Will Muschamp has seen a fair share of streaks snapped during his tenure at Florida.
For the first time since 1990, the Gators failed to make a bowl game. For the first time since 1979, the Gators recorded a losing record. For the first time since 1988, the Gators lost to the Commodores.
On Saturday when Florida faces Vanderbilt at 7:30 p.m. in Nashville, Tennessee, Will Muschamp can’t afford to see another letdown.
The Commodores’ 34-17 victory against the Gators last year set the stage for this year’s Vandy squad to take two straight against UF for the first time since 1955. But this game isn’t about history to Muschamp.
"It’s the 2014 Florida team versus the 2014 Vanderbilt team," Muschamp said.
That bodes well for the Gators.
The 2014 Commodores don’t have James Franklin at the helm like the 2013 squad did. They don’t have the 30.1 points per game the 2013 team had. They don’t give up 24.6 points per game anymore.
Instead, this year’s Vandy has first-year head coach Derek Mason. It has an average of 19.9 points per game, which is an SEC worst. And they give up 32.2 points per game, also an SEC worst.
Still, Florida doesn’t want and can’t afford to take any chances. It has a 56-year streak on the line — not to mention a possible shot at an SEC East crown.
The Gators need to defeat both the Commodores and the Gamecocks in the next two weeks in order to stay in the hunt for a division lead. But losing three of four earlier in the year set Muschamp and company back enough to where they must now rely on help to get in.
Because he can’t control the uncontrollables, Muschamp said he has put a "laser focus" on Vanderbilt this week in preparation for the conference matchup.
"If we don’t take care of our business, nothing else matters," Muschamp said.
As for the 418 yard rushing attack and the 18-point victory the Gators are coming off of, Muschamp said his players shouldn’t be getting a big head, especially heading into Saturday’s matchup.
"We don’t have anything to be overconfident about," he said. "I think that one of the things you talk to your players about is how you respond after a loss and how you respond after a win. We need to form some consistency in what we’re doing."
The Gators are looking for Treon Harris to step up and become more of an offensive weapon. The true freshman had just six pass attempts last week, but offensive coordinator Kurt Roper said the passing game should expand if Florida expects to reach Muschamp’s level of desired "consistency."
"We’re going to ask him to do more," Roper said of Harris. "He’s going to have to make plays in the passing game, but we all learn on Saturday."
As for the rushing game, Mason said he expects Florida to keep its identity on offense and continue giving the ball to Matt Jones and Kelvin Taylor.
He added that he knows the Gators want Harris to be more involved, but like Muschamp said, he’ll have to wait and see that until he believes it.
"I expect to see it evolve some, maybe see six or seven more passes," Mason said. "But I don’t expect to see much more than that. They’re going to run the ball."
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Florida coach Will Muschamp looks down the field during Florida's 38-20 win against Georgia on Saturday at EverBank Field in Jacksonville.
