Position by position breakdown and analysis

[HiFiGator]

I know this is probably an effort in futility, but let's give it a shot:

Quarterback: Both Bradford and Tebow are excellent field generals for their respective teams. Neither would be nearly as effective in the other system, but that isn't to say that they wouldn't both be successful in either system. They are just tooled as a more perfect fit for their own teams. Advantage: tie.

Running Backs: Both teams have a talented stable of ball carriers. If DeMarcus Murray was healthy, then I would probably give OU a slight edge. Without him, I think it is reasonable to consider this a tie as well.

Tight-end: I honestly think that Aaron Hernandez is about as good as anyone out there, and if we had CI (Cornelius Ingram) then this position would favor Florida. But CI is out and your guy has the credentials. As much as I personally consider this to be another tossup, in fairness, I think the National pubs would give OU a slight edge.

Wide-Receivers: This is a really tough one. Iglesias would certainly start for Florida, but Harvin would certainly start for the Sooners. Because of Florida's style of offense, the wideouts aren't given the chances to put up the bigger numbers. Stats alone might give OU a slight edge, but I think this is actually a Florida strenght. The depth is incredible. In the second half of the season, we have seen big plays from the likes of Deonte Thompson, Riley Cooper and David Nelson -- all guys who were mired down in the depth charts for most of the season. While most will consider this either a tossup or even a slight edge to OU, I think this is actually a strength for Florida, if for no other reason, than you will not find a wide receiver corps that does a better job of downfield blocking than the Gators. They are the reason we have so many big plays. It's very simple: if you aren't an excellent blocker, then you simply don't play. That is a very underlooked part of the wideout position and Coach Gonzales is a master at teaching up that part of the game. I actually give Florida the edge here.

Offensive line: This is an undervalued part of each team. Both squads do a tremendous job of protecting the quarterback and opening holes for the runners. I am going to give Florida a slight edge for one reason alone. Florida's offensive front has performed against consistently better defenses. The Bowl season is proving what we had thought all along. Certainly, some of the SEC offenses are challenged, but the defenses are solid. Vanderbilt, Georgia and LSU have all been excellent on defense. Even South Carolina played very well defensively. They just turned the ball over a half dozen times, giving Iowa a short field all day long. Conversely, even though the Big 12 is also 3-1 in their games, their defenses have been suspect from the start. Northwestern moved the ball at will against Missouri. Minnesota likewise had little trouble on offense, but simply had no answer for Reesing and company. Actually, Nebraska looked solid on defense but was -- as South Carolina was -- the victim of big plays off of turnovers. The bottom line is that I give Florida the edge here.

Defensive Line: This is another toughie. Oklahoma again has a couple more guys with National noteriety and therefore will probably get a slight nod here. Florida rotates their d-linemen more than most. Again, as with offensive numbers, that doesn't lend itself to the overly impressive stats. While OU's starting 4 might be a tad better, I think that Florida's top 8 are clearly better. In a sense, this defense is very much like our team 2 years ago. Everyone knew about Marcus Thomas, but by the end of the year, it was Derrick Harvey, Ray MacDonald, Joe Cohen, Steven Harris and Jarvis Moss that were getting the job done. Still, if I have to make as unbiased a pick here, I might give a slight edge to OU. (But I think you are all in for a big surprise come Thursday)

Linebackers: Edge to Florida. Again, Florida is a solid 2 to 3 deep at all positions. We have actually benefitted by injuries as we have a lot more depth due to having to rush otherwise green guys out there. Additionally, in Brandon Spikes we have one of the top 3 middle linebackers in the Nation, depending on which service you look at. He is currently the #1 middle linebacker on ESPN's service, #2 on Rivals and #3 on Mel Kiper. Again, edge to Florida.

Defensive Secondary: This is without a doubt the largest edge of any squad. This is a true strength of Florida. Joe Haden and Jenoris Jenkins are as good a cornerback tandem in the Country. Major Wright and Ahmed Black are certainly among the top 5 safety tandems in the Country. Behind them, are a handful of competent quality guys who were solid starters before these young studs beat them out.

