GAINESVILLE, Fla. -- The pregame hype for Florida's annual clash with Georgia last week was turned to Metallica volume. This week's home date against Vanderbilt has played more along the smooth vibrations of the Beach Boys.
Still, when the No. 10-ranked Gators (7-2, 4-2) run from the tunnel on Saturday afternoon at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium to face Vanderbilt (2-6, 1-4), the best way to prove they are over last week's 24-17 loss to the Bulldogs is to take it out on the Commodores.
That's what Florida has vowed it plans to do.
"If you dwell on a game for too long it's going to affect the next game and we can't let that happen,'' safety Donovan Stiner said. "We've got to win out starting with this game in 'The Swamp,' so I mean that game is over, we've got to move on from it, take the mistakes that we made and use it to get better for this game."
In their disappointing defeat to Georgia, which gained control in the SEC East race with a third consecutive victory in the series, the Gators came out sluggish and were forced to play from behind. The same scenario unfolded a year ago at Vanderbilt when the Commodores grabbed a 21-3 lead in the first half.
The Gators fought back for a 37-27 victory on the way to a 10-win season in head coach Dan Mullen's first year. Florida can reach 10 wins again by winning its final three regular-season games, starting against Vanderbilt. The Gators are heavily favored against a Vanderbilt team ranked last in total offense and total defense in the conference.
Mullen urged his team this week to turn the page and get back to work with a potential New Year's Six bowl berth still in play and an outside chance to retake control of the SEC East should Georgia lose two of its final three regular-season games against Missouri, Auburn and Texas A&M.
He also reminded the Gators of Vanderbilt tailback Ke'Shawn Vaughn, who took a screen pass for a 75-yard score in last year's meeting, and wideout Kalija Lipscomb, who is the SEC's active leader in career receptions (151), yards (1,845) and touchdowns (19). Lipscomb missed last week's game at South Carolina for personal reasons but will play Saturday according to Coach Derek Mason.
"They've got one of the best running backs in the league and one of the best receivers in the league,'' Mullen said. "Their skill players are good. They've got a young, aggressive defense that continues to improve and grow and get better week to week."
The Gators have won five consecutive over the Commodores and 27 of the last 28.
For more on Saturday's matchup, here is The Opening Kickoff: THREE QUESTIONS WITH ... GATORS O-LINE COACH JOHN HEVESY
Gators offensive line coach/co-offensive coordinator John Hevesy was forced to adjust the depth chart this week. (Photo: Anissa Dimilta/UAA Communications)
The UF offensive line lost Christopher Bleich to the transfer portal, opening the door for freshman Ethan Whitefor more playing time the rest of the season:
Q: What does Bleich's departure mean for your depth?
A: Opportunities. Ethan White steps up. It gives him an opportunity to step up and be the next guy in. Let's get up and go. Like I told him, opportunities come. This is what you came here for. You didn't come here to sit next to me on the sideline.
Q: How has White progressed in his development?
A:Very well. To me, that's why he is in the position he is in. Go play now. It's a good thing we're home, not at an outside environment. We're at home and it's a little bit controlled.
Q: What can you say about the running game against Georgia?
A: Awful. It didn't start out well. We put ourselves behind the eight-ball where we had the throw the ball a little bit more to get back into the thing. You don't get a chance to say, 'let's go pound the ball and run the ball and get those three to four yards.' It's got to get better than it was to win games. We've got to do better than that. THREE STORYLINES
If the Gators are going to keep the remote possibility of overtaking Georgia in the SEC East, they have to do their part by first beating Vanderbilt. Florida's loss to the Bulldogs last week in Jacksonville took away control of their own destiny. The Commodores are 26.5-point underdogs but led UF by 18 points last season in Nashville before the Gators stormed back for a 37-27 victory.
The Gators return home following a five-week absence since their electric victory over Auburn on Oct. 5. Florida has won six consecutive home games and with the Commodores and Florida State (Nov. 30) remaining on the slate, has an opportunity to go undefeated at "The Swamp" for the first time since 2016.
Florida's defense seeks to rebound from a shaky outing against Georgia in which it allowed the Bulldogs to convert 12 of 18 attempts on third down. The Gators will be without injured LB/DE Jeremiah Moon (foot), who is a regular in the rotation and ranks sixth on the team with a career-high 31 tackles.
THREE PLAYERS TO WATCH
Senior RB Lamical Perine's only 100-yard game of the season came the last time the Gators were home when he rushed for 130 in the victory over Auburn. Vanderbilt is ranked 13th in the SEC in rushing defense (255.4 yards per game) and while the Gators' offensive line had trouble creating space in last week's loss to Georgia, there's a good chance to get Perine going against the Commodores.
Redshirt freshman OL Richard Gouraige has played in eight games and made his first career start in the victory at South Carolina. With the unexpected departure of starting RG Christopher Bleich (transfer portal), Gouraige takes on a more prominent role for a unit that lacks experience and depth.
Gators sophomore DB Trey Dean III faced criticism from fans for his performance in the Georgia loss. A safety, Dean has played primarily at nickel/star this season, a difficult position to master in Florida's defensive scheme. Dean undoubtedly is a talented player and could use a strong performance to shake some of his critics.
THREE DIGITS
7 –FBS teams with three players who have at least 25 catches, 350 yards and four touchdowns. The Gators are one of those teams as Kyle Pitts (39/469/4), Freddie Swain (29/430/5) and Van Jefferson (29/362/4) all meet the criteria.
394– Consecutive games in which the Gators have scored, which is an NCAA record.
17 –Wins for Gators head coach Dan Mullen since taking over program in 2018, which matches Oregon's Mario Cristobal for the most among the 13 Power 5 head coaches hired in that cycle. INJURY REPORT
It's been a tough year for the Commodores. Really tough for their quarterbacks.
Vanderbilt coach Derek Mason announced Thursday that junior Deuce Wallace will make his first career start on Saturday. Wallace has played in six games this season but only off the bench.
With starter Riley Neal sidelined by a concussion in last week's loss to South Carolina and Mo Hasan, who started in a victory over Missouri on Oct. 19 still not ready due to a concussion, Mason was forced to turn to Wallace.
"Deuce has looked good knowing he's the starter,'' Mason said Thursday on Nashville radio station 104.5-FM.
Wallace will be Vanderbilt's third starting quarterback this season, the most since the Commodores used four in Mason's first season in 2014. Neal, a graduate transfer from Ball State, has started seven games this season and 41 in his career.
Here is a look at Vanderbilt's quarterback situation Saturday:
PLAYER
STATS
NOTABLE
Deuce Wallace
33 of 76, 217 yards, 0 TD, 3 INT
8 of 17, 2 INT in relief of Neal last week
Allan Walters
Has not played
Scout team QB takes over as backup
Riley Neal
109 of 186, 1,193 yards, 6 TD, 4 INT
Will travel, remains in concussion protocol
Mo Hasan
7 of 11, 120 yards, 1 TD/9 rushes, 34 yards
Led Vandy to win over Missouri in only game
BOTTOM LINE
In honor of colleague Will Pantages, who handles player media for the Gators football team among many other duties at the University Athletic Association, I'm going to keep this shorter than usual this week. Simply put, I'm going with the Gators in this one. We're going to miss Will as he leaves to become an associate athletic director at Wake Forest. He served the Gators well during his time here. Good luck, Will!
