What happened to the Gators’ swagger?
After Florida toppled Tennessee back in Week 3, fullback Trey Burton said the Gators were “bringing the swagger back to Gainesville.”
But here we are, nearly six weeks later, and that swagger is nowhere to be seen.
So where did it go?
Maybe Florida left it in Lexington, Ky. — the last place the defense forced a turnover.
Back then, the Gators were riding high. They were minutes from a 4-0 start. The defense was stifling. The offense was in a groove. Everything was going as planned.
But since the midway point of the third quarter against the Wildcats, the Gators have not recorded a takeaway. That’s nearly 202 minutes without stripping the ball or picking off a pass.
It’s no coincidence that during that same span, Florida has surrendered 96 points and dropped three straight games.
“We need to get turnovers back,” defensive tackle Jaye Howard said. “We haven’t had a turnover since probably the Kentucky game. We have to get that back going to be successful again and give our offense a chance.
“It’s just swagger. When you get turnovers, you create turnovers and your defense plays better. We have to get back to that; I haven’t seen it since Kentucky.”
After going more than 13 quarters without a takeaway (and turning the ball over six times in the last month), Florida is 109th in the nation in turnover margin at minus-7. Only two BCS conference teams, Florida State and Iowa State, both at minus-8, boast a lower differential this season.
Howard knows the only cure for Florida’s defense is turnovers, which it will need to create this weekend to avoid a .500 record.
While the defense left its swagger in Kentucky, the offense’s was carried off the field just before halftime against Alabama.
When John Brantley went down with an ankle injury, coach Will Muschamp said it deflated the team. It has shown the last two-plus games. As star-crossed as Brantley’s career at Florida has been, this offense was only going as far as he could take it this season.
Wide receiver Deonte Thompson said it best during fall camp: The difference between the John Brantley of this season and the John Brantley of last season is that “his swag and confidence [are] higher than they have been in the past — just leadership and taking control of the team.”
But with Brantley out, and Florida “cautiously optimistic” about his availability against Georgia, the offense is still looking to regain the confidence it displayed the first month of the season.
So what’s going to happen with the Gators’ long-lost swagger?
They’ll need to find it this weekend, or their season will be lost, too.
Contact Tom Green at tgreen@alligator.org.