Punter: I honestly don't know anything about your punter. That's probably a testament to your offense, but Chaz Henry has been a real weapon. When forced to punt, he has been excellent. He has an excellent average, but more importantly places the ball where he is asked. He is very adept at landing and keeping the ball inside the 10 yard line. Many columnists have openly said that he would have been a Ray Guy finalist if he had reached the minimum number of attempts to qualify for the National leaders. Edge to Florida, although I admit no knowlege of your guy.

Kicker: Since I know very little about your kicker, I will call this a tie. Our kicker, Jonathon Phillips, has been very good. He has only missed 2 kicks all year -- one, the blocked extra point against Ole Miss, and only one 45 yard field goal out of about 14 attempted.

Return: Had Murray not gotten hurt, then this might be closer to a tossup, but with him out, I think you have to give a decent edge to Florida. Brandon James is one of the best return men in the Country. He has already returned 5 punts for touchdowns in his career, in addition to having at least 3 called back for penalty.

Punt Cover: again, I admit to knowing very little about the Sooner squad here, but this is a bigtime strength of Florida -- largely because of the afforementioned strength of Chaz Henry our punter. He punts it far; he punts it high; and he puts it where he is supposed to. edge to Florida

Kickoff Cover: I have read all of the complaints that you all have about your kickoff cover team, and of course who can forget that return by Texas that really ignited the turnaround in that game. Still, our KO cover team sucks as well. That has been the one area of weakness in out team. I am going to call this a tie as well -- because both squads are weak.

Coaching: I like Bobby Stoops a lot and respect him as both a player and a coach. But I have to give the edge here to Urban. He has won the vast majority of his big games. In his 4 years at Florida, he is 12-1 against FSU, Tennessee, Georgia and Miami. He is 2-0 in Conference Title games and is 2-1 in bowl games, including one National Championship game. Stoops' success in bowls has been suspect at best. edge to Florida

Intangibles: Given the game is in Miami, there is a slight edge to Florida. Florida and Oklahoma each sold out their alloted tickets, but Gators are acquiring secondary market tickets by about a 2:1 margin. As it gets closer and closer to gametime, that stat will only swing more and more towards Florida. You could argue that OU could be hungrier, because of their recent failures in bowls, but I would think that would be at least offset by Meyer's experience getting the players ready to play for a National Championship. Lastly, many of Florida's playmakers played significant minutes in Glendale 2 years ago, and that can only help. Tebow, Harvin, Spikes as well as many of the big nasties on the offensive line are Title game veterans. edge to Florida.

[P3 Gator]

I give Oklahoma the O-line. They're big and have a LOT of starts under their belts.

[theresonly1OU]

Honestly, I could live with most of your analysis, save for the O-line comment.

There is no way Florida gets the edge when you look at the size and power the OU line possesses. The biggest shock to the UF system will be learning that, unlike the bama O line, we are just as good in pass pro as we are running.

But like I said, overall a decent analysis.

[jkm, the stolen pifwafwi]

dude, football is about matchups. its about having the player that can exploit personnel weaknesses on the opposing team. as much as you want to say "X is the greatest player of all time" - EVERYONE has weaknesses that can be exploited.

i'll give you some questions to ponder - think of situations where you've seen them and think about how your D responded.

how do you handle a QB that consistently hits his targets in stride? this is by far bradford's greatest strength. do you remember your secondary allowing big runs in this area or were they always on the guy?

how do you handle a QB who consistently gets 5 seconds to throw? there has only been one combination of DEs all season that could get to bradford in less time than that - orakpo and sergio kindle.

how do you handle running backs that rarely get thrown for a loss? a good guy to compare to brown is michael smith for arkansas. i didn't see him play against you (only tulsa) but how did he fare?

how do you handle jitterbugs that don't go down easy? madu isn't a breakaway threat, but he is a guy that can make people miss and get into the secondary. murray was a one cut and go back which i actually think was an advantage for you guys.

how do you handle the jitterbug in space? i sincerely doubt juaquin iglesias would start for florida. he'd probably be lapped in a 40 yard dash by harvin. as long as the turf isn't sloppy (which i think overwhelmingly favors florida) he is just insane in the open field - both at getting open and after the catch.

how do you handle the guy with deceptive speed? did you ever find yourself saying how did that slow guy get behind our D and why can't they catch him? manuel johnson looks SLOOOWWWW, but no one can catch him.

how do you handle the guy that bounces off of guys who don't wrap up? broyles, much like clayton, is one of those pinball guys. you have to wrap him up, because if you go for the hit, he'll just bounce around.


how do you handle power I? how do you handle the TE in play action out of that power?

how do you handle the WR bubble screen?

