Pat Dooley’s Grades: Samford vs Florida

Pat Dooley, co-host of the daily Tailgate Show on WRUF, grades the Gators after their 70-52 win over Samford (and it was not a basketball game):

OFFENSE A

First half: Well, the offense was not the problem. The Gators did have the poor decision to go for it and were stuffed. But other than that, they seemed able to score at will, getting 382 offensive yards and hitting numerous big games. And they avoided turnovers.

Second half: Emory Jones kept the offense going because he had no choice. Samford was down four in the second half and the Gators kept marching to scores. Where has Kemore Gamble been all year (6 catches, 122 yards)? That and another game where Jacob Copeland disappears are still mysteries.

For the game: Florida recorded the second most yards in school history (717 yards) and Jones had a career day with 28 completions for 464 yards and six touchdown passes. Plus 86 rushing yards and a score. Yes, it was an FCS team, but those are numbers that are difficult to get against air.

 

DEFENSE (#$*) There is no letter grade low enough)

First half: If you needed to define what one side of the ball looks like when it quits, Florida’s defense was there to provide it for you. The Gators stopped Samford once in the entire first half and the Bulldogs scored the most points ever against the Gators in a first half. Ever. Savor that for a few minutes.

Second half: The Gators were better in the third quarter with a pair of turnovers, one on a tipped pass pick and the other on a fourth-down stop. And they gave up zero points. There was that stretch in the fourth quarter where Samford got back in the game, but the defense again made a fourth-down stop later.

For the game: It was better in the second half, but historically bad in the first. We guess that Todd Grantham wasn’t the only problem. Samford has a good offense for that level of football, but the missed tackles and lack of awareness in the first half was another example of a team that is a mess.

 

SPECIAL TEAMS D-

First half: The two kickoffs late in the quarter showed everything. Samford’s Montrell Washington returned one 98 yards for a touchdown by weaving in and out of the traffic where players were being blocked. Malik Davis returned the next kickoff and literally it looked like nobody blocked. The highlight for Florida was a nice return and awareness by up-man Lloyd Summerall.

Second half: Let’s see, there was the penalty on the first play of the half and then there was the onside kick that surprised the Gators and the whiff going after the ball. And the late punt that Jeremy Crawshaw kicked off the side of his foot that went 14 yards.  Another negative half for the special teams.

For the game: Hey, let’s give credit to the kicker. Chris Howard made all of his 10 extra points. So there’s that. Florida needs to hire someone who will be devoted only to special teams. They have been at best average and at worst way below average this season.

 

OVERALL  C-

When you are on a three-game losing streak, any win is a good win. But this was close to the point where we wondered if Dan Mullen might get canned on his way back to the locker room. Obviously in hindsight, he might have been better off waiting until the end of the season to get rid of his defensive coordinator. Still, coming back from 14 down is something. I guess. But so is the fact that Florida had 12 penalties. This is an undisciplined bunch.