Jaylen Watkins saw right through the raw numbers.
Throughout the 2011 season, the Gators defense was the only unit not to fall short of expectations. Florida finished seventh in the nation in pass defense and eighth in yards allowed per game.
However, the junior cornerback knew the unit was lacking in two vital areas: tackling and toughness.
Watkins said he has seen improvements in the defense in its second year under defensive coordinator Dan Quinn.
"Last year, I don't think we took tackling as serious," Watkins said. "We didn't really realize how much a missed tackle can hurt the game. This year when we're doing our tackling drills, we actually lock in and take it serious."
Florida's defense has addressed the weaknesses and hopes the progress will continue on Saturday, when the No. 4 Gators (5-0, 4-0 Southeastern Conference) complete the road portion of their conference schedule against Vanderbilt (2-3, 1-2 SEC).
Florida held LSU 33 points below its season average in last Saturday's 14-6 win in the Swamp. In Baton Rouge, La., in 2011, the Tigers scored 41 points against the Gators. Watkins cited sound tackling as the primary reason for the turnaround.
"Last year we had 10 missed tackles in the game in the secondary," Watkins said. "This year we had two as a team, so we did a very good job of tackling."
Watkins showed his tackling ability on LSU's first drive of the game. On a third-and-10 play from Florida's 21-yard line, J.C. Copeland, the Tigers' 6-foot-1, 272-pound fullback, caught a pass in the right flat and was brought down by the 187-pound Watkins and 231-pound linebacker Neiron Ball 3 yards shy of a first down.
The improved tackling can be attributed to the defense's increased toughness, which Watkins said begins with Matt Elam.
The junior safety won SEC Co-Defensive Player of the Week honors after his seven-tackle performance against LSU. He said he makes a conscious effort to ensure his effort rubs off on his teammates.
"I always tell my team, I give it all for them," Elam said following the win against LSU. "I did what I had to do for us to be victorious. Everybody on defense, all the backups, us starters, we all gave good effort and [were] victorious."
Quinn said Elam is not alone in bringing a strong attitude to the defense.
"We certainly count on some energy from Dominique Easley," Quinn said. "He's one that provides a lot of toughness and effort and finish and that kind of attitude for us. I think Lerentee McCray is certainly one of those guys."
The defenders will have to exert their newfound toughness against Vanderbilt's passing attack. The Gators narrowly escaped an upset against the Commodores in The Swamp last year with a 26-21 win. Vanderbilt quarterback Jordan Rogers threw for 297 yards, and wide receiver Jordan Matthews caught nine passes for 170 yards.
Sophomore Chris Boyd is second to Matthews on the team in receiving yards this season. The duo has combined for 53 catches and 854 yards.
Watkins says the wideout tandem will be a good challenge for the UF secondary.
"They've got two great receivers that we played against last year that gave us a little bit of trouble," Watkins said. "Last year, the pass defense struggled. We're looking at it as another challenge we've got to take care of this week."
Contact Josh Jurnovoy at jjurnovoy@alligator.org.
Brett Le Blanc / Alligator Staff
Safety Matt Elam runs to the sideline after losing his helmet while making a tackle during Floridaís 14-6 win against LSU on Saturday at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium.
Safety Matt Elam runs to the sideline after losing his helmet while making a tackle during Florida's 14-6 win against LSU on Saturday at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium. The junior safety earned SEC Co-Defensive Player of the Week.