[fadada1]

QB - tie
RB - tie
O-Line - BIG edge to OU. sorry dude.
WR - big edge to OU (collectively as a unit). sorry dude.
TE - big edge to OU. sorry dude.
coaching - tie

the rest is fair.

[IBleedCrimson]

went to pappadeux last night in Dallas. Deep fried gator is AMAZING

[P3 Gator]

how do you handle a QB who consistently gets 5 seconds to throw? there has only been one combination of DEs all season that could get to bradford in less time than that - orakpo and sergio kindle.

how do you handle running backs that rarely get thrown for a loss? a good guy to compare to brown is michael smith for arkansas. i didn't see him play against you (only tulsa) but how did he fare?

See the Bama game. As far as running backs, see Scoot and the LSU game (and the Bama game).

how do you handle jitterbugs that don't go down easy? madu isn't a breakaway threat, but he is a guy that can make people miss and get into the secondary.

how do you handle the jitterbug in space? i sincerely doubt juaquin iglesias would start for florida. he'd probably be lapped in a 40 yard dash by harvin. as long as the turf isn't sloppy (which i think overwhelmingly favors florida) he is just insane in the open field - both at getting open and after the catch.

how do you handle the guy with deceptive speed? did you ever find yourself saying how did that slow guy get behind our D and why can't they catch him? manuel johnson looks SLOOOWWWW, but no one can catch him.

how do you handle the guy that bounces off of guys who don't wrap up? broyles, much like clayton, is one of those pinball guys. you have to wrap him up, because if you go for the hit, he'll just bounce around.

Our secondary tackles very well and our linebackers are very solid. Spikes is an All American at MLB and Chevt D Player of the Year, both corners tackle well, Ahmad Black at safety is probably the most consistent tackler on the d.

how do you handle power I? how do you handle the TE in play action out of that power?

Again, see Bama; that IS Saban's game.

You guys are going to score points...no doubt about it. That doesn't mean we don't match up pretty well and that we haven't seen a lot of what OU does. Granted, we haven't faced a QB the caliber of Bradford, but I think Bama's O-line is as solid as yours and JPW was running backwards pretty often.

[stoops the eternal pimp]

I spekked your analysis because you probably thought it out and worked hard on it..But

those kinds of analysis don't mean much because Sam Bradford isn't going against Tim Tebow..He is going against the D and vice versa

thats an analysis that would mean more IMO

[fadada1]

went to pappadeux last night in Dallas. Deep fried gator is AMAZING

apparently that gator wasn't very fast.

[jkm, the stolen pifwafwi]

so against a back like chris brown - which you gave me another example - coffee - you have done the following:

coffee 21 for 112
smith 20 for 130


i presume scott is a scat back, as i refuse to watch les miles. he sure as heck isn't like the others (8% of his carries go for negative yardage).

i'm not sure what you are trying to prove by pointing at alabama. you didn't go ahead in the game until the 4th quarter. i'm also not sure why you are comparing john parker wilson's accuracy with bradford.

[fadada1]

i'm not sure what you are trying to prove by pointing at alabama. you didn't go ahead in the game until the 4th quarter. i'm also not sure why you are comparing john parker wilson's accuracy with bradford.

BAMA IS A SOUTHEAST CONFERENCE TEAM!!!! GOOD LORD, YOU'RE DENSE!!!!!

;) :D ;) :D

[P3 Gator]

I never compared JPW's skill set to Bradford's. The comparison was Bama's O-line and yours and JPW being pressured. Saban also does a lot of play action to the tight end which was also a match-up mentioned, so the point was we've seen that too.

[IBleedCrimson]

apparently that gator wasn't very fast.

