Two-A-Days: Florida Gators

Two-a-Days rolls on with our seventh installment, in which we take a closer look at the Florida Gators.

To read previous entries, click HERE.

Florida in a flash:

Head Coach: Urban Meyer, 6th year
2009 Record: 13-1 (8-0 SEC), beat Cincinnati in the Sugar Bowl
2009 Stats: Total offense, 457.86 ypg (1st in SEC, 6th nationally); Total defense, 252.57 ypg (2nd SEC, 4th nationally)
Coaching Changes: Teryl Austin became Florida's third defensive coordinator since December when left the Arizona Cardinals to replace George Edwards, who was on the job for just a month after replacing longtime DC Charlie Strong. Recruiting coordinator and receivers coach Billy Gonzoles also left, replaced by Zach Azzanni. Cornerbacks coach Vance Bedford and running backs coach Kenny Carter also left. Stan Drayton, who coached at Florida in the earlier part of the decade, returns as running backs coach. D.J. Durkin takes over defensive ends and special teams. Oh, and Urban Meyer has been in and out as he takes occasional leaves of absence.
Starters Returning: Offense (6), Defense (7), Special Teams (2)
Key Player Losses: QB Tim Tebow, WR Riley Cooper, TE Aaron Hernandez, C Maurkice Pouncey, LB Brandon Spikes, CB Joe Haden, S Major Wright, DE Carlos Dunlap
Big Games: @ Alabama (10/2), LSU (10/9), Georgia (10/30) @ Florida State (11/27)
Non-Conference Slate: Miami, Ohio (9/4), South Florida (9/11), Appalachian State (11/20), Florida State (11/27)

After yet another season dominating the SEC East, Florida remains the likely favorite once again. But this year, the Gators will go to battle without a number of stars, most notably quarterback Tim Tebow, who was taken in the first round of the NFL draft by the Denver Broncos. So while the talent level remains high at Florida, there are plenty of questions about the new-look defense, the ability of John Brantley and the development of some offensive playmakers to boot.

So, how much will be reloading and how much will be rebuilding? For those answers, I turned to Orlando Sentinel beat writer Jeremy Fowler, who, contrary to recent reports, is not a bad guy…

David Hale: The obvious topic of debate -- and one you found yourself in the middle of earlier this spring -- is the transition from Tim Tebow to John Brantley. First off, what have you seen from Brantley this spring? Is he taking that leadership mantle that Tebow handled so well, too? And given that the two are dramatically different in terms of what type of QB they are, how much might Florida's offense need to change along with the QB?

Jeremy Fowler: Brantley has handled the transition well so far. He wasn't flawless this spring, but he was impressive in the spring game. He seems to rise when the lights come on. His arm's never been in question, but the leadership process will take some time. I think he's good in the huddle, but we don't know what type of poise and leadership he'll display in, say, Tuscaloosa on Oct. 2. He's trying to shed his aw-shucks demeanor. Florida will still run the option, still run with the quarterback, but not nearly as much as with Tebow. You will probably see a lot more screen passes with hybrid WRs/RBs such as Chris Rainey. Lots of quick routes for short gains. And Florida has backup QB Trey Burton, who runs a 4.5 40, to spare Brantley some of the wear and tear of rushing.

DH: Florida's offense had some serious problems in the red zone last year, and now Tebow -- the Gators' best red-zone threat -- is gone. How have they worked to correct that issue this spring?

JF: One of the issues was playcalling. Florida got so predictable by rushing Tebow over and over. Florida must rely on its running backs more, and at least in the spring, the Gators showed they aren't afraid to make the tough throws in the red zone. They must get less timid. It's too early to tell whether they will overcome last year's red-zone struggles, but the Gators look like they are in the right direction.

DH: Charlie Strong was the bane of Georgia's existence for a long time. Now he's at Louisville. What's been different on the defensive side of the ball with Teryl Austin in as DC now? And what's the dynamic between Austin and co-defensive coordinator Chuck Heater?

JF: Strong is a huge loss, and the Gators will have a new identity under Austin. Not so much with formations -- the Gators will mix 4-3 and nickel package like last year -- but with utilizing talents. Florida's defense will be faster this year, especially at linebacker. The Gators are trying to teach all the young LBs how to play numerous positions in order to maximize speed. Florida can't rely on the sacks that Carlos Dunlap and Jermaine Cunningham used to produce, so the key is letting LBs and DBs play free. Heater coaches safeties but also oversees the secondary and serves as a second pair of eyes for Austin, who also coaches cornerbacks. They seem to work well together.

DH: Aaron Hernandez, Riley Cooper, Brandon Spikes, Joe Haden, Carlos Dunlap... the list of other big-name Gators moving on to the NFL goes well beyond Tebow. So who have been some of the younger players to step up this spring that might be able to fill in those gaps?

JF: Linebackers Jelani Jenkins and Jon Bostic, both sophomores, look ready to contribute early and often. Great combination of speed and size. Look out for Jaye Howard, a combo DE/DT, to flourish on the defensive line along with DT Omar Hunter, who's very powerful. Receivers with nice springs include Deonte Thompson, arguably the team's MVP over the last four weeks, Frankie Hammond and Omarius Hines. Mike Gillislee is a young running back who's been overshadowed by Jeff Demps, Rainey and Emmanuel Moody, but he's ready to contribute mightily next season. Could thrust himself into the second spot in the rotation since Moody's always hurt. Tight end will be the biggest question mark -- Jordan Reed and Gerald Christian have zero experience, though both are talented.

DH: From the Urban Meyer fake-retirement to the hiring of a new DC that bolted a month later to all the hubbub over Tebow being unprepared for the NFL to the minor tussle between Meyer and some hack reporter from Orlando... it seems like most of the headlines at Florida lately have had little to do with what's going on with the players themselves. So will all of this turmoil have an affect this fall? How have the players reacted to all the fuss over Meyer and his status?

JF: Meyer's off-field issues would be a major problem if Meyer appeared uninterested, but he's been pretty fiery this spring. I think his confrontation with a reporter fueled his team, showed he will stick up for his guys under any circumstance. To be honest, the Meyer situation has been so confusing from day one that I don't know if anyone save Jeremy Foley and Meyer's family knows what's really going on. Just puzzling from start to finish. But Meyer seems to be affecting his team as normal, and recruiting obviously hasn't suffered.

I don't think any of the headlines will affect Florida this fall unless more drama happens during the season. For example, the Carlos Dunlap DUI days before the SEC title game was hard to overcome. Last year there was so much drama. This team should be able to avoid some of that, partly because the microscope isn't hovering over its every move. Tebow takes with him much of the attention.

The Gators should be a little better on offense but not as polished on defense, resulting in what I think will be a 10-2 season.

***

Many thanks to Jeremy for the great insight into the Gators' spring. You can read his Florida coverage HERE, check out his blog HERE or follow him on Twitter HERE.

So, do you agree with Fowler's 10-2 prediction? Or do you see Florida having more trouble overcoming the departures of Tebow, Strong, and company?

And don't forget, we'll be wrapping up Two-A-Days with an in-depth look at Georgia, so if you have questions you want answered, leave them in the comments section here or send me an email at dhale@macon.com.

NEXT UP: Ole Miss this afternoon.

Protecting Their Turf

The mood from fans yesterday seems pretty mixed. On one hand, you have the fans who are calling Signing Day a major fail for Georgia. On the other hand, you have fans going out of their way to defend what happened. As usual, the truth is probably somewhere in between.

The fact is, Georgia did land some very good players, and particularly on defense, a lot of solid depth for 2010 and stars for the future will enter the program in June. That's good. And Da'Rick Rogers is just one player -- and maybe even one who has the old Nuke LaLoosh attitude to boot -- so his loss probably won't make or break Georgia's claim to future SEC titles.

On the other hand, I think there were two very big areas of concern, and both were addressed by a couple of commenters.

First, from Muckbeast, who wrote:

"Also, look at how few of the top instate players we signed."

And this is the one thing that bothers and concerns me more than anything else.

It seems like this was a HUGE year for GA High School players. Why did we lose so many of them? :(

Indeed, Georgia didn't exactly protect its turf to the fullest. We talked about this at length a couple of weeks ago in one our in-depth recruiting posts, if you'll recall, and yesterday's results really underscored what might have well been considered a concern beforehand.

