style system by former head coach Ron Zook. Through the first seven games of the '05 season, Florida had scored fewer than 20 points in three games. With an extra week to prepare for the Bulldogs, Mullen finally decided to stop trying to mash a square peg into a round hole.

On the Sunday before the Gators' bye week, head coach Urban Meyer called Mullen over to his house, and the two of them essentially revamped the entire offense to better suit the personnel.

"I think we really … learned that, to me as a coach, coaching is really about putting your guys in position to be successful and utilizing the personnel you have, not just that you have all the answers in your scheme," Mullen said. "It's how your scheme fits your personnel."

The results still weren't impressive right away, with UF scoring just 14 points against UGA. However, it was enough, as the Gators won 14-10. They then scored 30 or more points in three of the season's final four games.

And we all remember what happened next.