Nope. It was too busy chanting SEC! SEC!... Forgot there were other animal mascots outside it's own overrated conference. Cause of death: trampling by a couple o white ponies :D

[adoniijahsooner]

I spekked your analysis because you probably thought it out and worked hard on it..But

those kinds of analysis don't mean much because Sam Bradford isn't going against Tim Tebow..He is going against the D and vice versa

thats an analysis that would mean more IMO

Tebow would destroy Bradford in a Oklahoma drill, and would circumcise him to rub it in.

[Mark_in_Tulsa]

I'm sorry but you have to give OU the O-line edge.

Kirk and Corso both said last Sat. that OU has the best O-line they have seen in 20 years.
I forget which one said it, but one of them said there have been better lines at pass blocking, and there have been better lines at run blocking, but never has their been a line that could dominate both so much.

[stoops the eternal pimp]

Kirk and Corso are full of crap

[Iam4OUru]

i presume scott is a scat back, as i refuse to watch les miles. he sure as heck isn't like the others (8% of his carries go for negative yardage)





Yep, 230# "scat back".

[Mark_in_Tulsa]

Kirk and Corso are full of crap

SHHhhhhh

But my boss and I both said it Monday, and we are not full of crap.
And now it's on the internet and now it has to be true.

[stoops the eternal pimp]

SHHhhhhh

But my boss and I both said it Monday, and we are not full of crap.
And now it's on the internet and now it has to be true.

LOL..ok:D

People seem to forget how much this line played very average in the first part of the season. And the teams they did well against were less than stellar defenses...

But too late...its already true:D

[P3 Gator]

so against a back like chris brown - which you gave me another example - coffee - you have done the following:

coffee 21 for 112
smith 20 for 130


i presume scott is a scat back, as i refuse to watch les miles. he sure as heck isn't like the others (8% of his carries go for negative yardage).

i'm not sure what you are trying to prove by pointing at alabama. you didn't go ahead in the game until the 4th quarter. i'm also not sure why you are comparing john parker wilson's accuracy with bradford.

No, Scott is another big guy. And it doesn't matter when you go up as long as you're up when the clock hits zero. Coffee had 112 yards against us; Bama's total was 136. Bama had -1 yard in the fourth quarter. I like that stat...getting stronger as the night goes on against a big strong O-line.

[HiFiGator]

One thing I forgot to mention is that Florida's d-linemen rotation might not be very effective against OU. If OU goes to the hurry up, then one of the biggest benefits is that it doesn't allow the defense to substitute players. If OU can move the ball effectively early, then that could play into your hands. Not only will we have some of our players stuck on the bench, but as the game wears on, the players on the field will tire more quickly.

only1 wrote:

There is no way Florida gets the edge when you look at the size and power the OU line possesses. The biggest shock to the UF system will be learning that, unlike the bama O line, we are just as good in pass pro as we are running.


I explained that both lines did very similar and effective jobs of protecting the quarterback and opening holes for the running backs. I gave the slight advantage to UF solely because I think it has now been proven that they did so against, on average, better defensive units.

Incidentally, the comparison in this thread is between your unit and ours, not between your unit and others that we have played. In that light, it might come as a bit of a shock to you that our offensive line is very adept at run and pass blocking as well.

[starclassic tama]

i remember this exact same thing happening in 2000, except sports illustrated did the position by position breakdown. just about every single position on the field went to FSU, if not every single one.

[G8trGr8t]

Tebow would destroy Bradford in a Oklahoma drill, and would circumcise him to rub it in.


Too funny. True, but funny nonetheless.

Meyer had to take him out fo those one on one drills when he was a freshman as he was demoralizing our lb's and Meyer was worried he was going to get hurt the way he threw himslef into contact.

[G8trGr8t]

I think you will be surprised by not only the size and strength, but the agility of the UF OL. They pull and get downfield well for 300 pounders and really seem to enjoy hitting people.