Of the top 10 recruits in the state, according to ESPN's rankings, Georgia landed just one -- Alec Ogletree. Now, to be fair, the Bulldogs did manage to snatch up four of the next 10. And to be even more fair, the No. 30 recruit in Georgia is roughly the same as the No. 2 recruit in, say, Arkansas.

So to say Georgia landed just one of the state's 10 best recruits certainly isn't the same as saying Georgia didn't ink a lot of very good players from the state -- 13 in all, to be precise, and just one of fewer than three stars.

But there is something to be said for protecting the borders and bringing in the best of the best that Georgia's very fertile recruiting trails have to offer. And when you stack the Bulldogs up against the competition, it really doesn't look like they did too well and keeping their best and brightest close to home.

To wit:

School	# of State Top 10	# to other SEC schools
Georgia	1	5
LSU	8	1
Tennessee	2	4*
Florida	6	0
Alabama	3	4
Auburn	2	5
South Carolina	5	3

* State still has one uncommitted player among its top 10 recruits.

None of the big guns in the SEC did a worse job of keeping its top 10 recruits than Georgia this year, and only Auburn allowed as many to land at another SEC school. And, to be fair yet again, Alabama and Auburn were the only schools on this list competing with another SEC school within its state's borders.

Even if we look at some other top national schools, Georgia comes up lacking.

School	# of State Top 10	# to other conf schools
Ohio State	4	1
Texas	7	2
Oklahoma	4	2*
USC	4	2
Penn State	4	2

* State still has one uncommitted player among its top 10 recruits.

Again, the only school we've looked at with as much trouble keeping top talent at home has been Tennessee -- and the Vols lost their head coach just weeks before signing day. That's not exactly the company you want to keep.

And yes, I know the argument that was brought up the last time that Georgia has a lot of border schools hoping to poach the state for prized recruits. That's true. But it doesn't mean it should be acceptable, and this year Georgia had the double whammy of missing out on a number of the best and brightest and instead seeing those players go to the Dawgs' main rivals.

Oh, and speaking of rivals, that brings me to the next point that a reader made that seems to be one of the more salient arguments that there shouldn't be much joy in Dawg-ville today.

Posted anonymously:

We can spin it all we want but this is a day that I would rather forget! I ask one simple question: have we made up ground on Florida or have we lost ground? Dawg Nation needs to wake the hell up! I'm tired of the spin machine that is Richt and Garner on "they got who they were targeting". Give me a break..we got taken behind the woodshed today and spanked. All is not well in Athens.

OK, perhaps "salient" was too strong a term. But the commenter has a point. Did Georgia make up ground on Florida yesterday? It's pretty hard to make the case that it did, and given the fact that the Gators have two of the past four national titles and have beaten Georgia in four of the last five head-to-head games, that's a problem.

And when it comes to protecting borders, it's hard to argue that Florida didn't do it as well as anyone. The Gators have a pretty talent-rich state chock full of poachers, too. And yet, they landed six of the best 10 players in the state, and not a one got away to another SEC school. That's dominating the recruiting trail. And if Florida's goal is to dominate, it should be Georgia's goal, too.

And the bigger problem? Urban "I'm risking my life to coach you!" Meyer didn't just dominate his home state. He was pretty dominant nationally, too.

Another somber rundown: Florida pulled the No. 6 player from Connecticut, the No. 6 player from Georgia, the No. 3 player from Alabama, the No. 1-ranked players in Pennsylvania, New York and Maryland, and the No. 1, No. 4 and No. 8 players out of California.

In other words, there were eight states in which Florida got as many top-10 recruits as Georgia got in its own state.

In other other words, Florida dominated California -- a state on the other side of the country -- far better than the Bulldogs recruited Georgia.

In the end, recruiting rankings don't mean everything, but they do mean something. And whatever that something amounts to, Georgia fell behind by a good bit of it to the one team it needs to start catching up to.

(Side note: Yes, I realize this was a fairly negative post, so I'm sorry to bum you out. I'll conclude then, with this note from Firebrand, which I think also offers some good perspective on things:

"What gives me hope is that we went through a lot this off-season. And we had a bad year on the field, as well. Hopefully this season sets us up for a huge 2011 in recruiting. I think the 3-4 should excite Athletes across the state to come play some attacking football."

Indeed. Anyone who wanted coaching changes had to know the risks involved.

What happened yesterday was, in part, due to those risks. But the future has potential, as Mark Richt said: "We’re very confident and trying to do the right thing. We’re also confident in that a lot of NFL teams and college teams are moving toward this trend, so we’re moving to the front end of this trend.”)

From Strong to Weak

So we know the whole Urban Meyer situation turned out to be a whole lot of nothing, but I figured it was worth passing along some other information about a coach who really is leaving Florida that might make nearly as big an impact.

Our pal Chris sent me an email last week summing up Charlie Strong's success against Georgia, and the numbers really are pretty staggering, both at South Carolina and Florida.

Strong's first year with the Gamecocks was 1999. Here's how Georgia fared against his defense in each season:

Year	vs. Strong	vs. rest of SEC
1999	24	31
2000	10	23
2001	9	26
2002	13	35
2003	13	29
2004	31	29
2005	10	28
2006	14	24
2007	42	27
2008	10	29
2009	17	31
Total	17.5	28

So for the past 11 years, Strong's defenses have essentially held Georgia to 11 points below their average against other SEC foes, and only twice in that span have the Bulldogs topped their season average against a Strong-led defense.

Add to that the huge losses in personnel on defense at Florida this season, and there's definitely some room for optimism.

Live Blog: Florida vs. Alabama

PREGAME UPDATE

Greetings from the Georgia Dome, home of an inordinate quantity of 'Bama bangs, a handful of NFL scouts looking for their next great fullback and NO FRIGGIN' COFFEE OR DESSERTS in the press box. What a sham!

Some pregame notes...

-- This blog will contain very little helpful information regarding the game. I'm here to make snide comments, occasionally let you know when a score happens, and in all likelihood, complain about the lack of quality press box fare for the next three hours.

-- So I had the TV on this morning while I was doing a little work. I was only casually listening to a classic Tom Rinaldi story (which are seriously paint-by-numbers melodrama at their finest) about a boy Tim Tebow made a promise of some sort to. I'm sure it was sweet and heartbreaking, but again, I really wasn't paying close enough attention to tell you any details. But this line I did hear: "To this day, one of the nine bracelets Tebow wears each day signifies that promise he made to a young boy." Nine bracelets? Seriously? It's like that scene in "Talladega Nights" where Will Ferrell has a Fig Newtons sticker on his windshield. We're three weeks away from Tebow rocking a fanny pack commemorating a promise he made to a homeless guy to bring him some extra chicken the next time he eats at a KFC.

-- Seriously, Tebow is a warrior. Don't forget that. Warrior.

-- Drink!

-- Oh, right... forgot to share the Tim Tebow drinking game... be sure to stock up on whiskey and read the rules in full.

-- If I find out the reason there were no press box desserts is because Terrence Cody ate six cheesecakes, I'm going to be very, very angry.

-- Brandon Dreaderick for Alabama is still rocking the Kid N Play haircut. Good for him.

-- The SEC gave us a form to fill out that includes all the information about our blogs so they can check to make sure we're properly following the rules of SEC blogging... and yet they provide no desserts. Even in George Orwell novels, I think people got to eat desserts.

START OF FIRST QUARTER

-- Florida fans booed Matt Stinchcomb in the pregame honors for the SEC Legends team. That didn't come anywhere close to how loudly Heath Shuler was booed though.

-- I'm not sure if there are more 'Bama fans here, but they are definitely louder and potentially drunker.

-- Bama takes the kickoff and returns it to the 22. I'd like to just take a moment of silence here to honor Jon Fabris. Where will we find real challenges next season?

-- Greg McElroy to Julio Jones for an 18-yard gain. By the way, Jeff Owens just suggested on his Twitter page that UGA do a black out in their bowl game. Whatever gets you pumped for Shreveport in late December, I suppose.

-- Interesting story from Urban Meyer about his trying to get a job from Nick Saban at Toledo 20 years ago... "I want to say 1989 I was a linebacker coach. I made this clear, too, not a very good linebacker coach at Illinois State University. Wanted to move back to Ohio. And somehow some way, there were no cell phones. I got a phone number and said call Coach Saban. Called Coach Saban, and his lovely wife picked up the phone and we chatted for about 10 minutes. I got her; she was sold. She was ready to go. And then I remember telling Shelly at the time -- I think she was my fiancee at the time, "Looks like we're going to Toledo." The phone call never came back. I had her; I didn't get him."

