If you were impressed with the Florida Gators football win over Charleston Southern, then congratulations, you’re right to be impressed.
If you were impressed with the offense… Okay it was still pretty decent.
If you were impressed with quarterback Feleipe Franks, then I have some bad news for you.
He really didn’t play that well.
Statistically? Yeah, he played fantastic, he threw five touchdowns in the first half.
But let’s break it down a little bit.
The most telling reason to temper expectations is obvious: the opponent. Charleston Southern is bad. Really, really bad.
Maybe some of you remember the last time the team faced off against Dan Mullen. It wasn’t that long ago, after all. The Buccaneers lined up against Mullen’s Mississippi State Bulldogs in the 2017 season opener.
One might also recall that in that contest, CSU failed to snap a down in MSU territory. Seriously. Never made it past the 50.
The Bucs went 6-5 in 2017. They play in the FCS, which is just a little different than the FBS. Please note the sarcasm there.
The Charleston Southern defense looked as lost as Mike and his friends searching for Eleven in the Upside Down (If you don’t know the reference, definitely look it up) - a very futile effort.
Of course Franks torched the defense, that was his job. Honestly, I think he could have done more.
The more pressing concern for Florida fans should be the fact that his wide receivers bailed him out several times.
Franks’ first touchdown pass (not the jump pass) to wide receiver Van Jefferson was one of those instances.
On a slant to his left side, Franks left the ball behind Jefferson and the receiver made a catch on his shoulder to save an incompletion. Furthermore, the cornerback in coverage was extremely late to the throw. An SEC defensive back won’t be so forgiving.
Another example was a throw over the middle of the field Franks had to wide receiver Freddie Swain.
Swain probably had a 60-yard touchdown ahead of him on an “in” route, but Franks left it four yards behind him and settled for an incompletion.
There are other examples, but those are the two that quickly come to mind.
Finally, how is Franks going to leave Dan Mullen hanging like this?
Despicable.
In all seriousness, Franks is going to have to prove himself to a much tougher Kentucky defense this weekend.
I’m not saying Kyle Trask should be the one trotting it out there as the starter, but he appears to me as the superior quarterback.
You can follow Chris O’Brien on Twitter @THEChrisOB and contact him at cobrien@alligator.org.