[jkm, the stolen pifwafwi]

No, Scott is another big guy. And it doesn't matter when you go up as long as you're up when the clock hits zero. Coffee had 112 yards against us; Bama's total was 136. Bama had -1 yard in the fourth quarter. I like that stat...getting stronger as the night goes on against a big strong O-line.

sigh. are you sure you weren't an analyst touting mortgage backed securities?

http://sports.espn.go.com/ncf/playbyplay?gameId=283410057&period=4

1 legitimate rush attempt. 1

[Scott D]

No, Scott is another big guy. And it doesn't matter when you go up as long as you're up when the clock hits zero. Coffee had 112 yards against us; Bama's total was 136. Bama had -1 yard in the fourth quarter. I like that stat...getting stronger as the night goes on against a big strong O-line.

i'd consider Charles Scott to be a below average back. Statistically if it wasn't for cupcake games against North Texas and Tulane (7 carries 102yds, and 12 carries 114yds) he would have averages a whopping 3.3 yards per carry. He's one of those backs that if you can get a hit on him in the backfield, he's likely going to go down for a loss. He's not the type of back that manages to fall forward for no gain at minimum if not 2-3 yards.

[P3 Gator]

sigh. are you sure you weren't an analyst touting mortgage backed securities?

http://sports.espn.go.com/ncf/playbyplay?gameId=283410057&period=4

1 legitimate rush attempt. 1

Whatchu talkin' about Willis?

Scott (http://www.lsusports.net/ViewArticle.dbml?SPSID=27812&SPID=2164&DB_OEM_ID=5200&ATCLID=233518&Q_SEASON=2008)

[jkm, the stolen pifwafwi]

i'm talking about your alabama -1 comment

[P3 Gator]

i'm talking about your alabama -1 comment

Bama had 2 drives in the fourth quarter...for a total of 6 yards (my bust on the -1).

[jkm, the stolen pifwafwi]

yes, but my point was bama abandoned the run in the 4th even though their running back had 110 through 3. you can't say you stopped him when they gave him 1 rush in the quarter.

[jkm, the stolen pifwafwi]

i'll have to finish this discussion up later. right now i have to build a deck dealing with a certain music player locking up a couple of days ago. :(

[soonerboomer93]

oh, you get to try and sort out that mess??

sorry jkm

[P3 Gator]

i'll have to finish this discussion up later. right now i have to build a deck dealing with a certain music player locking up a couple of days ago. :(

Good point. I was at the game and wondered the same thing. Two 3 and outs gave UF a lot of time to score in the 4th. Bama fan next to me was in disbelief.

[delhalew]

Good try man, but really OU gets the edge on O-line.
You start talking WRs and you only mention Iggy. I'm not gonna argue we have the edge, but come on. Do you really think our guys don't block.
Oh, and the coach is tie.

[o0Dan0o]

I have to agree that comparing units against each other is a bit backwards.

Florida is going to score a decent number of points against OU, Tebow Co. are going to do their job, but with a month to game plan Stoops will slow them down. I watched the Ole Miss game and their defense that gave Florida issues is very similar to the defense Stoops likes to use.

The question for Florida's defense is how to game plan against Bradford and Co. On any and every play there are 5 legitimate receivers on the field, many times we go strait from power I to 4 wide without substituting and dealing with this over the course of the game will tire any defense.

I am under no delusion, this is a very difficult math up that I'm pretty apprehensive about. If either team walks into the game just a little off they're going to walk out the looser.

Oh, and the Urban over Stoops thing, yeah that's way too close to call man. Both are top 5 in the nation, neither with a significant edge.
Dan

[8timechamps]

Decent analysis.

I would agree with your breakdown overall (and it's already been mentioned that you can't really compare QB to QB, RB to RB, etc.) with the exception of the O lines.

I've watched Florida's O line (jeez, CBS College replayed the SEC CCG about 500 times). They are big and athletic. However, I have to give the edge to OU.

When a few years pass, and people really start to understand that this OU offense was the best to ever play, they will also realize this O line is about 75% of the reason. There are 5 future NFL starters on the line. If OU has done anything to contribute to the NFL, it's been the production of O linemen.

I would say UF has a top 5 O line. OU just happens to be #1...and not by a close margin.

As for the WRs, I think you're right. On paper, UF has more speed (ugh) and depth at WR. But, like jkm likes to mention, what's on paper and what shows up to play are two different things.

[SPuL]

apparently that gator wasn't very fast.

LOL nice

[jkm, the stolen pifwafwi]

i do think some intangibles need to be mentioned.