I'm struggling to come up with a joke that could be deemed "tasteful."

-- Impressive first drive by Bama so far, which just secured a first down at the Florida 37.

-- I think Florida fans are mad it's not really jorts weather.

-- Third-and-4 from the 31 for Bama. McElroy hits Jones in stride, but Julio bobbles the ball and can't come down with the catch. Somewhere, A.J. Green is rolling his eyes.

-- Leigh Tiffin on for the 48-yard field goal -- a short wobbler that still manages to float over the crossbar. Alabama 3, Florida 0, 10:37 left (10-50-4:23).

-- Courtney Kupets honored on the field as the SEC's scholar athlete of the year. She's nearly as tall as Mike Slive. Seriously.

-- Tim Tebow is also honored as the SEC's best warrior who still wears bracelets.

-- If I had known there wouldn't be desserts, I would have just gone to watch the game on the big screen at Hooters with Carlos Dunlap.

-- Jeff Demps just drops a wide open second down pass along the sideline. Florida faces a third-and-8 now from its own 24. Tebow dances around in the backfield like he has to pee as Bama's pressure collapses the pocket, and like a true warrior, he throws the ball away. He's like Braveheart in a football helmet. Florida punts it away.

FIRST QUARTER, 9:29 REMAINING

-- Our old friend Paul Dehner is now covering Cincinnati and was blogging live from the UC-Pitt game today (which was a fantastic game). Sadly, I cannot read beyond his fourth entry. I hate you, Paul.

-- Greg McElroy looks fantastic so far. He completes a 19-yard pass on first down top open Bama's second drive.

-- Mark Ingram on the carry takes it all the way down to the Florida 35. This Gators defense has to be stunned.

-- Second drop of the game by Julio Jones, though to be fair, he was sandwiched between two Florida defenders as soon as the ball got to him. Third-and-7 at the UF32.

-- McElroy delivers a strike to Marquis Maze for the first down, and Ingram follows that with another nice run down to the 10. What Florida's defense really needs right now is someone to give them an impassioned speech. But who?

-- Ingram rumbles seven yards for a touchdown after a Florida penalty gives the Tide a first down. Leigh Tiffin misses the PAT. Alabama 9, Florida 0, 5:33 remaining in the first. (8-76-3:56)

FIRST QUARTER, 5:33 REMAINING

-- An anonymous poster seems to think I'm complaining too much about the lack of dessert options. Thankfully, a reasonable person (Gameday Chef) stepped in on my behalf: "Your job is not as prestigous and demanding as Mr. Hale's. Prestigious people get free food, it's just a reality of America. If Mr. Hale is forced to suck it up, as you advise, the Terrorists win."

Well said, sir.

-- Prestigious people also don't need working email accounts. That's why I'm OK with mine never getting fixed. I wanna be like Paul Sorvino in "Goodfellas." Just have like 10 people who take messages for me, and if it's really important, I'll walk to the payphone at the end of the block and call you back.

-- Tebow hits Deonte Thompson for a 19-yard gain to the 40. He's going to look exquisite in a Buffalo Bills uniform next year.

-- Florida crosses into Bama territory for the first time after Tebow converts a third-and-seven. After the game, he's getting a special bracelet to commemorate the event.

-- Speaking of my prestigious job... I haven't gotten a paycheck in a month. Apparently the last one got lost in the mail. I'm secretly curious if perhaps the newspaper industry has already folded and I just wasn't told. No paycheck and a lack of press box desserts are two of the seven signs of newspaper apocolypse. If Mike Lupica doesn't spend 10 minutes telling us how we need to stop worrying about Tiger's personnal life on "The Sports Reporters" tomorrow, then I'll know we're in real trouble.

-- Fourth-and-12 for Florida at the Bama 31, and Sturgis lines up for the field goal. But the Bama band is playing the "A-Team" theme song. This could be interesting.

-- Meh. Field goal is good. Alabama 9, Florida 3, 28 seconds left in the quarter (12-56-5:05). If you don't think that missed PAT isn't going to come back to haunt Bama, then clearly you have never gambled on sports.

-- By the way, I've already received three texts from my fellow handicapper Dan, each saying, "Shove it, Florida."

-- Ingram in the Wildcat for Bama. That works about as well as when Mike Vick is in the Wildcat for the Eagles.

-- By the way, I'm furious about this whole Vick situation. I could have easily gotten tickets for tomorrow's Birds-Falcons game right up until they signed Vick. Now he has produced absolutely nothing for the Eagles all year, but has put tickets for the game out of my price range (which, admittedly, isn't particularly high). I can't help but feel like this is exactly why Andy Reid signed him. I hate you, Andy Reid.

START OF SECOND QUARTER

-- Alabama faces a third-and-4 from its own 38. I think Greg McElroy has risen up to No. 2 on my list of favorite McElroys. You just can't top Chuck McElroy though. Now that was a good-lookin' fella.

-- Bama is forced to punt. Brandon James looks like he might have an angle for the end zone, but Tide punter PJ Fitzgerald makes a great tackle near the sideline at the UF35.

-- Some interesting first-quarter numbers: Total offense - Bama 119, Florida 58; rush yards - Bama 56, Florida 17; McElroy 5-7-63, Tebow 5-10-41.

-- Tebow's pitch to Bredon James finds Bama out of position and James darts into Bama territory, only a holding flag brings it back.

-- Marquis Johnson tips away Tebow's third-down pass, marking what could have been the 2nd pick of the game for The Warrior. I see what he's doing... showing some compassion for the enemy he's about to vanquish. He's been watching some Steven Segal films.

-- Note from anonymous commenter: "You forgot that ESPN/ABC/CBS doesn't allow any negative comments about Saint Tebow. They have their eyes on you, buddy."

-- Tim Tebow is a warrior. Tim Tebow is America's greatest human being. Tim Tebow will be great in the NFL. Yes, this is definitely David typing this. No, this is definitely not an SEC official who has hijacked his laptop. Hey, why doesn't this damned email work?

-- Great run by Trent Richardson to pick up seven yards. He broke about 43 tackles along the way. That brings up a third-and-3.

-- McElroy hits Maze for a 34-yard gain to the Florida 27. Bama is simply taking it to this Florida defense. Florida's Major Wright is hurt after the play and being attended to by Florida medical staff, who I assume will ask Tebow what his advice is before performing any real medical examination.

-- Tebow is actually standing by himself on the sideline with a headset on. I'm guessing he's listening to Air Supply's Greatest Hits.

-- OK, I gotta minimize some of the Tebow jokes. I wanna save some material for the second half.

-- If McElroy's receievers could hang on to the football, his numbers would be through the roof right now. Third-and-5 at the Florida 22.

-- Wow, what a run by McElroy. He goes to the sideline to avoid pressure, then sidesteps down the sideline as he's falling backward to pick up the first down. Chuck would be proud.

-- Interesting article from the Tampa Tribune on the early tailgating that Tech and Clemson fans are doing for the ACC title game. I'm confused though... I don't see a video game console anywhere in the accompanying photo of the Tech fan.

-- Oh wait, never mind... money quote: "David Boney of Savannah, Ga., grilled burgers and hot dogs a few feet from his car. His chemical engineering textbooks waited for him inside."

-- McElroy is sacked for a huge loss and Bama will line up to kick another field goal, this one from 34 yards out. Tiffin's kick is good. Bama 12, Florida 3, 6:03 remaining in the half (12-68-5:27)

SECOND QUARTER, 6:03 REMAINING

-- Passing yards so far: Alabama 116, Timmy 38.

-- So since Georgia isn't going to have but one defensive coach on staff for its bowl game, and since fans have been complaining about the defense for two straight years, I'd like to see the Indy Bowl set up a system whereby the fans do all the defensive playcalling for the Bulldogs. I'd be much more interested in watching that game. If you would like to have Bryan Evans start at safety, press 1. If you would like Bacarri Rambo to start, press 2. I mean, if "American Idol" can do it, why can't Georgia?

-- Tebow reverses field and runs for a gain of 23 to the Bama 38. He follows that by going straight up the middle for a gain of 15. He jumps around and celebrates but in no way draws attention to himself.

-- Tebow to David Nelson for a 23-yard TD. I have no idea what happened to Bama's defense on that drive. Just brutal. Alabama 12, Florida 10, 4:31 left in the half (4-70-1:32).

