Kentucky @ Florida game...

[Gator Fever]

Huge Kentucky game to determine what kind of season we have. Just looked at some of their game with Miami, OH. The good thing that stood out for them was kick returns as they returned a kickoff for a TD and were just short of a TD on a punt return.

They were struggling protecting the QB on passing downs and their QB seems to definitely have a #1 target so if we can lock that receiver down pretty good they might have issues. Maybe it was mostly 1st game jitters but KY didn't look as strong as they did last season to me.

 

[GatorNation79]

I'll be in the Swamp w/ @gatorbuilderorlando and some family. I expect it to be a dog fight. We'll see how it plays out but the thing that has sticks out in my mind is that our offense can move the ball. We're going to run the ball and we have a QB who looks to pass first but can absolutely murder you when he runs. I think we take it to the Cats.

 

[Countygator1]

KY QB is really good. Best two QBs we will see during the regular season we get the first two games. Utah is a good team.

 

[Gator Fever]

KY QB is really good. Best two QBs we will see during the regular season we get the first two games. Utah is a good team.

Watched more of what was going on with Kentucky's O line in that 1st game. Their LT was really struggling in pass protection. Cox will have a field day if they don't put a TE out there to assist him.

 

[NamelessOne]

Huge Kentucky game to determine what kind of season we have. Just looked at some of their game with Miami, OH. The good thing that stood out for them was kick returns as they returned a kickoff for a TD and were just short of a TD on a punt return.

They were struggling protecting the QB on passing downs and their QB seems to definitely have a #1 target so if we can lock that receiver down pretty good they might have issues. Maybe it was mostly 1st game jitters but KY didn't look as strong as they did last season to me.

Our O-line (which has been so strong the past few years) lost so much talent that it was bound to happen. Basically entire left hand side is our weakness. Only positive is Stoops said after the game that it wasn't a talent issue, that it was just because they are so young and are not recognizing stunts and blitzes and that it was coachable. I wish I was that optimistic, however I feel that they are not gonna adjust until around the end of the season. We will most likely just continue to put a tight end in to help.

Levis looked pretty good when he had time. We have 1 go to wide receiver that's replaced Wandale, and 2 true freshman that everyone is super excited about. We have transformed from a running team to a passing team. Rodriguez is gonna be out again (most likely) but I'm not sure how much of a difference he would make really since our line is no longer getting the push it was last year.

Our special teams looked the best they have in probably a decade. Defense played exceptionally well except for the opening drive. We got a true fresh named Deone Walker in the middle of the line that's gonna be a star.

I think before the Florida game last night, I was more confident we could pull off the upset. Not so much now. I seen on some of the other gator forums predicting a 3 or 4 score win, I can't see that. I think it goes down to the wire either way

 

[SwampMaster]

I look forward to watching UK fake injuries all game in order to slow down our offense.

 

[NorthJerseyGator]

KY QB is really good. Best two QBs we will see during the regular season we get the first two games. Utah is a good team.

Stetson Bennett is better than those.

 

[IrishPokerDog]

Watched more of what was going on with Kentucky's O line in that 1st game. Their LT was really struggling in pass protection. ….

Our starter at LT is a RS Freshman ….. and he plays soft and doesn’t get under the pass like he should….. his backup is a true Frosh

they gonna grow up Saturday

 

[anon_ce2llurbpkli4]

Cat fan here. We couldn’t contain the slow unathletic QB from Miami who scrambled for 28 yards. AR will have a field day rushing. In any event, I’ll be attending my first game at The Swamp. Coming up from Port Charlotte.

 

[Countygator1]

Stetson Bennett is better than those.

Stetson is surrounded by first rounders at TE, OL, and WR. Not hard to play QB with the talent he has around him. Both Utah and KY QBs will be drafted IMHO...

 

[Countygator1]

Cat fan here. We couldn’t contain the slow unathletic QB from Miami who acrambled for 28 yards. AR will have a field day rushing. In any event, I’ll be attending my first game at The Swamp. Coming up from Port Charlotte.

For some reason KY gets up for Florida more than any team on their schedule outside of maybe the Ville. Cats will most likely play better than yesterday.

