It’s been 14 years since the 2008 Gators, led by Jesus’ son, Tim Tebow, and his merry band of thugs beat Oklahoma in the BCS National Championship Game. The Gators haven’t sniffed that kind of success since. They’ve gone through 4 coaches, been ranked in the top 5 multiple times, and continued to produce NFL talent, yet have consistently underwhelmed.
After starting the season unranked, the Gators made their Top 25 debut in week 2 after upsetting #7 Utah at home in the season opener. With #12 Kentucky coming to the Swamp in week 2, the Gators could have made a serious push at being a top 10 team with a win, and a borderline top 5 team with a convincing win, yet we all know what happened next. An ugly loss.
Week 3 saw them go the distance in a win against South Florida, a non-power 5, unranked opponent that came in with a 1-1 record.
So after 3 weeks, they sit at 2-1 with SEC play continuing this upcoming Saturday against the Volunteers in Knoxville.
So who are the 2022 Gators? Are they the team that saw their Quarterback, Anthony Richardson, ball out in Week 1 against Utah or are they the pedestrian team that struggled to put up points and turned the ball over? Are they the dynamic team that made a ton of big plays in week one (see: interception, endzone), or are they the squad that shows brief flashes of playmaking surrounded by lots and lots of…nothing?
From an offensive weapons standpoint outside of the QB, true freshman Trevor Etienne has been a solid running back but is not a game changer. Yet. And their receiving corps are unspectacular but solid.
Defensively they have been just fine giving up 26, 26, and 28 points through three weeks. Those point totals may not look great, but remember they have played two ranked teams and another legit FBS opponent, unlike most schools who are cleaning up on the likes of ”South Texas A&M Western” to the tune of 50-3.
To the untrained eye, it sure seems like more of the same from the post-Tebow Gators. Showing just enough to keep you interested, but are unable to win when they need to against opponents they should beat.
Ultimately, this week in Knoxville will show us who they really are. Number 12 Tennessee is a ten-point favorite against number 22 Florida in the largest pro-Tennessee spread in a LONG TIME. If the Gators come out and win, they’re for real with two wins against top 12 teams. If they come out flat and lose big, well, it’ll be more of the same in Gainsville.
All of this means nothing though because Florida is going to lose 54-7 to Georgia on October 29th in Jacksonville 🙂
