GAINESVILLE, Fla. — The Gators' record after three games is the same as it was a year ago in head coach Billy Napier's first season. Florida is 2-1 entering Saturday night's home game against Charlotte.
But the Gators took a different route in Year 2. And while the offense has been efficient the past two games, the defense has been steady in all three.
The proof, you ask. Here are some notables:
Florida's defense allowed 373.3 yards per game through three games in 2022, including 586 yards and six touchdowns on the ground. The Gators have surrendered 256.3 ypg, and only 251 and three touchdowns on the ground in 2023 under first-year defensive coordinator Austin Armstrong. UF enters the Charlotte game ranked No. 1 in the Southeastern Conference and 10th nationally in total defense.
The Gators are limiting opponents to 2.9 yards per rush, nearly 2 yards better than a season ago (4.8) after three games.
Two of Florida's first three opponents (Utah and USF) eclipsed 400 yards of offense a season ago; Tennessee finished with 387 last week, the highest output for an opponent this season.
Multiple factors account for the improvement, including UF's offense ranking third in the country in time of possession. But there are a couple of predominant reasons: Armstrong's addition and more talent on the roster.
"I think they had a fantastic plan," Napier said of the defense's effort against the Vols. "When you play these teams that are drastically different, you try your best to recreate it. I thought we played with really good fundamentals. We got the call in. We had our cleats in the ground. We strike blockers. We played well on the edges of the formations. We covered down the perimeter. We missed a few tackles, but for the most part, when space tackles were presented, we did our job.
"Ultimately, I think Austin has done a great job since the day he's been here. I think this game is a reflection of that, much like Utah was, much like McNeese was. We have better personnel. I think all parts of that side of the ball are in year two. I think Austin has done a good job of connecting with the players and connecting with the staff."
Defensive coordinator Austin Armstrong talks to defensive lineman Tyreak Sapp during the victory over Tennessee. (Photo: Maddie Washburn/UAA Communications)
To prepare for the fast-paced Tennessee offense, Armstrong cranked up the speed at practice between snaps, keeping the Gators on edge heading into their 29-16 win.
The pregame speed training helped the Gators shut down the Vols after their opening drive of the game to take a 26-7 halftime lead. Tennessee entered the game averaging 39.5 points and 477.5 yards. UF held the Vols to 387 yards.
"I think Armstrong just really trusts his players. He really shows us that he trusts us,'' Gators edge rusher Princely Umanmielen said. "He's not going to go out there and rely on his scheme. He relies on the player. He tells us all the time, 'Good players make good defenses.' So, you know, when he's calling plays, he's calling plays based off the players he's got and trying to do it to their strengths. His tempo that we were doing in practice was way faster, it was like an unrealistic tempo.
"We were ready."
The defense seeks a fourth consecutive stellar outing Saturday night at The Swamp.
In this week's edition of The Opening Kickoff, here is a closer look at the Florida-Charlotte matchup: THREE QUESTIONS WITH … GATORS S MIGUEL MITCHELL
Q:What was it like to practice for Tennessee's up-tempo offense? Miguel Mitchell A: Tennessee's tempo really didn't get to us. We had a hard week — a big, hard week [in practice] last week. Coach Armstrong made sure he got us right with tempo. We had a lot of reps in practice. Reps counts definitely helped.
Q:What has stood out to you about fellow safety Jordan Castell?
A: He showed out in the spring, but his progression from the spring to the fall was just tremendous. I feel like he made a great jump. Even though he's a young guy, he has a mature attitude about him and he just brings that and shows it every day.
Q:What about so many young guys playing in general, how is that helping?
A: He's going to play the best guy. And those young guys, I feel like they're ready. They came in mature. I feel like that was a really mature group when they came in. Most of them got here in December, so I feel like they've been here for almost going on a year now. So they've picked up, learned fast, and I feel like they're ready.