 

[TEBOW TIME]

Gonna be interesting if Rodriquez for Kentucky plays. He seems to be in hot water.

 

[GatorNation79]

Cat fan here. We couldn’t contain the slow unathletic QB from Miami who acrambled for 28 yards. AR will have a field day rushing. In any event, I’ll be attending my first game at The Swamp. Coming up from Port Charlotte.

Great part of the state...I used to build some in North Port, Cape Coral and Port Charlotte and some of those area. I love that part of the state.

 

[instaGATOR]

Gonna be interesting if Rodriquez for Kentucky plays. He seems to be in hot water.

Standard NCAA/SEC practice for many decades, (includes us all btw).
The first 1-2 usually patsy opponent games is where you punish/discipline players that got in trouble over talking season, but they almost always make it back punished and forgiven by the time a 'real' opponent appears on the schedule. 😉 So I expect UK to follow that long used system...

 

[NamelessOne]

Gonna be interesting if Rodriquez for Kentucky plays. He seems to be in hot water.

Standard NCAA/SEC practice for many decades, (includes us all btw).
The first 1-2 usually patsy opponent games is where you punish/discipline players that got in trouble over talking season, but they almost always make it back punished and forgiven by the time a 'real' opponent appears on the schedule. 😉 So I expect UK to follow that long used system...

I doubt it. I see a lot of (not you guys, but on TOS) "Stoops is gonna bring him back for this game, cause he's dirty and will do anything to win.". But the fact is it's not even the athletic departments call.

Theres a lot going of friction right now at UK between the AD...the 2 big coaches...and the school president. This is why you seen the Cal comment earlier this month about "UK is a b-ball school" which was meant to put the AD in a tough spot over some gym he wants. While our AD (who doesnt like Cal) responded by saying if our coaches dont like it, they're welcome to leave.

It should be mentioned our AD is very anti-NIL and was trying his best to stop it. This prompted both the basketball/football programs to go over his head and go straight to the governor. Who then with the state legislators passed laws favorable to NIL etc.

So of course this pissed off the AD, and I have no idea where the president stands.

But C-Rod was suspended 1 game because of the DUI. The other suspension is more to do with the pissing war he's been caught in between the president/AD/coaches.

This has been stretched out over summer with a "announced suspension coming any day" that never has. It was supposed to be officially announced the week before the opening game, and Stoops again basically dodged the question (because he has no idea). The school seems to using C-Rod as a hostage more than anything.

Regardless, I doubt he's back next week. Hope that clears it up some

 

[ghost_of_ukalum1988]

I was at the game last night and was unpleasantly surprised at how poorly our OL played against a MAC school. 26 rushing attempts for 50 yards….including negative yardage from 4 sacks. Not a single run over 10 yards. QB Levis was hurried multiple other times in making bad throws.

On the positive side, special teams play was stellar. Defense played well for the most part after allowing a TD on the opening drive. I like our WRs, and already believe they can be better than last year.

I’m less confident at UK beating the Gators now than I was before last nights game. We’ll see…..

 

[Gator Fever]

I was at the game last night and was unpleasantly surprised at how poorly our OL played against a MAC school. 26 rushing attempts for 50 yards….including negative yardage from 4 sacks. Not a single run over 10 yards. QB Levis was hurried multiple other times in making bad throws.

On the positive side, special teams play was stellar. Defense played well for the most part after allowing a TD on the opening drive. I like our WRs, and already believe they can be better than last year.

I’m less confident at UK beating the Gators now than I was before last nights game. We’ll see…..

Watching more of that you better hope that O line turns it around fast or you could be looking at a 6-6 type season. Besides the pass protection issue they weren't run blocking that good either like you say. Your defense looked decent though. If you had your normal rushing game I would be a little worried with our defense but I think our D line will probably hold up pretty well after watching a lot of that game.

 

[ghost_of_ukalum1988]

I doubt it. I see a lot of (not you guys, but on TOS) "Stoops is gonna bring him back for this game, cause he's dirty and will do anything to win.". But the fact is it's not even the athletic departments call.

