lawgator1
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GAINESVILLE -- Florida defensive tackle Marcus Thomas took his hands off his hips and his stare off the ground to look across the line of scrimmage. There he saw Tennessee players trotting to the line of scrimmage, ready to run the ball. Again.
This would be 11 runs in a row, though to Thomas it seemed like 11,000, all in the first quarter of last season's game at Neyland Stadium. The first 10 took the football from the Vols' 20 to Florida's 1, and No. 11 would end with Jabari Davis scoring a touchdown.
For now, though, two thoughts stayed with Thomas as he settled into his stance on second-and-goal. He was gassed. And he was confused.
"Tired, basically," Thomas said. "And I really didn't understand how come we weren't stopping them."
So were the guys in golf shirts on the UF sidelines, the coaches who had made stopping the run priority No. 1 for the Gators. Florida failed, allowing 171 rushing yards in a 30-28 loss to the Vols. UT rushed for 91 yards after its first drive.
This week, the refrain from a new coaching staff is the same as the Gators prepare for Tennessee's Saturday night visit. Unlike other teams, Tennessee's offensive strategy is surprise-free: It will run, run and run some more until the defense takes the big gains away.
The philosophy has dominated the past two editions of the rivalry, both Tennessee wins. The Vols ran the ball 50 times, more than twice the number of passes they threw, in a 24-10 victory in Gainesville two years ago. Last year's 11-run no-pass drive came in the middle of a 19-play stretch in which UT offensive coordinator Randy Sanders called 18 runs.
"That's a slap in the face," UF co-defensive coordinator Charlie Strong said. "They're saying, 'You can't stop us.'"
And, Strong and Thomas said, Tennessee was correct in 2004. The diagnosis of the problem, in football-speak, included UF players not staying in gaps and instead getting pushed into space.
Translated, each of the Gators up front last season played to make SportsCenter instead of the top of the Southeastern Conference East standings. The lure of the individual play trumped the team's goals.
"We weren't worrying about each other," Thomas said. "We were aggressive, but we were all trying to make the big play."
The players insist those problems are gone this year. Coaches showed film of UT's drive during the offseason and chastised their players for being selfish and ineffective.
After tune-ups against Wyoming and Louisiana Tech this season, Florida ranks fifth in the nation in total defense and 15th against the run. Other numbers make this weekend's test tougher.
The five offensive linemen who started in Tennessee's opener against UAB weigh an average of 334 pounds. Thomas and UF's three other starting defensive linemen check in at an average of 279. The 55-pound weight difference, combined with the presence of bruising Tennessee tailback Gerald Riggs, would figure to give UT an edge.
Not so, say the Gators, who'd rather face heavier, slower blockers.
"A bigger offensive line wears down faster," end Jeremy Mincey said. "[Faster linemen] are like gnats. They're all over you."
The Vols, though, figure to be all over Florida anyway. For the Gators to win, the mission seems simple: Avoid last season's exhaustion and confusion, and stop what they know is coming.
"Looking at last year's tape, you couldn't do nothing but laugh," Thomas said. "It seemed like they could just run all up in our face.
"That won't happen this year."
This would be 11 runs in a row, though to Thomas it seemed like 11,000, all in the first quarter of last season's game at Neyland Stadium. The first 10 took the football from the Vols' 20 to Florida's 1, and No. 11 would end with Jabari Davis scoring a touchdown.
For now, though, two thoughts stayed with Thomas as he settled into his stance on second-and-goal. He was gassed. And he was confused.
"Tired, basically," Thomas said. "And I really didn't understand how come we weren't stopping them."
So were the guys in golf shirts on the UF sidelines, the coaches who had made stopping the run priority No. 1 for the Gators. Florida failed, allowing 171 rushing yards in a 30-28 loss to the Vols. UT rushed for 91 yards after its first drive.
This week, the refrain from a new coaching staff is the same as the Gators prepare for Tennessee's Saturday night visit. Unlike other teams, Tennessee's offensive strategy is surprise-free: It will run, run and run some more until the defense takes the big gains away.
The philosophy has dominated the past two editions of the rivalry, both Tennessee wins. The Vols ran the ball 50 times, more than twice the number of passes they threw, in a 24-10 victory in Gainesville two years ago. Last year's 11-run no-pass drive came in the middle of a 19-play stretch in which UT offensive coordinator Randy Sanders called 18 runs.
"That's a slap in the face," UF co-defensive coordinator Charlie Strong said. "They're saying, 'You can't stop us.'"
And, Strong and Thomas said, Tennessee was correct in 2004. The diagnosis of the problem, in football-speak, included UF players not staying in gaps and instead getting pushed into space.
Translated, each of the Gators up front last season played to make SportsCenter instead of the top of the Southeastern Conference East standings. The lure of the individual play trumped the team's goals.
"We weren't worrying about each other," Thomas said. "We were aggressive, but we were all trying to make the big play."
The players insist those problems are gone this year. Coaches showed film of UT's drive during the offseason and chastised their players for being selfish and ineffective.
After tune-ups against Wyoming and Louisiana Tech this season, Florida ranks fifth in the nation in total defense and 15th against the run. Other numbers make this weekend's test tougher.
The five offensive linemen who started in Tennessee's opener against UAB weigh an average of 334 pounds. Thomas and UF's three other starting defensive linemen check in at an average of 279. The 55-pound weight difference, combined with the presence of bruising Tennessee tailback Gerald Riggs, would figure to give UT an edge.
Not so, say the Gators, who'd rather face heavier, slower blockers.
"A bigger offensive line wears down faster," end Jeremy Mincey said. "[Faster linemen] are like gnats. They're all over you."
The Vols, though, figure to be all over Florida anyway. For the Gators to win, the mission seems simple: Avoid last season's exhaustion and confusion, and stop what they know is coming.
"Looking at last year's tape, you couldn't do nothing but laugh," Thomas said. "It seemed like they could just run all up in our face.
"That won't happen this year."
