‘WE’RE ANGRY’
With two losses in ledger, Gators out to close ’19 strong
GAINESVILLE — UF safety Donovan Stiner tossed and turned, replaying the Georgia loss in his head as he stared at the ceiling.
Two nights of secondguessing were plenty of time to get over the disappointing defeat and focus on the rest of the season.
“Since the game was over, I replay it in my head, on the way home, stuff like that,” Stiner said Monday. “I woke up this morning; I’m focused on Vandy now.”
UF has made a bad habit in recent seasons of following up the Georgia game — win or lose — with a flat performance the following week. But the No. 10 Gators (7-2, 4-2 SEC) plan to set a new course and close the season strong, beginning at noon Saturday when Vanderbilt (2-6, 1-4) visits the Swamp for a game that will air on ESPN.
Coach Dan Mullen’s team started off the week on the right foot, showing up with a distinct mental edge during Monday’s practice.
“Every guy has been out there, practicing pissed off, you know, we’re angry,” tight end Lucas Krull said. “It’s something that’s going to translate to a great finish.”
The 2018 Gators closed the season in impressive fashion, winning four straight games by a combined score of 180-70. Before the run, UF’s 38-17 homecoming loss to Missouri the week after falling to Georgia is the kind of letdown Stiner, Krull and their teammates aim to avoid.
“I think if you dwell on a game for too long, it’s going to affect the next game, and we can’t let that happen,” Stiner said. “We’ve got to win out starting with this game in the Swamp. We’ve got to move on from it, take the mistakes that we made and use it to get better for this game.”
The SEC East title is a long shot for the Gators. It also is not a given that Georgia (7-1, 4-1) ends UF’s chances by winning two of the Dawgs’ final three conference games — a visit from Missouri, at Auburn and a home date with Texas A&M.
“Georgia is a hell of a ball team,” Florida senior receiver Josh Hammond said. “I’m sure they are going to go out there and control their own destiny to get to where they want to go as well. It’s not in our control.
“We are just going to control what we can and do the best we can for our team.”
The best the Gators likely can hope for is home wins against struggling Vanderbilt and Florida State sandwiched around a victory Nov. 16 at unpredictable Missouri, winners of four of the past six against UF. A 10-2 finish with an impressive win against Auburn and hardfourth losses at LSU and against Georgia would put the Gators in line for a New Year’s Six Bowl, possibly the Orange Bowl for the first time since the 2008 national title game against Oklahoma.
“The season isn’t over; we still have a lot to play for,” sophomore tight end Kyle Pitts said.
UF also has not posted consecutive seasons with at least 10 wins since Tim Tebow played quarterback for the 2008 national champions and the 13-1 Gators in 2009.
“It would mean a lot,” defensive tackle Adam Shuler said. “It’s hard to win double-digits in college football, and we think we’re capable of doing it.”
The Gators’ schedule certainly sets up for it.
Vanderbilt is a 26.5-point underdog with third-string quarterback Deuce Wallace making his first career start. Mo Hasan, who started his team’s 21-14 upset win against Missouri on Oct. 19, is out with a concussion. Riley Neal, who has started six games, remains in the concussion protocol after being knocked out of last week’s loss in South Carolina but he will travel to Gainesville with the Commodores.
Wallace has thrown three interceptions and no touchdowns during six appearances, offering the Gators’ defense a good chance to bounce back from a frustrating day against Georgia.
The Bulldogs converted 12-of-18 third-down chances and did not allow a sack or commit a turnover. The Gators led the nation in takeaways at one point this season but have generated just one in three games.
“It makes a big difference for the whole game because you’re winning with turnovers,” Stiner said. “We need to get back to that so we can help not only the defense but our team as a whole.”
The Gators seek to establish their identity on offense again, too. Against Georgia, Mullen’s attack struggled to get on the same page from the start, similar to the team’s shaky start at South Carolina — just worse.
“We got to do better than that and stop shooting ourselves in the foot at the beginning of the game,” said John Hevesy, UF’s offensive line coach and cooffensive coordinator. “We’re trying to run 60-70 plays, and all of a sudden we’re sitting there at halftime with 19 plays.”