Five Thoughts from the Gators' loss to LSU

GAINESVILLE, Fla. — The Florida Gators dug a hole that they couldn’t get out of Saturday night in Ben Hill Griffin Stadium, falling 45-35 to the LSU Tigers.

Here are five thoughts from a night that had a better atmosphere in the stands than football on the field.

The elephant in the room

There is no way to defend the Gators’ third-down defense. Florida came into this week ranked 125th in the country on third down. Last week Missouri converted on 9-of-17 attempts and Billy Napier said a lot of that was correctable.

Nothing was corrected in the week between Missouri and LSU.

The Tigers converted on 8-of-12 third downs and went 2-for-2 on fourth down. LSU averaged 15.3 yards per play on third down. That included gains of 40, 14, 13, 26, and 54. It’s inexcusable.

“All parts of our team need to improve. Statistically third down defense is not an area, we’re not very good. We’ve taken ownership of that,” Napier said. “I think it’s a combination of everything. it’s a combination of schematics, a combination of personnel, a combination of fundamentals, detail and assignment and individual matchups. That’s what’s great about the game. It’s a team game. Tons of people contribute to each one of those. I do believe that we’ve got a group that takes ownership of what they can do better. Players and coaches. I think we’ll work hard to improve that for sure.”

Florida won’t win many more games allowing opposing offenses to gain 15 yards every third down. Luckily, the Gators will get a bye week to figure it out, but nothing the team has done to “correct” the issue lends one to have confidence that it will get corrected before they face Georgia in Jacksonville.

Louisiana boys show out against their home-state team

The Gators have six players from the state of Louisiana on its roster but two, in particular, showed out Saturday night.

Montrell Johnson (from New Orleans) finished the game with 57 yards on 13 carries and two touchdowns. Trevor Etienne (from Jennings) carried the ball just eight times for 28 yards but found the end zone as well on a key drive.

“That’s my guy,” Anthony Richardson said of Johnson. “Him being Louisiana, him and Trev, it means a lot for them just being out there and making plays against LSU. So, I want to give a shout-out to them. Those guys, Trell and Trev, they always come out there and make plays for me.

“They take the load off of me and they make the O-line happy when they’re making those big runs. So, I love those guys and I’m glad they’re on the team to make plays against a team like that.”

We need to look at the rules

Football is physical. In the last decade, both the NFL and college football decision-makers have changed rules in an effort to make a dangerous game safer. Whether that is a genuine effort to try and protect the players or protect the leagues and institutions from future litigation can be argued.

Saturday night, Gervon Dexter was called for roughing the passer. Here is the play.

What is a defensive tackle supposed to do in this situation? The tackle is clean. There’s no targeting. He wraps up the quarterback and completes the tackle. He doesn’t drive Jayden Daniels into the ground.

The call of roughing the passer, for simply completing a football play, erased an interception for Jason Marshall, which would have given Florida the ball in LSU territory trailing by only seven. It gave LSU 15 yards, which helped the Tigers kick a field goal to ice the game.

I’m all for protecting players. If this is roughing the passer (by the letter of the law) than the right call was made and the rule needs to be changed. Or put flags on the quarterbacks and call it a day.

No turnovers

Florida came into Saturday’s game with a 0.0 turnover margin having created 10 turnovers while also coughing up the ball 10 times. Saturday was the first time in 2022 that UF didn’t have a turnover.

Unfortunately for the Gators, winning the turnover battle (1-0) didn’t result in a win. Although if Marshall’s interception had stood, it may have led to overtime.

Richardson had his first turnover-free performance since the season opener. It was initially ruled that he fumbled on a play late in the fourth quarter, but the call was overturned.

“That is something I’ve tried to continue to improve on — handling the ball better, managing the game better and spreading the football to my teammates,” Richardson said after the game.

Recruiting impact

The atmosphere at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium was fantastic. The announced crowd of 90,585 was treated to a 51-yard touchdown pass on the first play of the game and the cement foundation of Ben Hill Griffin Stadium shook. The Tigers were able to go on a run and neutralize the crowd some but they didn’t stay quiet long.

Speaking with a recruit’s parent after the game, I was told that it was the loudest stadium they’d ever been to. The Swamp, Gator Nation, made an impact on the high school recruits in attendance.

Ultimately, Florida is in year one of a rebuilding process. With more than 100 recruits in attendance, Billy Napier was asked about not getting the result the team wanted Saturday night and what his message will be to prospects.

“I think that making a decision to come to the University of Florida is more than a single event, is what I would say. It’s more than football. I think you make a decision to come to the University of Florida for a lot more than one event. Obviously, all the players and their families that are here, this is a special and unique place that has a lot to offer,” Napier said.

“There’s no question that that was a great display of that tonight. The passion here, the history and tradition here. The desire to get back to where we all know Florida is capable of being. I think it’s been 14 years since Florida has won the SEC and a National Championship. We’ve got work to do.”

“These young men can contribute to that cause. This is a place that is going to have a long-term impact on who they are as a person. The degree they’re going to receive as a student here and the caliber of football that they’re going to play and develop. This is a process. You’ve gotta make the necessary changes going forward.”

That is a message only afforded to a coach in their first year. Napier can tell recruits that they can be part of the turnaround. That the product on the field is what was inherited, not indicative of the future. That they can be part of turning the Florida Gators back into a great program.