Billy Napier hopes 'it's not a track meet' when Florida faces Tennessee
Tennessee’s offense never got on track in the 19-14 loss at Arkansas Saturday night. The Vols finished with just 332 total yards, scored on only two possessions and punted seven times, with two other drives ending with a turnover on downs.
Nico Iamaleava completed just 17 of 29 passes for 158 yards, without a touchdown or an interception, and the Vols ran 36 times for 174 yards and two touchdowns as a team.
Of the 332 total yards, 135 came on the first two drives of the second half, both ending with Dylan Sampson touchdown runs.
Still, Florida coach Billy Napier knows what the Vols (4-1, 1-1 SEC) are capable of, especially as they return home to host the Gators (3-2, 1-1) on Saturday night (7 Eastern Time, ESPN) at Neyland Stadium.
“The challenge of playing on the road in this league,” Napier said, “that’s been the case for a lot of teams in our league, not just Tennessee. I think we would probably say the same.”
What Napier doesn’t want is to get caught trading points with Tennessee. He doesn’t want the Vols getting back to their old selves.
“In general,” Napier said, “I hope it’s not a track meet.”
Florida’s defense rebounded in 24-13 win over UCF
Florida started the season by giving up 41 points to Miami in Gainesville on August 31. Texas A&M jumped out to a 33-7 lead two weeks later at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium. The Gators have rebounded with a 45-28 win at Mississippi State and a 24-13 win over UCF.
The win Saturday night was Florida’s best defensive performance, allowing UCF to gain just 273 total yards (165 passing, 108 rushing) with just one touchdown.
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Florida is 14th in the SEC in scoring defense, giving up 24.4 points per game. The Gators are 15th in the league against the run (172.6 yards allowed per game), 13th against the pass (222.4) and 15th in total defense (395.0).
“I do think like ultimately, when you play Tennessee, you know there will be an element of strategy, in regards to keeping up,” Napier said. “How do you do that? I think last year we were able to play complementary football in the game, and I think there is a component to that.”
Tennessee’s defense leads the SEC in total defense
It was a Florida track meet early on last season in Gainesville, with the Gators jumping out to a 26-7 halftime lead after a 20-point second quarter.
Tennessee led 38-21 midway through the fourth quarter in Knoxville in 2022, before the Gators scored twice in the final five minutes to get the difference back to one possession in the 38-33 loss.
This Tennessee defense has been the best of the Josh Heupel era, leading the league in total defense (227.6), second against the run (68.0), third against the pass (159.6) and third in scoring (9.4).
“Points are a premium,” Napier said. “You do what you got to do to score … this is not just an offensive football team. I think they are pretty good on defense in my opinion, personnel … so they’re ranked and been highly regarded in the pre-season for a lot of reasons. I think ultimately that’s what I see on tape.”