-- McElroy hits Ingram on a screen on the first play from scrimmage and Ingram darts down the sideline for 69 yards to the 3 before being pushed out. Urban Meyer asks if he can help Charlie Strong pack for Louisville.

-- Oh my there are some unattractive Alabama fans on the Jimbotron. One girl looked an awful lot like Zach Galifianakis. Also, I think I saw Chuck McElroy.

-- Ingram finishes what he started, rumbling three yards into the end zone. That didn't take long. Alabama 19, Florida 10, 3:32 remaining in the half (2-72-0:59).

-- Tebow hits Riley Cooper on first down for a 59-yard gain to the Alabama 21. What the heck happened to these defenses? Saban will now allow Kirby Smart to take Mark Richt's calls.

-- Interesting play on second down. Tebow tried to hit Aaron Hernandez in the end zone. Corey Reamer broke up the play, but in swatting the ball out of Hernandez's hands, nearly batted it right to another Florida receiver. In the end, however, it was much like a "Flash Forward" episode... a lot of buildup to nothing.

-- Fourth-and-4 with 1:21 to go at the 19 and Sturgis boots the field goal. Alabama 19, Florida 13, 1:18 remaining in the half (5-65-2:14).

-- Maybe there will be halftime desserts. Perhaps they were just saving the good stuff til then. Fingers crossed.

-- OK, be back after the half, hopefully with cheesecake.

HALFTIME UPDATE

-- There were cookies and brownies out. They ran out before I got to the front of the line. They replaced them with a bowl of oranges. This is the worst day of my life.

-- I gave Finebaum a dirty look, just to try to even out my karma. Then I thought, I think he'd probably be more frightened by someone who smiled at him. He gets dirty looks all the time.

-- Here's an interesting stat for you: If this game ended at halftime, this would represent the fourth-most yards a team has compiled against Florida's D all season.

-- The halftime highlight was clearly a girl schooling some dude from Florida in the Dr. Pepper football toss. Absolutely hilarious. If that guy's friends let him come back and sit with them they ought to all be escorted from the game.

-- The really sad thing, however, was that the girl who won the toss had a better arm than Tebow.

-- You know who I feel bad for? The guy in line in the men's room who, when a urinal opens up and he's at the front of the line, has to wave the guy behind him on through. It's just a signal to everyone else in there that, yes, he's waiting on the stall, and no, it's not going to be pretty. There's no alternative but to hang your head in shame in that situation.

-- And no, that was not myself I was referring to.

-- And one other press box note: There is an unusually high level of bad facial hair here today. I keep looking for Jonathan Crompton but haven't seen him yet.

START OF THIRD QUARTER

-- One of the truly sad things about writing these live blogs from the press box (other than the lack of dessert options) is that I don't get to make fun of the broadcast team. Big thanks to those of you who have filled me in on some of the Danielson-Lundquist gems. In the 2nd half, I'll just try to predict what they're saying, and if I get any right, then you have to drink.

-- Florida goes three and out to start the half and Chas Henry boots a punt that sets Bama up at its own 26. I have trouble respecting people who choose to go by "Chas." That's like someone named Doug going by "Doogie." And in a show about a 16-year-old doctor, the fact that he wanted to be called "Doogie" was probably the most unlikely plotline.

-- Ingram goes around right end for a two yard gain to bring up a third-and-1 at the 35 then follows that with a dive up the middle to pick up the first down. He's up to 65 yards and 2 TDs so far... not bad for a guy playing hurt.

-- McElroy goes deep and hits Maze for a 28-yard gain to the Florida 32. Bama has been in Florida territory in five of seven drives, with one of the short drives being the end of the half.

-- Beautiful over the shoulder grab by Colin Peek in the end zone. Just a great looking play all around. Tebow looks dazed on the sideline. Alabama 26, Florida 13, 9:53 left in the third quarter (5-74-2:48).

THIRD QUARTER, 9:53 REMAINING

-- Verne: "Oh my that was quite a catch by, uh, Peek."
Gary: "Hell yeah."
Verne: "And Tim Tebow looks stunned."
Gary: "Hell yeah."
Verne: "But he's a warrior. You know he has to be thinking about a comeback right now."
Gary: "We're out of bourbon."

-- Interesting note: Mark Ingram has officially posted the most rushing yards in a season ever by an Alabama player. That's pretty impressive. Gary: "Hell yeah."

-- If I had a quarter for every pass Alabama has batted down in the secondary today, I'd have enough to go by a dessert treat from the concessions. Doogie Henry, M.D. back on to punt.

-- I'm currently perusing the Wikipedia page for Shreveport to see what I'm in for during bowl week. Apparently there's quite a history of movies being filmed in Shreveport, including gems like "Soul Men," "Blonde Ambition" and "The Guardian." I'm really holding out hope I'll get to meet Tom Sizemore while I'm there.

-- Nice run for Trent Richardson sets Bama up with a first down at the 37. McElroy goes for the home run to Julio Jones, but it falls incomplete. You have to feel like another TD here would be a backbreaker for Florida.

-- Another interesting note: "Mardi Gras celebrations have been going on in Shreveport now for over 20 years." Wow, way to jump on the bandwagon early, Shreveport!

-- Alabama is up to 363 yards of offense -- the most any team has tallied against Florida this season. And there is still 20 minutes left in the game.

-- McElroy is averaging 21 yards per completion. Carlos Dunlap must be sick. And only partially due to that last shot of tequila. (Was that in poor taste? Wait, tequila always tastes poor. Nevermind.)

-- First down Bama at the Florida 38 and Richardson runs down the middle for 5. This Florida D is absolutely gassed. Tide is 7-of-10 on third down and Tebow is still searching for just the right adjectives to use before giving his inspirational speech. Dramatic moments, folks.

-- Verne: "This is very uncharacteristic for the Gators defense."
Gary: "But let's not forget what a warrior Tim Tebow is, Verne."
Verne: "He is indeed, Gary. Quite a warrior."

-- Make that 8-of-11 on third down for the Tide. Ingram just rumbled to the 12 yard line for a 10-yard gain. And that'll do it for the third quarter.

START OF FOURTH QUARTER

-- Apparently if you test drive a Ford, you get a free Tony Gonzolez fathead. I'm just curious, who actually buys fatheads? I can't fathom anyone with a girlfriend or a wife would be allowed to hang it up, and the things cost like $100. In fact, I would purposefully NOT test drive a Ford to avoid having a giant Tony Gonzolez stuck on my wall. Plus, you then avoid the danger of Matt Ryan haphazardly throwing a football at your wall every time he's under pressure from the defense.

-- My eyes must be deceiving me. I just saw a stat that said Tim Tebow had a 2-5 career record when trailing in the second half. That can't be right. I mean, he's th greatest player of our era. He always rallies his team back because he's so inspirational. The stat guy must have gotten into Verne's bourbon.

-- Anonymous comment: "Mark Ingram is circumcising Florida's D today." How had I waited this long to make a joke like that? I'm not on my game today.

-- First-and-goal from the 1 and Ingram barrels forward for his third touchdown of the game. Tebow is still calmly listening to Air Supply on the headset. I'm not sure the "All Out of Love" lyrics are going to be enough to inspire a comeback this time, Timmy. Alabama 32, Florida 13, 13:49 remaining (17-88-8:47).

-- I'm curious what CBS's argument is now for Tebow still winning the Heisman. I guess it's not his fault his teammates have let him down so much. I mean, he's told them they have to get inspired. What more do you want from him?

-- Lorenzo Washington absolutely levels Tebow in the backfield as he's drops back to throw. The ball comes loose, which is initially ruled a fumble. A review calls it an incomplete pass, however, because everyone knows Tebow doesn't fumble in the fourth quarter.

-- Tebow takes another huge shot but gets a pass off to Aaron Hernandez, who twists and turns down to the 28-yard line. Tebow completes a 22-yarder down to the 6 on the next play. His third pass, however, is picked off in the end zone by Javier Arenas, who will now go down in history as the guy who ruined college football for everyone.

FOURTH QUARTER, 11:51 REMAINING

-- Note from commenter: "On another totally irrelevant point, Verne likes cheese."

I bet that's who ate all the desserts. Damn you, Verne!

-- Three-and-out for Bama. Not exactly what Saban was hoping to see, I'm sure. On the other hand, he has to stand on six phone books to see much of anything anyway.