THREE STORYLINES
Florida has an opportunity for its first three-game winning streak since 2020. The Gators bounced back from the season-opening loss at Utah with home wins over McNeese and No. 11 Tennessee. Charlotte is a heavy underdog and the Gators have a wide talent advantage. How will they respond to prosperity? That has been the primary question this week.
This is the Gators' final nonconference game until the regular-season finale against Florida State. They have seven straight Southeastern Conference games between Charlotte and FSU. A sharp performance against the 49ers following a week of practice that head coach Billy Napier didn't seem overly impressed by could boost confidence going into the heart of the conference schedule.
Napier has played an array of young players in his second season and the results have been promising. Fourteen true freshmen played in the season opener. Look for Saturday's game to provide an opportunity for the Gators to continue that trend as they try to build depth.
THREE PLAYERS TO WATCH
Gators RB Trevor Etienne rushed for a career-high 172 yards in the Tennessee win and should have room to run against the 49ers, ranked 93rd overall among FBS schools in rushing defense (151.3 ypg). Etienne ranks third in the SEC in rushing with an average of 93.7 ypg.
Transfer DT Cam Jackson earned SEC Co-Defensive Player of Week honors with six tackles and a pass breakup last week. Jackson's an important piece of the puzzle for Florida's improved defense and his consistency will be closely watched in the rough-and-tumble SEC.
OL Lyndell Hudson II is projected to start at right tackle in place of Damieon George Jr., who is suspended for the first half. Hudson made 27 career starts at FIU before transferring to UF and was hobbled by injury in preseason camp. It's an opportunity for Hudson to make a statement that he is ready for more starts.
Streaming now.
🎥 This Is... The Swamp - Season 3, Episode 5: More To Prove. 🐊
11 —Seasons for Charlotte football since the program returned in 2013 following a 65-year hiatus. 19— Consecutive starts for Gators CB Jason Marshall Jr., tops on the team. 75.3 —Completion percentage for Gators QB Graham Mertz (64 of 85), which leads the Southeastern Conference. INJURY REPORT
"This guy's a football coach and he's unique in his approach, but he's had tremendous success. And I'm going to tell you, I watched the film and he has a talented team. They're fundamentally sound and I think they're going through that year one, some of those growing pains. He's got his way and there's a lot of ways to skin a cat, and it works for him." — Gators head coach Billy Napier on Charlotte first-year coach Biff Poggi
"Our ultimate goal is to win the league. All this is great, but if we were 4-0 in the first four games and we lost the league, I'd be ledge walking. I'd much rather be 0-4 and win the league, and figure out who we are. They know what happened. They don't need to hear it from us anymore." — Charlotte coach Biff Poggi on his mindset after digesting last week's disappointing loss to Georgia State
"We all asked him, 'did you land on him?' Everybody's like, 'damn, we knew that hurt,' when he said yeah." — Gators DL Princely Umanmielen on 439-pound teammate Desmond Watson's hit on Vols QB Joe Milton III
THEY WROTE IT
A good reason big-time programs like Florida play underdogs such as Charlotte is for players like Brady Ackerman and countless others, writes David Whitley of the Gainesville Sun.