Theres a lot going of friction right now at UK between the AD...the 2 big coaches...and the school president. This is why you seen the Cal comment earlier this month about "UK is a b-ball school" which was meant to put the AD in a tough spot over some gym he wants. While our AD (who doesnt like Cal) responded by saying if our coaches dont like it, they're welcome to leave.

It should be mentioned our AD is very anti-NIL and was trying his best to stop it. This prompted both the basketball/football programs to go over his head and go straight to the governor. Who then with the state legislators passed laws favorable to NIL etc.

So of course this pissed off the AD, and I have no idea where the president stands.

But C-Rod was suspended 1 game because of the DUI. The other suspension is more to do with the pissing war he's been caught in between the president/AD/coaches.

This has been stretched out over summer with a "announced suspension coming any day" that never has. It was supposed to be officially announced the week before the opening game, and Stoops again basically dodged the question (because he has no idea). The school seems to using C-Rod as a hostage more than anything.

Regardless, I doubt he's back next week. Hope that clears it up some

Yeah, Coach Cal was his usual self-promoting self with his basketball school comments in pleading for a new practice facility. It was not helpful at all. The rift seems to have been smoothed over.

There are rumors that Rodriguez is in hot water for some combination of NIL / summer employment issues. Agreed that he is likely to miss multiple games.

 

[Jeff from Jax]

Stetson Bennett is better than those.

North Jersey,

No Kidding !

Bennett in addition to rushing twice for 8 yds

25

31

368 yds

2 TD

0 INT

 

[PacoGator19]

I expect UF will beat Kentucky.

 

[BayouGator1995]

We'll take it to the Kitty Cats next week. Here Kitty Kitty...

 

[TEBOW TIME]

We'll take it to the Kitty Cats next week. Here Kitty Kitty...

If Rodriguez plays will have a lot to do with the outcome

Update on pending Chris Rodriguez suspension

C-Rod now appears likely to miss multiple games this season.

www.aseaofblue.com

 

[instaGATOR]

Time to start another 30+ streak? 😁

 

[Countygator1]

North Jersey,

No Kidding !

Bennett in addition to rushing twice for 8 yds

25

31

368 yds

2 TD

0 INT

KY QB ranked 3rd on 2023 QB draft board and Utah QB ranked 15th. Bennett not ranked.

 

[PacoGator19]

KY QB ranked 3rd on 2023 QB draft board and Utah QB ranked 15th. Bennett not ranked.

Those other guys are pretty good and Bennett is 5’11 190. Not many 5’11 QBs get drafted high

 

[Countygator1]

Those other guys are pretty good and Bennett is 5’11 190. Not many 5’11 QBs get drafted high

Bennet surrounded by NFL guys with at least 3 on offense that will be first rounders. Not hard to play QB for puppies right now. But my original point is the QBs we face in the first two games will be most likely the best we see during the regular season.

 

[Gator Fever]

Bennet surrounded by NFL guys with at least 3 on offense that will be first rounders. Not hard to play QB for puppies right now. But my original point is the QBs we face in the first two games will be most likely the best we see during the regular season.

You may be right but because of KY's O line issues I think Hooker will definitely have a lot better game against us. That Utah QB is a lot better than people realize.

 

[IrishPokerDog]

I was at the game last night and was unpleasantly surprised at how poorly our OL played against a MAC school. 26 rushing attempts for 50 yards….including negative yardage from 4 sacks. Not a single run over 10 yards. QB Levis was hurried multiple other times in making bad throws.

On the positive side, special teams play was stellar. Defense played well for the most part after allowing a TD on the opening drive. I like our WRs, and already believe they can be better than last year.

I’m less confident at UK beating the Gators now than I was before last nights game. We’ll see…..

We had a few hiccups on Saturday - Valentine and the edges seem to have miscommunication a few times in the secondary, ends/edges playing too far off of WR as they come offLOS, Cox getting caught out of position on pass protection; and I mentioned the LT position above

fixable? Yes. But getting that all fixed before the visit to the Swamp is a tall order

 

[PacoGator19]

You may be right but because of KY's O line issues I think Hooker will definitely have a lot better game against us. That Utah QB is a lot better than people realize.