1. playing surface - this is fairly worrisome for me as the field is going to see 3 games in 7 days. as we've seen in 2 big 12 south games so far, a craptacular surface hurts a team that makes people miss whereas it actually helps teams with lots of straightline speed.

bad surface = big time advantage for florida

2. loose officiating - one thing we haven't seen this year is the QB releasing the ball and the DL taking one step and then going airborne to hit him. i've watched it happen time and time again this bowl season without a flag, except by the big 12 refs. in other words, our guys have been conditioned not to do it and sam isn't used to it happening.

[OU_Sooners75]

No, Scott is another big guy. And it doesn't matter when you go up as long as you're up when the clock hits zero. Coffee had 112 yards against us; Bama's total was 136. Bama had -1 yard in the fourth quarter. I like that stat...getting stronger as the night goes on against a big strong O-line.

Speaking of the strong great Bama Oline.

Do they start 5 OLmen every game, or just one for the first 13?

I mean, the Bama Oline that played last night sucked *** and allowed 8 sacks.

Now, I know Andre Smith is an AA Olinemen...but with him they would still have been dominated!

[OU_Sooners75]

I think you will be surprised by not only the size and strength, but the agility of the UF OL. They pull and get downfield well for 300 pounders and really seem to enjoy hitting people.

And Oklahoma's just loves playing powder puff. :rolleyes:

I hope for the sake of Florida that their coaching staff and the players do not think they way their fans do!

[Circle City Gator]

First, on the breakdown:

On paper you have to give O-line to Oklahoma for two reasons. First, they are deeper in people with multiple starts, and second, their guys are more experienced. I don't think people realize how young Florida is.

QB- tie, for different reasons. Bradford for pure passing ability, Tebow for running, passing, and the way he makes defenses play both.

RB- Oklahoma for clock control and grinding, Florida for big play threat. Therefore, a tie.

WR- Florida.

TE- Oklahoma.

DL- Tie. The idea Florida can't rotate because of Oklahoma's no-huddle offense is silly. Florida doesn't rotate based on yardage or play, but to keep guys fresh. Therefore, we can rotate between series. Both teams lost depth to injury.

LB- Florida. Our ML is a first-team All American. Yours is either the second- or third-string guy.

DB- I do not know. Florida's corners and one safety are great, but I don't know Oklahoma's. What I saw of their games, well, not impressed. There always seemed to be huge gaps in their zone coverage.

Punter- Florida

Punt return- Florida

Punt blocking- Florida

Kicking- Florida

Kick return- Florida

Kick blocking- Florida

Coaching- Headcoach- tie, OC- tie, DC- Florida. Therefore, slight edge to Florida on coaching.

Okay, but what about when they face each other?

OU OL v. Florida DL- edge, OU in the middle, Florida on the edges. Florida's tackles will be hard-pressed to hold their own, and Brandon Spikes is going to have to step and clean up after them, making him vulnerable to OU's TE dragging across the middle. Florida's ends, though, have an advantage over OU's tackes, who are big and strong, but have relatively slow feet. There, OU's RBs will have to pick up the ends and the blitzes, and Bradford will have to roll away and find second or third guys quickly.

OU's running backs and TE against Florida's linebackers. These will be the most athletic LBs OU has seen. They have the speed and size to keep up with Gresham, and the discipline and power to stop the run. But can they do both?

OU's WRs v UF's DBs. Corners are a tie, but one safety is in trouble IF Bradford gets too much time. Florida is going to have to get to him off the edges or with blitzes.

Florida's O-line v. OU's D-line. Florida. Add Tebow's power and ability to get out of trouble, and Florida gets the nod here. But does it have the power running game to take advantage of that? Yes. It's named Tim Tebow. It also has speed to make tiny creases big holes, leading to ...

OU's linebackers v. Florida's TE & RBs. OU's linebackers are strong enough to make Florida's smaller backs go down on the first hit. However, they are going to have to play very close to the line to make that work, because in the open field Demps, Rainey, and Harvin will make them miss. That opens the drag route to Hernandez.

OU's DBs v. Florida's WRs. A tie if Harvin, Demps and Rainey line up at RB. Florida advantage when they go wide. When that happens can OU reach Tebow before Florida can make use of that advantage?