The Gators enter Saturday night's game against Charlotte ranked No. 25, their first time in the AP Top 25 since September 2022. A look at Florida's last 10 games when ranked:
DATE
RANKING
OPPONENT
RESULT
NOTABLE
Sept. 24, 2022
No. 20
@Tennessee
L 38-33
Late comeback bid failed, snapped five-game win streak vs. Vols
Sept. 17, 2022
No. 18
South Florida
W 31-28
Escaped with home win over Bulls in sloppy performance
Sept. 10, 2022
No. 12
Kentucky
L 26-16
Boost from season-opening upset of Utah short-lived
First loss in Lexington since 1986 previewed what was to come
Sept. 25, 2021
No. 11
Tennessee
W 38-14
Gators responded to Alabama loss by hammering Vols
Sept. 18, 2021
No. 11
Alabama
L 31-29
Fell behind early but stormed back to challenge No. 1 Tide
Sept. 11, 2021
No. 13
@South Florida
W 42-20
Took care of Bulls on road in commemorative 9/11 helmets
Sept. 4, 2021
No. 13
Florida Atlantic
W 35-14
Big plays highlighted season-opening win over Owls
NEWS, NOTES, NUGGETS
The Gators will have a revamped offensive line from the unit that started against Tennessee. Center Kingsley Eguakun, who made his first appearance of the season against the Vols, is out on Saturday. He suffered a setback from the ankle injury that sidelined him the first two games of the season. Meanwhile, the starting right side of the line — guard Micah Mazzccua and Damieon George Jr. — is suspended for the first half of Saturday's game against Charlotte as part of the SEC's ruling on the scuffle with the Vols at the end of the game. Freshman Knijeah Harris is listed as the starter at right guard, and veteran transfer Lyndell Hudson II at right tackle. Sophomore Jake Slaughter is projected to get his third start at center in place of Eguakun.
This is the first meeting between Florida and Charlotte. The Gators have won 16 of their last 18 regular-season nonconference games.
The 49ers are in their first season in the American Athletic Conference. Charlotte played in Conference USA from 2015-22.
Gators OL Micah Mazzccua played for Charlotte coach Biff Poggi at Saint Frances Academy in Baltimore.
The Gators ranked third among FBS schools in time of possession, controlling the ball for an average of 35 minutes, 11 seconds per game. That trails only Air Force (35:50) and Army (35:28).
Gators QB Graham Mertz surpassed 6,000 career passing yards in the win over Tennessee. Mertz threw for 166 yards, and now has 6,097 yards in 37 career games.
Florida WR Ricky Pearsall has caught a pass in 30 consecutive games, including 16 games he has played for the Gators since transferring from Arizona State in 2022.
Charlotte defensive coordinator Ryan Osborn and director of player personnel Jonathan Herd-Bond spent time at UF under former coach Dan Mullen.
Charlotte WR Jack Hestera has a team-high eight catches of 15 or more yards.
49ers DL Julius Welschof, LB Nikhai Hill-Green and DL Eyabi Okie-Anoma were Michigan teammates with Gators LB Deuce Spurlock II and S R.J. Moten.
THE OTHER SIDE
Head coach Biff Poggi is the headliner for the 49ers, his unique approach and personality a popular topic with the media. Poggi was featured Friday on ESPN.com.
While Poggi is someone most Gators fans probably don't know much about, 49ers fifth-year QB Jalon Jones is another story. Jones signed with the Gators in 2019 and entered a quarterback room that included Feleipe Franks, Kyle Trask and Emory Jones.
I interviewed Jones for a early enrollee Q&A not long after he arrived and left impressed by his personality and maturity. I was surprised, to say the least, when a few months later Jones departed Florida under troubling circumstances.
I was equally surprised to learn Jones is still playing college football. Since his short stay at UF, Jones has attended Jackson State, Mississippi Delta Community College, Bethune-Cookman and Charlotte. He is one of the quarterbacks utilized by the 49ers and leads the team in rushing (196 yards, 6.1 ypc, 2 TDs). Jones has thrown for 252 yards, two touchdowns and three interceptions.
Jones never played a game for the Gators, but after a strange and sometimes turbulent journey, he is set to make his Swamp debut on Saturday in Poggi's two-quarterback system.
Practice makes perfect, they say. Others, like former NBA star Allen Iverson, considers practice overrated. Based on my experience, I don't have a clue. I've seen teams look great in practice and crap in the game, and teams sleepwalk in practice and play like champs. Let the great practice debate continue into eternity. The reason we're even bringing this up is because Gators coach Billy Napier expected better from his team at practice this week. He let them know it. So did some of the players. What does it all mean against Charlotte? I don't expect much. Perhaps the Gators start slow and pull away. Maybe they come out blazing and run away from the start. Just know this: they will beat the 49ers or I really need to practice more on the bottom line.
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