Hooker will also be at home and is in a more high powered offense than what UK has. Cam Rising is a good QB. We will see a lot of pretty good QBs this year.

 

[sadgator]

History and percentages tell you that Florida will win.

That said, Florida’s D is so questionable it is certain to be a dogfight to the end (see what sadgator did there)…

The swamp won’t be as rocking…energy won’t be as high…Florida won’t be as jacked up….

sadgator would say Florida in a close game, but he has no confidence in the pick.

 

[ghost_of_ukalum1988]

We had a few hiccups on Saturday - Valentine and the edges seem to have miscommunication a few times in the secondary, ends/edges playing too far off of WR as they come offLOS, Cox getting caught out of position on pass protection; and I mentioned the LT position above

fixable? Yes. But getting that all fixed before the visit to the Swamp is a tall order

Are you going to the game on Saturday? My wife and I are going to stop by the UF Engineering tailgate ~ 5 pm, and got my tickets in the visitors section.

 

[ghost_of_ukalum1988]

If Rodriguez plays will have a lot to do with the outcome

Update on pending Chris Rodriguez suspension

C-Rod now appears likely to miss multiple games this season.

www.aseaofblue.com

No C-Rod as expected. #15 Jordan Wright (LB) also not not listed for second straight week. Looks like Horsey is good to play LT this week which is good.

 

[Gator Fever]

View embedded media

No C-Rod as expected. #15 Jordan Wright (LB) also not not listed for second straight week. Looks like Horsey is good to play LT this week which is good.

Is he your left guard or tackle? I though I heard he would be in at guard but I guess not. C-Rod could make some difference if you get some run blocking finally. Smoke didn't have hardly any holes to run through that first game.

 

[ocalaman]

Our defensive line was not good in any aspect against Utah. So they have to prove they can stop the run and put a decent pass rush on the QB if we're going to beat Kentucky. We may just have to score a bunch of points to win. And as long as it's 1 more than them, I'm OK with that.

 

[Dannygator1989]

I was shocked at how poor Kentucky's OL looked.

 

[Gator Fever]

Our defensive line was not good in any aspect against Utah. So they have to prove they can stop the run and put a decent pass rush on the QB if we're going to beat Kentucky. We may just have to score a bunch of points to win. And as long as it's 1 more than them, I'm OK with that.

I watched a little bit of it again and that QB just doesn't let you sack him - the same as last season. Cox a few times would have been all over a standard QB in that game. I agree the rushing defense could be better but I was glad we never totally melted against the run like last season. That big RB of theirs had 5 yards a carry which I would have took at the start of the game. The QB getting 90 yards rushing was annoying however. I look for Cox to have a really big day if they don't leave a tight end in there on most passing plays. Even the left tackle that missed their first game and will play against us was getting tore up by Iowa some in that bowl game with the speed rushers.

 

[Dannygator1989]

I hate to agree with insta on anything but no holding calls against Utah in that kind of offense? Comical.

 

[ghost_of_ukalum1988]

Is he your left guard or tackle? I though I heard he would be in at guard but I guess not. C-Rod could make some difference if you get some run blocking finally. Smoke didn't have hardly any holes to run through that first game.

From what more knowledgeable posters on the UK board have stated, his natural position is LG, but can play LT. Obviously we’re in a bit of a bind and he’s going to play LT this Saturday.

 

[GatorNation79]

The swamp won’t be as rocking…energy won’t be as high…Florida won’t be as jacked up….

Disagree...the Swamp is going to be rocking...coming off of a huge win where we were an underdog...after losing to KY last year, new coach and new hope...we're going to be on fire!

 

[sadgator]

Disagree...the Swamp is going to be rocking...coming off of a huge win where we were an underdog...after losing to KY last year, new coach and new hope...we're going to be on fire!

It’ll be a good environment, but it won’t be quite what it was last week…it’s impossible to generate that kind of energy in back to back weeks…and no offense to Kentucky…but nobody really cares about them… there will be a bit of a letdown…it’ll be interesting to see how Florida responds to that….