When you look at offense vs. defense, the game seems to come down to whether each team's cornerbacks can give the defensive ends an extra second to reach the quarterback, and whether the defensive ends can get there in that second.

Finally, the matchup where Florida has a real advantage. Special teams. Oklahoma has not had a field position battle all year. They might not this time, but if they do, Florida wins. And if the game comes down to kickers, I like ours, not yours.

[DCGator]

CCG, I disagree with your analysis in these areas:

OU Oline v UF Dline - I think OU wins this battle. The OU Oline should allow Bradford steps up in the pocket, since we likely won't get a lot of pressure with the DTs. He has a quick release and they play the short passing game, so there is usually not enough time to get to him. I think we will have to come up with some timely blitzes to get to Bradford in series where he gets into 2nd & L, 3rd & L situations.

OU WR & TE vs UF DBs - I think OU wins this one most of the time. The key is that our DBs have the ability to tackle after the catch and make OU drive the field. All we have to do is win this battle 2-3 times out of 9 to make OU punt on a long drive. If we tackle well and don't give up the big play, we win a few of these battles, and that will be enough.

Basically, if we come up with a good scheme to get to Bradford, and we tackle well and keep OU in front of us, we can win.

[Circle City Gator]

CCG, I disagree with your analysis in these areas:

OU Oline v UF Dline - I think OU wins this battle. The OU Oline should allow Bradford steps up in the pocket, since we likely won't get a lot of pressure with the DTs. He has a quick release and they play the short passing game, so there is usually not enough time to get to him. I think we will have to come up with some timely blitzes to get to Bradford in series where he gets into 2nd & L, 3rd & L situations.

OU WR & TE vs UF DBs - I think OU wins this one most of the time. The key is that our DBs have the ability to tackle after the catch and make OU drive the field. All we have to do is win this battle 2-3 times out of 9 to make OU punt on a long drive. If we tackle well and don't give up the big play, we win a few of these battles, and that will be enough.

Basically, if we come up with a good scheme to get to Bradford, and we tackle well and keep OU in front of us, we can win.


Do we disagree, or are we just saying it differently? I said OU wins the O line vs. D line INTERIOR matchup, as you did. But I think UF wins the edges. Your point about Bradford stepping up goes to the former, not the latter.

As for OUs WRs, how do you define "win." I define it as stopping the long ball, making the tackle on first contact, and keeping Oklahoma from scoring faster than we do.

[MojoRisen]

Florida's DE's are solid, but they are big and I guarantee not as fast as a DE blitzing weighing 235-240. I like our Two First Day draft choices stopping UF's big 290 pound DE's.

You are going to have to bring people to get pressure... We will see how each team adjust's.

[Circle City Gator]

Florida's DE's are solid, but they are big and I guarantee not as fast as a DE blitzing weighing 235-240. I like our Two First Day draft choices stopping UF's big 290 pound DE's.

You are going to have to bring people to get pressure... We will see how each team adjust's.

One of those big defensive ends was a kick returner in high school. Yeah, they're fast.

[MojoRisen]

I think UF may get in trouble trying to play speed on the DL - holes can open up quick when a team tries speed over Gap containment. Play action and mis direction can cause havoc on a Over pursuing fast DL..

You guys are young on the DL - our Oline is plenty used to going up against some of the best DL and DE prospects in the country. I don't think Florida has anything on our DL or DE's personally.

I am pretty confident in this match up for OU...

I believe you will have to blitz and are your Corners and Saftey's up for the task of trying multiple blitz packages... Is OU going to be able to think quick enough to make adjustments to the blitzes and exploit it??

We will see

[Circle City Gator]

I think UF may get in trouble trying to play speed on the DL - holes can open up quick when a team tries speed over Gap containment. Play action and mis direction can cause havoc on a Over pursuing fast DL..

You guys are young on the DL - our Oline is plenty used to going up against some of the best DL and DE prospects in the country. I don't think Florida has anything on our DL or DE's personally.

I am pretty confident in this match up for OU...

I believe you will have to blitz and are your Corners and Saftey's up for the task of trying multiple blitz packages... Is OU going to be able to think quick enough to make adjustments to the blitzes and exploit it??

