Mike Gillislee was named Southeastern Conference Offensive Player of the Week on Monday for his efforts in Saturday’s win against LSU, but both he and coach Will Muschamp gave credit to the blockers.
“Being patient as a running back (is important),” Gillislee said on Saturday. “That’s all being a running back is (about) — being patient and having faith in your offensive line. Knowing that the holes will be there sooner or later.”
The holes opened up in the second half, as Gillislee averaged just 2.8 yards per carry in the first half and 5.1 yards per carry in the second.
His longest runs of the day were two 12-yard touchdowns, the first of which came when left guard James Wilson and left tackle Xavier Nixon pulled to the right and opened up a gaping hole that Gillislee ran through untouched.
Muschamp said he was impressed with the offensive line’s ability to handle the Tigers’ defensive front.
“You’ve got to finish blocks,” Muschamp said. “Because most of the teams we’re going to play from here on out, they don’t stay blocked long. So you’ve got to finish people, and that’s something that jumped out at me on the tape.”
Punt Returns: One of the few units Muschamp was not pleased with following Saturday’s win was the punt return team. Andre Debose and De’Ante Saunders did not return any of Tigers punter Brad Wing‘s seven punts.
Wing booted a 57-yard punt from the LSU 14 on the Tigers’ second possession of the second quarter. Saunders called a fair catch at the Florida 29-yard line, although no LSU player was within 10 yards of him.
“We have not done a good job,” Muschamp said. “We’ll find somebody different and figure out what we can do there.”
Muschamp said Florida’s punt returners must do a better job of deciding whether or not the ball is returnable.
“He’s got to make a judgment as he sees the flight of the ball and then see where the coverage (is),” Muschamp said.
Omarius Hines: While Gillislee carried the ball a career-high 34 times on Saturday, Omarius Hines only touched the ball twice. But he made the most of his chances.
On Florida’s first touchdown drive, Hines gained 14 yards on a carry around the left side of the line before picking up another 14 yards on a screen pass.
Muschamp said simply having Hines on the field forces the opposing defense to be ready for a number of possibilities.
“I’ve always said it’s difficult to count him from a defensive perspective,” Muschamp said. “What is he? Is he a running back? Is he a slot receiver? We’ve used him in tight-end situations. We’ve used him as a fullback. So, week to week, we change out.”
Hines has averaged 10.5 yards per touch this season on just seven catches and six rushes. Quarterback Jeff Driskel said he’d like to find more ways to get Hines involved in the offense.
“We try to get him touches during the game,” Driskel said, “but there are some games you’re going to have to give the ball to Gillislee 35 times or however many times he got the ball. [Hines] is definitely a mismatch problem, and we got to get him some touches.”
Injuries: Starting weakside linebacker Jelani Jenkins is probable for Saturday’s game at Vanderbilt after leaving Florida’s win against LSU in the second quarter due to a left hamstring injury, Muschamp said. Jenkins wore a cast in his return to action on Saturday after missing the previous two games with a broken right thumb.
Muschamp added that tackle Matt Patchan is still out with a pectoral strain, while defensive back Cody Riggs remains sidelined by a broken right foot he suffered in the SEC opener at Texas A&M.
Contact Josh Jurnovoy at jjurnovoy@alligator.org.
Redshirt senior Omarius Hines runs toward the sideline during UF’s 14-6 victory against LSU on Saturday at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium.