-- Big Jumbotron announcement for fans to stay off the field after the game. Just once, I'd like to be involved in a fans-rush-the-field situation. I'm tall, so I feel like I could really be helpful in a tearing-down-the-goalposts plan.

-- In case you're wondering, here's Tebow's eye black passage: "I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world. And look out for Arenas in the end zone."

-- What's worse, when I Googled that, there were already several news stories pointing it out.

-- What's even worse, when I just checked the comments, someone had already posted it.

-- I'll give Tebow credit, he makes a good billboard.

-- Fourth-and-3 at the Bama 13-yard line. Florida takes a timeout with 7:33 to play.

-- Pass is broken up. That should about do it. I'm heading to the field. I'm going to try to catch some of Tebow's tears in a plastic cup. I assume they'll eventually be useful in curing a deadly disease or something.

Practice Notes: Cox Copes With Criticism

Joe Cox swears he hasn’t owned a working computer in 18 months. At times it might have been an inconvenience, but lately, he’s been happy not to have it.

With Georgia’s 4-4 start to the season and Cox’s 12 interceptions to go along with the record, Cox hasn’t had much interest in surfing the Internet to see what fans are saying about his performance.

“Anybody can get on that and talk about sports,” Cox said. “That’s like me going on WebMD and talking like I’m a doctor and telling these guys what they should be doing in hospitals. That’s the least of my worries.”

It’s not that Cox doesn’t understand the concerns of fans. He freely admits that he hasn’t played well, and he said he would have understood if head coach Mark Richt had decided to bench him after last week’s three-interception performance against Florida.

But being at the center of a sea of criticism is no easy task, and the only real option, he said, is to avoid it.

“When you have a bad game, and you go out to eat the following week, you feel like there might be people at the restaurant talking bad about you,” he said. “It’s tough. You don’t want to go out sometimes and be places. I’ve changed so much in my life as far as how much I do and where I go just based on the role that I have on the football team. It’s tough to get used to. You never know how crazy it is until you’re really in that position.”

Cox said he even warns his parents to stay away from message boards and fan blogs after the games. While he can handle the criticism, he said they take it much more personally.
The animosity aimed at Cox reached a new crescendo this week as the Bulldogs dropped their second straight game to Florida, with Cox’s bad throws at the center of the underwhelming performance.

But rather than let his quarterback twist in the wind this week, Richt announced Monday that Cox would remain the starter, citing a unanimous vote among the coaches.

“It means a lot having your coach’s confidence. I’m definitely glad it’s not something I have to answer, and I’m just glad I have another week where I have to play football.”

It hasn’t been the senior year Cox had dreamed of, and the costs of being the starting quarterback at Georgia have been greater than even he expected, but he still wouldn’t trade the job for anything.

“I definitely don’t want to have the plug pulled on me and not play any more for the rest of the year. I have another chance and I want to make the best of it.”

LEARNING ON THE FLY

Freshman Washaun Ealey got the starting nod at tailback for two straight weeks, but a missed block against Florida will likely cost him that role this week. While Ealey continues to run the ball well, offensive coordinator Mike Bobo said pass protection remains a concern that’s too big to ignore.

“It’s always a big concern with young backs,” Bobo said. “I do know he knows what to do, he just did not execute the proper techniques of how to block. It was costly in (the last) game … but I think he’ll improve. He’s just got to trust his technique and execute it properly.”

Bobo said Ealey has gotten plenty of advice this week from the Bulldogs’ expected starter, Caleb King.

Last year, King missed a key block against Florida as well and then-running backs coach Tony Ball benched him for the next few games. The punishment was tough, but the lesson was learned, and King improved dramatically during the offseason.

Ealey won’t be benched, he just won’t start. Unlike last season, Georgia’s need for a strong runner outweighs any benefit a stint on the sideline might offer. It’s in stark contrast to the decisions Richt made with another freshman tailback a few years ago.

“That's one of the main reasons why Knowshon (Moreno) ended up redshirting because when it got time to doing those kind of things, especially early on in camp, he was a freshman,” Richt said. “He was struggling at it, and we had three veteran guys, three very proven guys.”

Georgia didn’t have that luxury this season, but Richt doesn’t have any regrets about playing Ealey, who waited until the fifth game of the season before seeing action. It simply means that the Bulldogs will have to take the good with the bad as Ealey learns on the field.

“This time around,” Richt said, “we are playing the freshman and kind of taking some of the lumps."

WILLING TO WAIT

With four games remaining and the chances of an SEC East crown now gone, Richt said this week he plans to keep shooting for wins this season rather than giving additional playing time to some younger players as preparation for the future.

While the decision met with mixed reviews from fans, Georgia’s up-and-comers aren’t complaining about the veterans keeping their jobs.

“In every sport there’s always a person pushing for a starting spot, but I don’t believe there’s any jealousy amongst the players that would make a younger player think he wants to move an older player out,” said sophomore linebacker Marcus Dowtin, who has seen his role increase as the season has progressed. “We compete at practice every day, and the coaches will make the best decisions.”

Baccari Rambo has earned more playing time each week, too, but has so far been unable to push senior Bryan Evans from the starting lineup at safety. While Rambo said he would love the starting job, he said he respects his coaches for giving the veterans a chance to turn things around.

“I think by Coach Richt supporting the veterans, when I get my time, that’ll happen to me,” Rambo said. “When they make mistakes, I try to learn from them. I think it’s a great thing how Coach Richt supports the veterans and lets them try to get better and correct their mistakes.”

HOUSTON, WE HAVE A PROBLEM

Defensive end Justin Houston is doubtful for Saturday’s game after suffering a hyperextended elbow last week, and Richt said there will likely be a rotation of players filling the void.

Cornelius Washington, Montez Robinson and Kiante Tripp are likely to each see a bump in playing time against Tennessee Tech if Houston missed the game, Richt said. Tripp has been inactive for the past six games after seeing some early action, due mostly to a shoulder injury that has hindered his progress since moving from the offensive line in January.

“He was working his way into some playing time early on, and then the injuries set him back for a long time,” Richt said. “Being injured that long, it’s just hard to snap your fingers and be right back where you were. … But I’ve seen a lot of effort an energy out of him this week, that’s for sure.”

MORE BAD BLOOD?

Florida coach Urban Meyer announced Wednesday that linebacker Brandon Spikes would sit out all of the Gators' game against Vanderbilt this week as punishment for attempting to gouge the eyes of Georgia tailback Washaun Ealey. Meyer had originally only suspended Spikes for the first half.

But while Spikes' punishment was increased, Meyer also noted that Georgia linebacker Nick Williams had hit quarterback Tim Tebow late on a play and should have been flagged. Meyer brought the hit to the attention of the SEC head of officials this week but did not disclose the league's response. Richt said that after reviewing the film, Meyer's critique was correct.

For his part, Williams said he was unaware that Meyer had sent the tape to the SEC, but said the hit was just part of the game and was not intentional.

"I was just trying to make a play," Williams said. "Tebow is a great player, and it's obvious you better get him on the ground or he's going to spark something. I was just trying to make a play, and I didn't think anything of it. I wasn't trying to hurt him or anything, I was just out there playing."

NOT-SO-BREAKING NEWS

Defensive end Neland Ball hasn't been a participant in practice since the preseason, and Wednesday we found out why.

Richt announced that Ball had been given a medical disqualification in September, but the news had not been officially released.

Ball, a redshirt sophomore, played in five games in 2008. He missed all of spring practice this year with a tendon injury in his knee, but it was a chronic back problem that brought about the medical DQ.

BOLING BACK

Left tackle Clint Boling suffered a knee injury against Florida last week, but Richt said the junior should be available this week.

"Boling is fine," Richt said. "He was able to go with no limitations (at practice) today."

Grading the Game: Florida and the Future

"Any time any young guy is playing it certainly bodes well for the future, but any decision I make or we make as a staff is going to be based on what gives us the best chance to win this year. We owe that to our seniors, we owe that to our fans, we owe that to everybody who busts their tail every day." -- Mark Richt, during his weekly Sunday teleconference this week.

The news came down Monday that Joe Cox would be the starter at quarterback yet again this week. That's not surprising, and the logic that Cox gives Georgia its best chance to win is probably correct. But why use that logic?

I guess if I were a coach, I'd probably want to do whatever I could to end this season on a high note, too. But I'm not a coach. I'm a reporter and blogger, and I'm ready to look ahead.

