This Is Our Year – Florida
Good morning, y’all. The forecast of rainy and gloomy for the next few days will do nothing to dampen my mood. The bright ray of sunshine in my existence is that the complete and utter devastation on display in Jacksonville has quieted my inner “Munson” somewhat.
I can see how numbing the constant pain of missed opportunities seemed like a good idea to me before. I am a changed man now, though. What might have ended in a drunken row, or charges of vehicular homicide of a fiberglass gator, instead ended in a night of joyful jubilation. The only liquid drunk to excess was Diet Dr. Pepper.
Let me start recounting the events of the game by making a prediction. I think this year’s team is going to go all the way. I know that I tempt the Karma witches by making such a prediction, but maybe this year’s success is a result of Karma swinging in our direction for a change. You can’t watch this team and not see that there is something special going on out there. There is a bonding and a sense of purpose and focus that are very unusual for young men of this age. There are no “super stars” but there are stars all over the field.
We started the game with some wrinkles. JT Daniels, our “number one” quarterback was listed as ready to play, and he did dress out, but this game was left in the very capable hands of Stetson Bennett IV. You may recall that Stetson took a cheap shot in last year’s game when we were up a couple of scores that greatly hampered his passing ability. We went from a two score lead to losing in that game. Perhaps leaving Stetson in the whole game allowed him to exact some revenge and bathe in the Gator tears that were raining from the skies. I’m so happy for him.
Offense:
Stetson Bennnett was game ready. He came to win even if he had to carry the rock himself, which he did for 35 yards and a couple of crucial first downs. He did force the ball a couple of times that resulted in interceptions, but both of them had the effect of long punts. Stetson was 10 of 19 for 161 yards with one touchdown and the two interceptions. Ironically his stats put him in the top three quarterbacks in the country if he passed the minimum number of 15 passes per game. We may need to start slinging it some more to get him the recognition he deserves.
Zamir White and the rest of Running Back U. were effective against a Florida defense that was supposed to be strong against the run. The group finished the day with 193 yards rushing on 33 attempts and 2 touchdowns. The fact that the Dawgs were able to run the counter play on Florida after Florida “fixed” the problem exposed in the LSU game was another source of delight for me. I expect the boys will run wild against Missouri.
Kearis Jackson is back and close to 100%. He contributed 59 yards receiving on just 3 receptions. His touchdown catch in the endzone was an all pro reception. There was more to be had, we just didn’t get the timing right.
Brock Bowers, our hope for the future, finished the evening with just 1 catch for 38 yards. He is sharing catches with the big O, Darnell Washington who had 2 catches for 41 yards. The receiving group accounted for 161 yards and one touchdown. Not other-worldly numbers, but they weren’t needed because of the next group.
Defensive: