Gator Bowl: University of Florida v. Ohio State University

by Arnaldo

The "Urban Bowl".  An unfair moniker in my opinion with Urban Meyer having nothing to do with this bowl game, but it is the featured storyline nonetheless.  And why not?  Florida and Ohio State are both in a dismal state of despair.  They are not typically 6-6 programs, and Urban Meyer becomes the source of despair for one program, and the source of hope for the other.

"Do battle, my children!"

What's at Stake?


Fans of each program who started the season with big expectations might just want to get this season over with, but there is serious pride on the line for both teams.  Both narrowly escaped losing their very long bowl eligibility streaks, but at 6-6 each, one squad is going home with a losing record.  Ohio State hasn't sustained a losing season since 1988 when they finished 4-6-1, their first year under John Cooper, and the Gators haven't had one since 1979 when they went 0-10-1, their first year under Charley Pell.  Note that this is the longest active winning season streak in FBS.


Florida


Year one under Will Muschamp with a new coaching staff and a new style of play, the Gators were destined for some growing pains.  Combined with injuries across the field and one of the hardest schedules of all time (back to back National Championship contenders in Alabama and LSU) and the result is a soft defense and a nonexistent offense.  Florida suffered its first under .500 SEC season since 1986.  The most recent blow has been celebrity offensive coordinator Charlie Weis's decision to take the Kansas head coach job and forgo his play-calling duties for the Gator Bowl.  Running backs coach Brian White will be taking the reins as interim offensive coordinator, effectively "trying out" for the still vacant job for the 2012 season.  The Gators will be playing the without right tackle Matt Patchman, who sustained a back injury during practice last week, or defensive tackle Dominique Easley, who suffered a season-ending knee injury against against Florida State.


Ohio State


Ohio State is in no better shape.  After the violations by players selling jerseys and other memorabilia for cash and tattoos in 2010, Jim Tressel resigned and Terrelle Pryor left to enter the supplemental draft, leaving Ohio State under interim head coach Luke Fickell and an unexpected disappointing season.  Last month, the NCAA further sanctioned Ohio State with a one-year bowl ban (2012) and the loss of nine scholarships over three years, effectively punishing a team two years removed from the actions of players no longer on the team and a brand new coaching staff under Urban Meyer.  Sure there's not much else the NCAA can do, but don't ever call them swift or fair.  The Buckeyes went 3-5 in Big 10 competition, capping their season with a loss to archrival Michigan for the first time in seven meetings.  Ohio State will be playing the Gator Bowl without injured tight end Jake Stoneburner or running back Rod Smith (unknown off-the-field reasons), but linebacker Andrew Sweat will be returning from his concussion.


Keys to Victory


Both teams are hot and cold.  Florida has had moments when they held their own against competition like Alabama and Georgia, but others when the offense is can't find a first down and the defense looks like they've never seen a run game before.  Ohio State has been competitive, either winning or losing most of their games by ten or fewer points.

For Florida, the key to this game is fairly simple: establish an offense.  The Gators this year are either producing solid offensive gains, or stuck in neutral, 3 downs at a time.  Like most games this season, it's going to come down to John Brantley and a shake offensive line.  Brantley has proven he can momentarily pretend to be Tom Brady, carving chunks of field against the nation's best secondaries, and then switch gears to throw uninformed passes and consecutive interceptions.  He works terribly under pressure, so a Patchmanless offensive line needs to man their gaps and give Johnny decent pocket time.  Just as importantly, they'll need to run block better than they have all season to give Chris Rainey and Jeff Demps sufficient room to find open space, where they can be lethal against a slow Buckeye defense.  If the Gators are to win, they'll do it the same way they did the only other time they met up with Ohio State, with speed.  On defense, if the Gators can reproduce the Florida State performance, even without Dominque Easley, they should be fine.  Solid tackling and containing OSU's quick-footed quarterback, Braxton Miller, are key.


For Ohio State, it also comes down to a shaky dual-threat quarterback in true freshman Braxton Miller.  While hoisting undeniable running and tackle-breaking abilities, Miller handles pressure like any true freshman would and is quick to rely on his feet.  To relieve some pressure, the Buckeyes need to establish an effective run game and keep the Gators' blitz game in check.  Miller needs to be kept out of impossible situations and in his comfort zone, where he passes effectively.  On option runs or when the pocket does break down, which it will, Miller just needs to focus on what he does best, and take off.  The Gators will put extra emphasis on containing Miller so he and his receivers need to exploit defenders who may give up on their assignments when they see him on the move for some clutch passing opportunities.  On defense, the Buckeyes need to improve all around, especially their linebackers, to keep a potentially effective Florida offense in check.  They can't magically get faster, so to win, they'll need to play smarter.  Defensive coordinators Jim Heacock and Luke Fickell will need to prepare for anything and everything against the new play-caller in Brian White across the field.

Because of the inconsistencies in both teams this season, making an accurate prediction is extra tough, but in an informed and slightly biased twist, I'm going to have to pick:

Gators over the Buckeyes 24-21 in overtime.

Let's go for more of this!

Special thanks to Chris Pinson for his Ohio State expertise.

Another One Bites the Dust: Charlie Weis

by Arnaldo

It's been rough few years for coaching at the University of Florida.  In case you haven't noticed, we've lost a top coach (head, offensive or defensive coordinator) every year since 2008: Dan Mullen, Charlie Strong, Urban Meyer, Charlie Weis.  It's clear we've been feeling the effects.  Stability is one of the most important aspects of a coaching staff; where would we be as a country if we switched presidents every year?

Someone pointed out we don't need
his "fupa" around anyway.

Since Charlie's hiring as Florida's offensive coordinator, many fans have had mixed feelings about his possible contributions and whether or not he would fit in the culture we have. As I've said, I was a Weis fan, along with many Gator fans. Dub, however, stands on the other side of the ropes. He feels Weis was a big sexy hire by a new coach who felt like he had to make a splash to get Gator fans excited.

We have the most demanding fans in the nation, at any level, in any sport. It's a culture that was rebuilt by Urban Meyer and his all-star coaching staff, which can only lead to heartbreak. From 2005-2009 (Urban's glory years at Florida) we had one single digit win season, and three 13 win seasons, all of which resulting in a BCS National Championship or BCS Bowl victory. Our team was so hypercompetetive, that we as fans grew to accept nothing less than elite national contention year in and year out.

Coach Muschamp stepped into a position where he had to make noise immediately. He had to get someone as flashy and as storied as the Florida program had been during it's streak of absolute dominance. He went after the man who coached the offense of the New England Patriots during their historic "3 out of 4" Super bowl run, circa 2001-2004.


So What Now?


First and foremost, there's a bowl game to be played.  In situations like these, a departing coach makes the decision to stay to coach the bowl game, or get a head start at his new institution, familiarizing himself with the team, fellow coaches, perhaps hire new coaches, recruiting, etc.  When Dan Mullen accepted a head coach position, he stuck around to coach the 2008 National Championship game, but it seems a 6 win Gator Bowl isn't enough to keep Charlie Weis around.  This promotes current running backs Brian White to interim offensive coordinator, which has its advantages and disadvantages.  On the one hand, he hasn't called plays since 2007 at Syracuse, but on the other, Ohio State has absolutely nothing to study and must prepare for everything.

Now let's look at some candidates to replace Charlie Weis.


Leading Candidate: Kerwin Bell


Who's Kerwin Bell?  Kerwin Bell is probably Florida's most prolific quarterback not to win a Heisman Trophy.

He's even in the "Gator Legends" painting.

Suck it Palmer!

Bell walked on to the 1983 Florida team as a quarterback and earned a scholarship and the starting job the following year.  He led that team to a 9-1-1 record, an SEC championship (later vacated), and a No. 3 AP end-of-season ranking.  The following year was a repeat 9-1-1 record and atop the SEC (though ineligible to hold title or bowl game).  Bell was awarded SEC Player of the Year in 1984, finished honorable mention All-American in 1985 and 1986, first team All-SEC in 1985, and received Florida's Fergie Ferguson Award as a team captain his senior year.  While at Florida he passed for 7,585 yards and 56 touchdowns.  In 1997, he was inducted into UF's Athletic Hall of Fame as a "Gator Great".

No joke: voted 2nd ugliest football
uniforms ever on an ESPN fan poll.

Drafted in the seventh round by the Miami Dolphins, Kerwin Bell didn't see the field despite being traded twice.  He played for several non-NFL teams before landing a spot in 1996 for the Indianapolis Colts where in week 15 was put in late for his only NFL appearance.  Interestingly, he completed five for five passes and one touchdown, giving him the highest passer rating in NFL history.

Bell began coaching as the offensive coordinator for the Toronto Argonauts for the 2000 and 2001 seasons.  He then was the head coach for Trinity Catholic High School from 2001 to 2006, where he briefly coached our very own John Brantley, and led the Celtics to a state championship.  This led to the head coaching job at Jacksonville University.  He took a 3-8 Dolphins squad and made them a 9-4 Pioneer Football League champions in 2007.  2008 had Bell recognized as the PFL Coach of the Year and a finalist for the Eddie Robinson award.  His 2010 squad went 10-1 and ranked No. 22 in the FCS, an all-time high for the young program.


It is clear that Kerwin Bell has an immense talent for coaching, and has sufficient experience in running an offense as a quarterback, coordinator, and head coach.  Also, he is very familiar with the recruiting landscape in Florida, having played and coached almost exclusively therein.  Will Muschamp has stated he is looking for a coordinator who is very proficient with a pro-style game and assures the Gator Nation he will hire "the nation's best offensive coordinator."  He has already interviewed Bell, but the nature of the interview was kept private.  No official decision has been made.

Secondary Candidate:  Brian White


Brian White, as mentioned earlier, will be the interim offensive coordinator for the Gator Bowl this January.  He is officially our running backs' coach and is one of the only staff members retained by Will Muschamp from Urban Meyer's administration.  Meyer hired him days after the 2008 National Championship game as the tight ends' coach.  White served the University of Wisconsin for 11 years, under icon Barry Alvarez, as running backs' coach and offensive coordinator in 1999.  He led the Wisconsin offense to its Big Ten prominence it still enjoys today, and earned an Assistant Coach of the Year award in 2004.  He was the unfortunate collateral damage of Alvarez's retirement from coaching in 2005.  White made his way to Washington and Syracuse as offensive coordinator before Urban Meyer brought him to Florida.

It is uncertain if he's been interviewed for the position since he is already part of the program.  However, White has a giant opportunity calling plays at the Gator Bowl to impress Muschamp and secure his future at Florida.

His advantage over Kewin Bell: extensive resume.  His disadvantage: his extensive resume.  Let me explain.  Assistant coaches who have high level experience (offensive/defensive coordinator) coupled with success, do not last.  They'll receive head coaching jobs elsewhere that will pay much better.  One of the reasons behind hiring Weis was that he already tried head coaching and was not very successful; we thought it was unlikely he would receive, or accept, head coaching offers.  If we choose Brian White and have a successful year, there is a risk he'll be noticed again and picked up.  Kerwin Bell, on the other hand, has no FBS experience and shouldn't be offered another job, no matter how much success he has, for at least three years.  Keep in mind that what the Gators need now more than ever is stability.