So with this week's grades, we're taking a little different approach. I'll hand out grades for the Florida game, but I think that mess is sort of secondary now. Besides, what new topics could we explore? Georgia's problems last week were essentially the same problems from the first seven weeks.

So what we're really going to focus on is what lies ahead. What are the issues at hand? What can be done this year to solve them? What might 2010 look like?

Here's what I came up with...

QUARTERBACKS: If you've been reading this blog all season, you know that I've defended Joe Cox's role as the starting quarterback as emphatically as anyone.

I pointed to the youth around him, but eight games into the season, those guys aren't rookies anymore. And even if Cox wasn't on the field, how many more mistakes could they make at this point?

I pointed to the lack of a running game, but Georgia actually ran the ball pretty well against Florida and Cox still had three INTs.

I pointed to drops by his receivers, but it was Cox whose ball placement was brutal throughout the game against the Gators, with the high pass over the middle that got A.J. Green hurt being the most egregious example.

I pointed to some lackluster play calling, but Mike Bobo's game plan Saturday wasn't anywhere close to being the problem.

I'm not a Georgia fan, but I'll echo what I've already heard so many of you say: Joe Cox is a great kid, a loyal Bulldog and is more accountable than probably any 22-year-old I've ever met. And in the grand game of life, those things are far more commendable than anything he could have accomplished on the football field.

But the game we're talking about isn't life, it's football. And sometimes the virtues that you hold in the highest esteem the other six days a week don't mean much on Saturday. There's a reason Brandon Spikes can play dirty and be a first-round draft pick, and there's a reason that Cox can be a truly great kid and probably deserve a seat on the bench.

It doesn't look like that will happen this week, at least not to start the game. Logan Gray certainly hasn't looked ready to take over the offense either, although to be fair, his opportunities have hardly come at optimal times. At the very least, he probably deserves to at least show what he can do for a few series in the first half, before things have gotten out of hand.

Maybe Gray could perform well. Maybe he'll put himself in position to win the job next year. Maybe. But from virtually everyone I've spoken to -- and no, I don't mean coaches or players, but rather the people on the periphery of the program -- it's Aaron Murray that is the quarterback of the future.

I don't know whether that future will become reality in 2010. We probably won't have a firm answer on that until after spring practice. If Gray performs well enough, Murray's future might not be until 2011 or 2012. But I also thinks it's at least worth asking the question of whether or not the future should be 2009. Namely, this week.

When discussing Washaun Ealey after Week 4, Richt said his opinion on burning a redshirt has changed in recent years. It used to be that if a player hadn't seen action in the first four games, he wasn't going to play at all. Now, he said, Week 6 is probably a break-even point, and even after Week 7, 8 or 9, he said, there could be merit in giving a guy playing time if he was ready to perform.

Maybe Murray isn't ready. He missed two weeks and was limited for two more due to tendinitis in his elbow earlier this season, and he was slowed throughout the spring and summer as he continued to recover from a broken leg he suffered as a senior at Plant High School. The coaches know far better than I do where he's at on the learning curve.

But the reports I've heard on Murray say that he has all the physical tools he'll need to succeed, and elbow or leg problems don't keep you from learning the playbook. And as for how healthy he is right now, Richt says that's not an issue.

"He's very healthy even with his arm right now," Richt said. "We went about two weeks monitoring the amount of throws he had for a while, but the last few weeks, he's off the injury list completely. He's 100 percent as far as throwing, and I think he's moving better than he has in a while."

Again, I don't see what the coaches see, and I don't know what the coaches know. But I look ahead to next year's lineup and it's hard not to see a world of possibility there if only Georgia has a quarterback who can match the talent around him.

I don't know what the right decision is on who should start the rest of the way, but I do know it would be a big mistake if the coaching staff didn't at least ask whether or not the benefit of giving five games of playing time to Murray is worth the cost.

(*One final note: Should I even mention that Cox threw for as many TDs against Florida on Saturday as the Gators' previous seven opponents have combined?)

Final Grade (this week): D

Final Grade (future): Incomplete

RUNNING BACKS: Remember when Urban Meyer complained that Tennessee was running the ball too much against Florida, not really trying to win the game but rather to run out the clock?

Well, in that game, the Vols -- complete with future NFL-er Montario Hardesty and former No. 1 overall recruit Bryce Brown -- netted a grand total of 117 yards on the ground against that vaunted Florida defense.

Saturday, Georgia's beleaguered running game racked up 121.

The Bulldogs averaged just 3.7 yards per carry, but if you don't factor in sacks (which the final stats do), Georgia's running game actually accounted for nearly five yards per carry. The same running game that struggled to get to 3 ypc all season posted nearly 5 ypc against the best defense in the country.

And they did it despite being down 14 points early and effectively playing catch-up throughout the game.

We don't need to peer into the future to determine what the running game will look like next year. We don't need to worry about changes to the tailback rotation right now. The future was on display Saturday.

Washaun Ealey has all the natural instincts to be a great running back. He hits the hole as hard as Knowshon Moreno ever did, he just needs to learn some of the subtleties of running at this level. His future is bright.

Caleb King continues to look good, too, despite limited action. He runs harder after first contact than any of Georgia's tailbacks and his pass blocking has been exceptional. At this point, it may be too late for him to nail down an every-down job, but considering how bad this unit looked just a few weeks ago, it's not hard to be encouraged about a 60-40 or 70-30 split between Ealey and King going forward.

I should note, too, that Richard Samuel picked up 40 yards on six carries -- mostly in the fourth quarter -- and look pretty decent doing it. So that remains the biggest question regarding the tailbacks -- where will Samuel be next year? A lot probably depends on whether Georgia can land another solid RB recruit for this year's class. If they can, there's really no reason to allow Samuel's immense natural ability to remain relegated to mop-up duty.

Final Grade (this week): B+

Final Grade (future): B

WIDE RECEIVERS/TIGHT ENDS: Here's a trivia question for you: Who was the last Georgia player NOT named A.J. Green to have both three catches and 50 yards receiving in the same game?

I'll let you stew over that for a moment while I ask another question: While everyone is up in arms about a QB change and planning for the future, why has the talk of finding snaps for Marlon Brown suddenly disappeared?

Georgia has six scholarship receivers, and at this point, it's probably fair to stop including Israel Troupe in the discussion. After three years in the program, if he can't get on the field this season, he's at best hovering just above the "lost cause" plateau.

Of those five scholarship guys, only Tavarres King has really established himself by any real standard. Rantavious Wooten has had some nice moments, but his playing time has been limited and his role in the offense has yet to be really determined.

Michael Moore has been a disappointment for much of this season, and he'll be gone next year regardless. Kris Durham will return from injury in 2010 to provide Georgia with another senior, but the fact is, the receiving corps isn't likely to have much more experience next year than it had this year, and this year has been just shy of a disaster.

At this point, there is no reason not to get Brown and Wooten more time, throw them some more passes and help them build up their confidence for next season. Both came to Georgia with a boatload of talent, and at this point, the Bulldogs have absolutely wasted Brown. If this was all the playing time he was going to get, they should have redshirted him. What they've done, instead, is far more atrocious than burning Aaron Murray's redshirt with four games left would be.

As it stands, the WR lineup for next year will probably look like this:

Flanker: Kris Durham, Da'Rick Rogers
Slot: Tavarres King, Rantavious Wooten
Split End: A.J. Green, Marlon Brown

Others: Troupe, Michael Bennett

Da'Rick Rogers has tons of talent and could be a star immediately, but that's what we thought about Brown this year, too. So like this year, there will be potential in the receiving corps, but there's a good chance that aside from Green, that entire unit will have accounted for fewer than 25 receptions in 2009.

Oh, and to answer the original question -- the last player to record at least three catches and 50 receiving yards in the same game was Michael Moore, all the way back in Week 3 against Arkansas.

In fact, the only players other than A.J. to have three catches or more in any game since then are Moore (6 vs. Tennessee), Shaun Chapas (4 vs. Arizona State) and Fred Munzenmaier (3 vs. Vandy). Um, what does it say that two of those guys are fullbacks?

I guess we'll find out a bit more about these guys this week as Green is not expected to play against Tennessee Tech.

Final Grade (this week): C- (mostly because Cox gets the blame for the passing-game woes, but he sure didn't get a ton of help)

Final Grade (future): B- (Hey, they'll still have A.J.)

