Each week following a Florida Gators game, ONLY GATORS Get Out Alive will grade the team position-by-position based on each unit’s performance. This week, we look at how the Gators fared against the Arkansas Razorbacks in The Swamp.
QUARTERBACK: B
It is tough to evaluate Tim Tebow week-in and week-out, because you feel tempted to grade him an A every time. In looking at Saturday’s game, you see Tebow led the Gators on a 14-play, 69-yard drive at the end of the fourth quarter that resulted in a 27-yard, game-winning field goal by Caleb Sturgis. You also see that he went 17-for-26 for 255 yards passing, one touchdown (the longest of his career) and added 69 more yards on the ground. But that would be looking over the two fumbles he had in the first half, the fact that it took him 27 carries to get those 69 yards and the six sacks he suffered – a handful of which he could have avoided by throwing the ball out of bounds when he was outside the pocket.
RUNNING BACKS: C-
For most of the game, the entire Florida rushing attack was averaging 1.2 yards per carry. For a unit that led the nation most of the year in rushing, that is simply unacceptable. Arkansas game-planned for the dive play, and offensive coordinator Steve Addazio kept calling it – so it is hard to put all the fault on the backs. Even so, 3.5 yards per carry on 19 attempts is just not acceptable. Jeff Demps saved the unit from complete failure with his run and touchdown in the fourth quarter.
WIDE RECEIVERS: C+
For a group that has been lackluster all year…well…it continued to be this week. Three awful drops by Riley Cooper were simply inexcusable. David Nelson seemingly had his first important catch of the season and Deonte Thompson added the longest touchdown reception of his and Tebow’s Florida career on blown coverage. C- performance overall, but Thompson’s TD and Cooper’s fourth quarter heroics gain them a bit more clout.
TIGHT ENDS: B+
It is hard not to love what Aaron Hernandez is doing for this team. He literally kept the Gators in drives and in the game on numerous occasions Saturday. With career highs in receptions (seven) and yards (92), Hernandez was the lone bright spot and continues to be the most reliable player on the field. And he would have been graded higher if not for a costly red zone fumble.
OFFENSIVE LINE: C+
While it played respectable all game long, the offensive line didn’t open holes for the running backs and failed to keep the Arkansas defensive front seven away from Tebow, making him rush throws and out of the pocket often.
DEFENSIVE LINE: A
Frequently rushing only three or four players, the defensive line consistently got pressure on Razorbacks quarterback Ryan Mallett, who only completed 12 of 27 passing attempts. Defensive end Jermaine Cunningham led the unit with four tackles for loss and two sacks while Justin Trattou and Carlos Dunlap kept the pressure on. All of this without starting tackles Lawrence Marsh and Jaye Howard, too.
LINEBACKERS: B
For a unit that played the entire game without its leader, middle linebacker Brandon Spikes, I was pleased with their contributions. A lot of missed tackles and space for Arkansas running back Dennis Johnson were certainly failures, but A.J. Jones grabbed a sack and the unit played decently overall.
SECONDARY: C+
Sure, cornerback Joe Haden had a great game – even after being injured early in the third quarter on kickoff coverage. But Janoris Jenkins was pitiful, allowing the 75-yard touchdown and another long reception to Razorbacks WR Greg Childs. Safeties Ahmad Black, Will Hill and Major Wright played adequately, but all three missed key tackles throughout the course of the game. Overall, Mallett was silenced for the majority of the time – but allowing a few big plays to squeak through is unacceptable.
SPECIAL TEAMS: B+
On kickoff and punt returns, Brandon James continued to be nonexistent. On kickoff coverage, Florida allowed 145 yards – ouch. At least the kicking game prevailed. Punter Chas Henry continued to leave his recipients without the ability to return the ball, averaging 43 yards on three punts. Sturgis did miss his first field goal, but rebounded with three consecutive strikes including a 51-yarder and a 27-yard game-winner. Overall, Sturgis and Henry were two of the best players on the field Saturday night.
COACHING: C+
There was obviously something wrong this week at practice. Whether the team was too complacent coming off a victory over then-No. 4 LSU Tigers in Death Valley or there were just that many miscues in one half, the numerous fumbles and missed tackles throughout the game were haunting. Addazio never seemed to adjust to the Arkansas defense, which kept stopping the dive play and getting to Tebow quickly. He should have been calling screens and tosses, figuring out ways to get Florida’s playmakers the ball in space. The famous Banzai package simply did not work, and it took the Gators too long to switch away from it. A poor coaching job overall; head coach Urban Meyer and company are lucky their talented players bailed them out.
OVERALL: C
What is there left to say? A win in the SEC is a win in the SEC – even if it is by three points at home, in a game in which you were favored by more than 24 to a team that was 3-2 coming into the game. Saturday’s contest resembled the 2008 Ole Miss Rebels game in so many ways that it was scary. The difference between last year and this year is that the Gators pulled out the victory, even if it lost the respect of the AP voters.
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