We aren't in the business of speculation so we won't go into detail on any other possible candidates.  However, he is a list of some being mentioned:

Todd Monken - Oklahoma State offensive coordinator
Major Applewhite - Texas co-offensive coordinator
Greg Davis - Former Texas offensive coordinator

'11 Florida Gators: Who's to Blame?

by Arnaldo

 .500: in baseball if you're a .500 team you're having a good season, not a great one, but a good  one.  In the NFL breaking .500 means you're not a failure, no one is getting fired, but you still have a lot to work on for next year.  Only in top tier college programs is a .500 record considered failure; miserable, miserable failure.  It didn't stand for the '10 Gators, and they broke .500 by 3 games.  Fans were relieved when Urban Meyer retired, blaming him for somehow "losing his touch".  Funny enough, those same fans weren't too pleased to hear he'd be "losing his touch" at Ohio State in 2012. But 6-6 to end the regular season is no laughing matter.  Here's a list of who you can point your foam fingers at in violent anger.

1.  Yourself.  I know this whole thing sounds like a trick but follow me here.  First year coaching staff, transitions in both offensive and defensive schemes, and one of the most difficult schedules in all of college football.  After losing four in a row, when asked what was wrong with the Gators, Lee Corso replied, "nothing, they lost to four teams who have a combined four losses."  Do you know how many other teams had to face the top two teams in the nation back-to-back? One: Tennessee, and they're next to dead last in the SEC.  If you honestly had high hopes for this season, shame on you.  Then again, I will admit I didn't see a .500 regular season coming either.

photo: photo-gator (flickr)

2.  Lady Luck.  Yeah she can be quite a b... she's not nice.  It's no secret John Brantley hasn't been the shining star we'd all hope he could be but he's not all to blame.  Sure he threw three interceptions in one quarter of play against FSU but those are honestly uncharacteristic of him.  Up until then, he had only thrown 3 all year.  When he's been healthy and focused, he has the ability to be a little Tom Brady out there, picking at secondaries with ease. Refer to his short time in the Bama game where he had a very successful 11/16 before being sacked twice in a row in Hail Mary situations sending him straight to the locker room and out of the game.  Enter Jeff Driskel the top QB recruit in the country and like an unlucky charm, everything that can go wrong with him on the field, goes wrong.  I watched the poor 18 year old drop a snap onto his shoe, which bounced through the line of scrimmage and into the hands of a Bama defender.  There's no skill to be measured here, it's plain bad luck.  Injuries didn't stop there, several key Florida starters were injured in subsequent games leading to 9 Gators sustaining injuries during the FSU game.  No one can expect to win under these circumstances.

3. Not the coaching staff.  Curse your various deities please, but leave Will Muschamp and Charlie Weis out of your finger pointing.  Weis admitted he had to "teach himself" how to effectively run from the shotgun again, but game in and game out, I've watched Weis do something I've never seen an offensive coordinator do.  He adapts, then he adapts again if the circumstances demand him to.  First he's brought into a team that was built for a system he doesn't coach, not a problem.  He refits the players he's dealt into his system, and then reforms the system around whatever limitations he finds.  Florida has no big back type playmakers that are usually a very key ingredient in Weis' offense.  No worries, Weis impliments strong Is, weak Is, and full house sets to get the two tiny yet explosive speedsters into the outside as fast as possible.  This works like a charm up until Alabama whose linebackers are too quick and clog up the sides before Demps or Rainey can manage and the pass game seems defeated without a healthy Brantley.  Weis starts implementing the old spread option techniques because Trey Burton has had experience running them.  And for a time, they work great.  When Brantley returns but doesn't have the mobility to step back into coverage, he introduces the pistol formation to keep Brantley from moving too much in the pocket, while getting some charge out of our runningbacks and the merger has some success again until Brantley recovers going into FSU.  Count them up, Weis' pro, innovative shotgun and I variant running, spread option, pistol, wildcat (left that out).  Charlie Weis has had to work harder this year than he probably ever did with any other team just so we can win 6 games.  He's by far the most valuable individual on our team and without him, we'd be looking a lot like Ole Miss right now.

When can we expect results?  Give these geniuses 2 years.  It may sound like a long time, but I honestly don't think we'll be having this conversation on our way to Atlanta in 2013.