ADDENDUM: I sort of glossed over the tight ends originally, but obviously Georgia has a ton of talent there. Orson Charles and Aron White still need to improve in their blocking, but overall both have a lot of potential. Bruce Figgins' return and another year of development for Arthur Lynch make tight end a real strength looking forward. Future Grade: A

OFFENSIVE LINE: So for the fifth time in eight games, Georgia trotted out a new starting lineup on the offensive line.

The good news: It helped the running game, which looked much improved.

The bad news: Georgia allowed three sacks Saturday after allowing just six all season before that.

On one hand, the line did seem to play a bit better overall, but boy were there some bad moments.

Cox's first INT was a direct result of A.J. Jones being in the backfield before the QB could finish his drop. Cox's second INT, which was an absolutely awful throw, came as a result of pressure, too, when he was flushed out of the pocket and made an ill-advised pass on a third-down play.

Even when the pressure didn't necessarily cause a turnover, it created other problems. Here's an intriguing note from The Senator:

"Everyone no doubt has his or her key moment of the game. Mine was Dunlap’s sack of Cox during that disastrous series late in the second quarter. Joe’s stats before the sack: 6 of 9 passing for 101 yards, 1 TD, 0 INT. Afterwards: 5 of 11 passing for 64 yards, 1 TD, 3 INTs."

If you'll recall, the same was true after Cox was hit against Tennessee, and Richt even alluded to the fact that his QB was shaken up a bit.

Perhaps Cox's biggest problem is he simply isn't able to shake off a particularly big hit.

Either way, it remains baffling as to why a veteran O line can't seem to pass protect and run block in the same game.

I'm a little hesitant to put too much blame on Josh Davis for retaliating against Spikes on the opening drive then knocking off Spikes' helmet, which wasn't strapped on in the first place, but the bottom line is that 15-yard flag killed a good drive and may have changed the complexion of the entire game after that. It may not have been all Davis' fault, but it was a huge play.

Looking ahead, the key to the remainder of this season is to find some continuity on the line. With the exception of Vince Vance, every one of these guys will be back next year, and Georgia cannot afford to let this unit fall apart once again. If Justin Anderson is going to be an answer long-term, he needs to play. If he's not, maybe it's time to see what someone like A.J. Harmon can do. Chris Davis is a warrior, but at some point that hip injury isn't just limiting him, but it's limiting the whole offense.

Ideally Trinton Sturdivant comes back strong next year, too, but the coaches certainly can't rely on that. The best approach is to assume Sturdivant will not be the same player he was before, and if it turns out that he makes a full recovery, then it will be a pleasant surprise. But as Vance showed after just one ACL surgery -- a far less invasive one than Sturdivant's first -- it takes a lot of time to return to where you were before the injury.

As for fresh blood, Chris Burnette will be ready next year, and I think there's reason to be excited about his future. But Dallas Lee hasn't exactly earned any rave reviews, and Austin Long remains a mystery after back surgery. For the most part, what we've seen this year is what we'll get next year in terms of personnel. That could be a very good thing or, like this season, it could be another kick in the face.

Final Grade (this week): C

Final Grade (future): B

DEFENSIVE LINE: No position will take a harder hit in 2010 than defensive tackle, where the top three players on the depth chart will all move on -- perhaps all three to the NFL.

Kade Weston, Jeff Owens and Geno Atkins have all been fixtures on the D line for the better part of four years now, and replacing them -- even if they haven't lived up to high expectations this year -- won't be easy. Brandon Wheeling, also a senior, has been part of a six-DT rotation this season and will be gone next year, too.

The top two performers to return will be DeAngelo Tyson and Abry Jones, and neither had so much as a tackle against Florida. Both are immensely talented, and it would probably be tough to get them much more playing time than they're getting already, so the situation is what it is.

It will be interesting to see what happens with Jones and Tyson next season. They'll get some help, possibly from Kwame Geathers and Derrick Lott, possibly from incoming freshman Garrison Smith. Either way, this will be an ongoing work in progress until 2010 kicks off.

The silver lining of the D line this season, however, has clearly been Justin Houston. The line has made marked improvements in terms of pass rush since Houston returned from a two-game suspension, and Saturday he finished with three tackles, two for a loss, and one sack. He's been a beast for more than a month, and he's provided some hope for the pass rush going forward. (Of course, he'll miss the Tennesse Tech game, and who knows how serious his knee injury might be going forward.)

It was frustrating, no doubt, watching Tim Tebow run up the middle for one first down after another on Saturday, but there aren't a lot of players like Tebow. By and large, the run D has been strong this year, the pass rush has improved, and with five freshmen D-ends committed for next year, there's got to be a lot more hope for the D line as 2010 gets set to kick off than there was to start 2009.

Final Grade (this week): C

Final Grade (future): C+ (with potential for much higher if the young DTs develop)

LINEBACKERS: Perhaps the most frustrating thing about watching Saturday's debacle against Florida was seeing how overmatched Georgia's linebackers appeared.

On lateral plays, they looked obviously slow compared to the Gators' fleet-footed running backs like Jeff Demps and Chris Rainey.

On power plays, Tebow and Emmanuel Moody looked stronger, breaking tackles and picking up big plays.

If you're not stronger and you're not faster, you're not going to win a lot of battles.

The first down catch-and-run by Aaron Hernandez on a third-and-16 was an absolute back-breaker. While the D held after that, Caleb Sturgis booted a 56-yard field goal that really was a turning point in the game. Had Florida punted there, Georgia would have gotten the ball back down four with a chance to take the lead late in the second quarter. Instead, the Gators iced Georgia momentum, and once again, it was a tight end that was the thorn in the Bulldogs' side.

Assuming Rennie Curran eschews the NFL, all of Georgia's key linebackers, save Darius Dewberry and little-used Marcus Washington, will be back next year. That's good news, most likely. Heck, Akeem Dent has to be more productive in 2010 than he has been in 2009, right?

But the underperformance of the linebacking corps this season has been almost as striking as the lack of production from the O line. This was supposed to be the strength of the defense, and even Curran has missed some key tackles while the others have been, for the most part, utter non-factors (unless you count bad plays as "factors").

There are some bright spots, however. Nick Williams got his first start of the season against Florida. He hasn't had a huge impact this year, but his potential is there. Christian Robinson has seen his playing time skyrocket in recent weeks, and he finished Saturday's game with three tackles. His production could grow by leaps and bounds if he can stack on a few more pounds to his frame next season. Marcus Dowtin returned from a two-game absence due to an injured finger and posted three tackles and half-a-sack, too. He's got star status written all over him.

What will be interesting next season, however, is seeing how well the three younger guys mix with the three older guys at the position. Who starts? How much will the younger guys play? How will the seniors react if their jobs are usurped by younger players?

This season, John Jancek has been fanatical about rotating players, some moves of which I haven't exactly understood. But next year, finding playing time for Robinson, Dowtin and Williams may be even more important.

Final Grade (this week): D

Final Grade (future): B

DEFENSIVE BACKS: Another worthy note from The Senator following the Florida game:

"Bryan Evans started and played on those first two possessions. He got bailed out by Brandon James’ spectacular drop, but that was about it. Bacarri Rambo came in for Florida’s third possession and the Gators were forced into a three-and-out. Which of course meant that Martinez put Evans back out for the next series, resulting in another Florida score. I gave up keeping track after that, because it obviously didn’t matter, but Evans caught my eye when he rushed at full speed past Tebow on his second touchdown run. I’ve got no idea where he was going on that play."

Indeed, the lack of a starting job for Baccari Rambo has gone from perplexing to absurd, and Saturday's performance only underscored that.Florida's first two drives against Georgia may have been the worst two-drive performance I've seen from this defense all year. Yes, Arkansas hit some big plays and Johnathan Crompton made some good throws, but what Florida did on 92- and 80-yard drives was merciless. They made it look easy -- probably because it was.

Mark Richt made the point yesterday that Georgia hasn't created enough turnovers. But think about what might have happened had Brandon James bobbled a reception like he did on Florida's second drive, but this time put any Georgia defender within 10 yards of him. The bobble very well may have become an interception, and the complexion of the game may have been completely different.

Instead, with two weeks to prepare, Georgia's secondary was so bad that James could bobble the ball five or six times and still not come close to being touched by a Bulldogs player. It takes a lot for a receiver to drop a pass like that and not have it be the most embarrassing part of that play.

