Florida - Charleston Southern Preview

Yes. This is a preview of a football game that features a 73 point underdog. The CSU Buccaneers come into Gainesville as the largest underdog since..... well ever.

It's gonna be hard for the Gators to get incredibly jacked up for a game that Urban Meyer has already called ridiculous. The fact that they haven't hit someone in a different color in nearly 8 months should help a little. But you get the feeling this will be the Orange and Blue Debut Part Deux.

The fact that this game doesn't matter to anyone outside of Gator Nation doesn't matter to me. I've been dying for some college football, and especially some Gator football. Saturday can't get here soon enough.

Here are my thoughts on this monumental clash between two titans for the collegiate gridiron.


5 Keys to the Game

1. Show Up - No real strategy needed. the Gators just need to make sure they get off the buses, make the Gator Walk, get dressed and be on the field by the 7 o'clock kickoff. If they do that, they win.

2. Avoid Injuries - The last thing the Gators need is to have a major contributor get injured during this horrible excuse for a game. I might boycott the season if someone major were to go down in a heap against the Bucs. In fact, I hope Meyer treats this game like the string of 4th NFL preseason games coming up this weekend. Let the starters play for a series or two at the most. Then, hopefully up 14-0, put the reserves in and don't look back.

3. Protect the Ball - I know. I know. There's no way the Gators lose to Charleston Southern even if they turn the ball over 37 times. Still, you don't want to develop bad habits. A couple of fumbles in this game could lose to a lack of discipline in some games that might actually matter later in the season. Of course, this wasn't the case after the Ole Miss loss last season, but you never know...

4. Give Brantley Plenty of Reps - I want to see John Brantley in the game for at LEAST 3 full quarters. Give him a chance to run the offense for an extended period of time. Let him throw for 6 or 7 touchdowns to build his confidence up. This could help when Meyer decides to throw Brantley in the fire in Baton Rouge later in the year.

5. Give Moody the Damn Ball! - I told you I was gonna keep screaming this until the coaching staff actually listened. Besides, Moody does his best work against FCS teams. Just look at last year's Citadel game. He looked like an All-American!





5 Players That Need To Step Up

1. Emmanuel Moody - I already mentioned Manny's superstar like status when facing FCS opponents. The introduction of the I-Formation should only help his ability to dominate lesser opponents. Time for Manny to go for 250+ with 4 tds.

2. John Brantley - Brantley should be the star of the game Saturday. He will see the bulk of the action at QB, if all goes well. If all goes too well, he may even be spelled by Jordan Reed late in the game. Still, Brantley should have the best game of his career. Something that he can build on throughout the season.

3. Mike Gillislee - I'm real anxious to see what this guy can do. I've heard so much about him leading up to the season. I'm ready to see what he's all about. Granted, whatever he does against Charleston Southern can't be taken too seriously. But at least it will give us more to go on than just practice.


4. Jonathan Phillips - Phillips' leg should see plenty of action this Saturday. He might even be able to mix in some field goals with the 20 or so PATs he'll be attempting. This will be a good chance for Johnny to get a head start on the comp for the Lou Groza award.

5. Jon Bostic - Bostic is another freshman that I can't wait to see in action on Florida Field. He should get plenty of playing time once the starters take to the bench early in the game. From what I hear, Bostic may even be mixed in some with the starting unit. Either way, this will be his first chance to shine.




No Florida v. Charleston Southern highlights exist for obvious reasons. Instead, here' a nice highlight reel re-capping Florida's 2008 season.



Here's what they're saying about this historic contest.

My Prediction

Florida - 76

Charleston Southern - 9

Florida-SC Preview

I'm a little amped to do the preview this week. I usually have a lot of respect for Gamecock fans. I was actually very close to going to South Carolina myself. (BTW Dave Odom is the man!) However, all that respect and tolerance for 'Cocks' fans went out the window this week. I have heard nothing but ridiculous trash talking from all of my dumbass SC friends. It's not even quality trash talking either, but more on that later.

You would have thought South Carolina had a chance to win this game listening to these guys. As usual, here's my keys to the game along with a few names that need to have an impact on the game.


5 keys to a Gator victory:


1. Score Early.

In UF's last five games, they have outscored the opponent 80-0! Florida needs to come out and put this one away early. No need to let a solid and emotional Gamecock team hang around longer than need be. If Tebow can get a couple of quick tds, the mentality of "Oh no! Here we go again!" can set into the Gamecock player's minds. If that happens, game over.




2. Establish a ground game.

This section could also be entitled, Give Moody the damn ball! I will continue to call for more Manny in the Gators' running attack for as long as it takes. The guys is easily the best all around back that we have and he needs to get the rock more than he does. Granted we've put up some pretty impressive numbers on the ground without Moody, but he brings an extra dimension to the rushing attack that has been missing this year. He has the attitude that Timmy had running the ball last season. The same attitude that Tebow and other Gator backs (outside of Harvin) seem to be missing this season.



3. Block a punt.

It's quite simple actually, block a punt, we win. That's the way it's been for Urban Meyer's Gators. Every time a Florida team has blocked a punt under Meyer, they have gone on to win the ball game. This has been especially true lately. The Gators are replacing Virginia Tech as the punt block specialists in the nation. Also, we all know how much trouble the Gamecocks have had against our special teams the previous two seasons. I'm sure SC's special teams coach Ray Rychleski is having nightmares at this very moment.



4. Find Eric Norwood before every snap.

Even I have been guilty of overlooking Norwood this season. With All-SEC caliber players like Captain Munnerlyn and Jasper Brinkley on the D, it's easy to overlook Norwood. If the Gators want to continue their recent trend of dominating opponents on the ground, they will have to find a way around Eric Norwood. Unless it's Manny Moody running the ball, then he'll just run his punkass over!







5. Remember the Citadel is NEXT week.

Florida cannot take South Carolina lightly this week. I'm not expecting them to. But then again, I didn't expect them to take Ole Miss lightly either. Urban Meyer just needs to remind the guys that the Bulldogs come to Gainesville next week, not this Saturday. I'm sure seeing the 'ol Ball Coach on the opposite sideline will help Florida with that.






5 Gator players that need to step up:

(Note: I am absolutely on fire when it comes to this part. I guess I'm a Magic Johnson type motivator, cus' lately every payer I mention goes out and takes care of business.)


1. Carl Johnson - CJ is coming off of an injury this week. All the reports state that he is 100 percent and ready to go. He better be, because this is the best group of blitzing linebackers the Gators have faced all season long.

2.Emmanuel Moody - The offense is great, but something is missing. I gotta have more Moody!

3. Tim Tebow - Timmy pretty much won the Heisman against the Gamecocks last year. If he gets off early, the Visored one could be in for a very long night.

4. Brandon Hicks - The Gators second team D may be the only weakness on this team. When they get into the game, Hicks needs to step up and be the leader of the unit. If Hicks can get on his game, the Gators D could be on par with 2006's unit.

5. Jonathan Phillips - This is a conditional pick. If this game resembles the last time South Carolina visited the Swamp, Phillips will need to continue his surprisingly stellar season. If it's a lot like last year's romp, Phillips will add on to his PAT totals.



Here's some SC fans flexing their intellectual muscle.



My Prediction:

Florida- 44

South Carolina- 21