There are five people whose fingerprints are most represented in Georgia's terrible, 73rd-ranked pass defense this season: Bryan Evans, Reshad Jones, Prince Miller, Brandon Boykin and Willie Martinez.

There's a good chance that four of those five will be gone next year.

We'll get to Martinez in a bit. Evans and Miller are seniors, and Branden Smith and Rambo have already shown they'll be adequate and likely superior replacements. Between Makiri Pugh, Shawn Williams and incoming recruit Jakar Hamilton, a replacement for Jones, should he decide to turn pro, shouldn't be too hard to find either.

The lone returner from The Big Five is Boykin, who has taken his lumps this season and has certainly been picked on quite a bit by opposing offensive coordinators, but he's held his own throughout. He hasn't been great, and he hasn't lived up to Asher Allen's work the past two years, but for a first-year starter, he's done a nice job and has made a few particularly impressive plays. His future looks bright even if his present has been erratic.

Of course, what might help the secondary the most is a change is scheme, from a soft zone that even mediocre QBs have exploited at will to something that allows defensive players to make plays.

I'm not sure that we can look at next year and definitively say that addition by subtraction will lead to a resurgence in the secondary, but I think it is safe to say it would be hard for things to get much worse.

Final Grade (this week): D

Final Grade (future): B

SPECIAL TEAMS: Let's add one more to "The List."

Joe Cox connects with Aron White for the Bulldogs' first touchdown of the day. The team celebrates on the sideline. The score is now 14-10 and the Bulldogs have life after a dismal start. What comes next? You guessed it!

Blair Walsh, now a master of the touchback, kicks off directionally, Brandon James returns it 19 yards to the Florida 21, then Mike Gilliard hits James out of bounds and is flagged for a 15-yard penalty, giving the Gators the ball at their own 36 instead. Aside from the ugly tackling on Hernandez's 17-yard reception, the defense held firm, but that extra field position was enough to give Florida a shot at a long field goal, which Sturgis hit to put the Gators back up by 7.

A few other notes of interest:

-- As best I could tell, Georgia felt no need to have 11 men on the field for Sturgis' second field goal of the day.

-- Florida has still not allowed a punt-return yard all season.

-- Brandon Boykin set the school record for kick-return yards and is close to breaking the record for overall return yards, and he did it with very little room to run Saturday. He's already a star as a kick returner.

-- Blair Walsh booted yet another 50-yarder. There's been a lot of talk about the year Drew Butler is having, but Walsh has flown under the radar to have one of the best seasons by a UGA kicker in a while.

-- And speaking of Butler, he averaged 52.5 yards per punt, upping his lead nationally in that category. He booted two of four punts that were downed inside the 20, too. But his long -- a 61-yarder -- severely outkicked its coverage and James returned it 20 yards.

As for the future of the special teams, that's hard to say. Boykin may have impressed to the extent that few teams kick to him next year. Butler and Walsh will both be back, so that's encouraging, assuming Walsh isn't asked to keep directional kicking. And if Aaron Murray wins the starting QB job in 2010, we may even be treated to more Logan Gray punt returns.

The bulk of the special teams, however, are dictated by the guys on the coverage teams, and those fluctuate greatly from year to year, so there's really no telling just how good these units might be next season.

Final Grade (this week): B

Final Grade (future): Incomplete, but with potential

COACHING: And now we get to the crux of it all. The real questions about next year all begin here, right?

Who will be back on the staff? Who might replace those who depart? Will anyone leave at all? And regardless of any shakeups, will there be a real, noticeable, meaningful difference in the culture of the team?

I'd love to tell you I have a ton of inside sources giving me the scoop on what will happen, but that's not the case. In truth, I don't think even Mark Richt knows for sure what will happen yet. I honestly don't believe he'd even consider the decisions he'll have to make until the season is over and he has a full year of information to base those decisions upon. Maybe I'm wrong, but I know how he operates, and it would be out of character for any major overhaul to be decided upon, much less acted upon, at this point.

But before we get too far into that, let's talk about this week's game, since it is particularly relevant to the discussion.

For the better part of a decade, we've heard about how important that open date before the Cocktail Party is to both teams. Something tells me we won't hear that again any time soon.

On the offensive side of the ball, there were obviously some strides made during the bye week. I thought the play calling was strong for the most part, and I commend Mike Bobo for sticking with what he believed would work, even when Georgia fell behind by 14 early. The running game was much improved, and Bobo's decision to keep Ealey as the featured back for most of the game proved to be the right call and may pay even greater dividends moving forward.

Having said that, here's what Brandon Spikes had to say about his fourth-quarter interception that effectively ended the game: "I knew what that play was before the ball was snapped, so I was able to make the play. The coaching staff put us in great position to make plays, so I was able to step in front of the ball."

So let's clarify...

Weeks to prepare: Georgia 2, Florida 1
Number of interceptions that came because players knew what to expect: Georgia 0, Florida 1 (and maybe more)

But again, I thought Bobo did a decent enough job. Was it a perfect performance? No. But he crafted a game plan that had success against a very good defense, and that's praiseworthy. There were times when Georgia moved the ball better against the Gators than anyone has all year. That's a credit to Bobo. He didn't throw any of the four interceptions and he didn't tell Josh Davis to get flagged for a personal foul or tell Orson Charles to jump offsides twice or force Joe Cox to stare down a covered receiver while another ran wide open. In fact, I'd be willing to bet Bobo spent the last two weeks coaching those guys to do the exact opposite of those things.

On the defensive side of the ball, however, it's fair to ask what went on the past two weeks. In fact, that's exactly what Paul Westerdawg does:

"If the entire defensive coaching staff had gone to Bermuda for two weeks and simply met the team at the stadium, what would have been different about our game plan or execution? Seriously.

If that question is too inflammatory for someone to ask Coach Richt, then my question would be...why did Arkansas and Mississippi State have a better game plan defensively than we did? They have far less defensive talent on their respective teams than Georgia does, and they each had half as much time to prepare."

I hate to break it to Paul, who's a fine blogger and a loyal Georgia fan, but he probably should have seen this coming. In fact, Willie Martinez told us this was coming.

As I mentioned above, Georgia's D looked clueless on Florida's opening two drives. Tebow, on the other hand, looked like someone had handed him Georgia's playbook a week ago and told him to memorize it. There was nothing new here, and Tebow beat the UGA defense like I used to beat the first three levels of "Super Mario Brothers." I could do it with my eyes closed because I knew it so well.

There's really not much that can be said positive about the defensive performance, although I've heard people try. But here are the facts:

-- Florida rushed for 210 yards against Georgia -- 70 more than Georgia was allowing on average this season.

-- Tebow completed 15-of-21 passes (72 percent), his second-highest completion percentage of the season. And that's counting that throw to James as an incompletion, which it certainly shouldn't have been.

-- Having watched Tebow barrel over Georgia defenders for three years now, the Florida QB still ran for 91 yards on 16 carries (not including sacks).

-- Tebow became the fourth quarterback to account for four touchdowns against Georgia this season. In eight games.

-- The defense has now allowed 37 or more points in nine of its past 17 games. Against its top rivals/competition -- Auburn, Georgia Tech, Alabama, LSU, Tennessee and Florida -- Georgia has allowed an average of 34 points and 380 total yards in nine games. And those stats include games against Tennessee and Auburn last year, when both offenses were brutal.

-- In those games, Georgia is 3-6 overall and has created just eight turnovers on defense, three of which came in one game against LSU last year.

-- And while some fans may want to point to Georgia's improved defensive stats on Saturday after those first two drives, don't forget that when Georgia was within four and the Dawgs had Florida pinned on a third-and-16, Hernandez broke one tackle after another for a first down and Florida earned a field goal on the drive. When Georgia was within seven with just 2:23 left in the first half and desperately needed to go into the locker room with some momentum, the defense surrendered a 65-yard drive on just four plays that took just 51 seconds to let Florida go up by 14. Those were the two most important drives of the day for Florida, and the defense failed to hold in either case.

The bottom line is that, yes, there are extenuating circumstances in every game that have made life tough for the defense. But when the unit had a chance to show it used the extra week wisely, it looked dreadful. And when the offense made things close, the defense couldn't hold. Adversity strikes everyone. It can't be an excuse for Georgia's defensive performance any more.

Final Grade (this week): F (with extra negative points for uni's that looked like Grambling)

Final Grade (future): Well, that's the big question now, isn't it? I wish I knew.