We will see

Florida's safeties and corners have been in blitz packages all year. We have the added luxury of linebackerws and DEs fast enough to drop into coverage. They can't hold it for long, but they can give the blitzer a couple of seconds.

[o0Dan0o]

I think the reoccurring problem here is that the OU fans don't know UF that well, and vice versa.

I'd agree with special teams, OU has looked poor at times, but at other we're solid. We've consistently improved over the year, so we'll see how that plays out.

We don't play a lot of man, and we blitz from anywhere and everywhere, so UF WRs to OU DBs isn't quite right. Our defense, a lot of times, is trying to attack down field, giving the opponent receivers some space to get open (the holes in the zone are caused by only having 5 players defending the pass). The question in my mind is how will Tebow deal with being attacked, will he have enough time to get the ball accurately down field to his receivers? Probably but not every time.

As Far as UF defense against the OU offense, I don't know that much about how you game plan on defense. But Our offense and OC has done an excellent job over the year of adjusting to the opponents defensive game plan, and we have the balance to exploit any defensive weakness.
Dan

[DCGator]

I think the reoccurring problem here is that the OU fans don't know UF that well, and vice versa.

I'd agree with special teams, OU has looked poor at times, but at other we're solid. We've consistently improved over the year, so we'll see how that plays out.

We don't play a lot of man, and we blitz from anywhere and everywhere, so UF WRs to OU DBs isn't quite right. Our defense, a lot of times, is trying to attack down field, giving the opponent receivers some space to get open (the holes in the zone are caused by only having 5 players defending the pass). The question in my mind is how will Tebow deal with being attacked, will he have enough time to get the ball accurately down field to his receivers? Probably but not every time.

As Far as UF defense against the OU offense, I don't know that much about how you game plan on defense. But Our offense and OC has done an excellent job over the year of adjusting to the opponents defensive game plan, and we have the balance to exploit any defensive weakness.
Dan

What our offense is designed to do is to freeze the defenders while they take a second to figure out the play. You can't play gap control and disciplined defense while blitzing all of the time, the option from the shotgun will run right by your defenders. What you need to do with UF is get pressure with the front four. OU might just have the Dline to do that, but we will see.

[HiFiGator]

Thanks for the legitimate analysis that some of you offered. Thanks as well for the, "our team's great ... your team sucks" nonsense that others contributed to the discussion.

Here are a couple of quick rebuttals:

Someone mentioned how experienced the Sooner OL is. I don't doubt that a bit. I haven't studied the resume's of each player, but I will take your word for it. Someone else also mentioned how deep the OL is for the Sooners. Again, I will take your word for it. But in pointing those facts out, the presumption is that it is an advantage that OU has over Florida. Florida is incredibly experienced and deep on the offensive front. Jim Tartt, Phil Troutwein, Medder, Wilson, Johnson and the Pouncey twins are all large, fast, agile and experienced linemen. A couple of guys names are escaping me at the moment, but the point is that we are a solid 2-deep all the way across the offensive front. I'm not knocking your guys, but this is a definite strength for Florida.


Secondly, someone pointed out that Florida had 2 good corners and one good safety, but one suspect safety. He doesn't know what he's talking about. The starting corners -- Joe Haden and Jenoris Jenkins -- are both incredible cover corners who are extremely sure handed tacklers as well. The starting safety tandem of Major Wright and Ahmed Black are certainly among the 5 best pairs in the Country. Additionally, the 2 and 3 deep roster spots are filled with former starters that these young studs beat out. We are loaded in the defensive secondary.

[fadada1]

phlorida's best chance on D is to NOT blitz, imo. sam goes through his reads faster than harvin running downhill and downwind. there always seem to be a least 2 quick routes to counter any blitz that might come - usually 1 to the RB and 1 to a WR. leaving our WRs on the outside without a safety is just plain stupid. don't blitz, and you leave sam all day to go through his reads and pick up the best option - which is usually all of the receivers.

[o0Dan0o]

What our offense is designed to do is to freeze the defenders while they take a second to figure out the play. You can't play gap control and disciplined defense while blitzing all of the time, the option from the shotgun will run right by your defenders. What you need to do with UF is get pressure with the front four. OU might just have the Dline to do that, but we will see.

I've seen that from UF, we'll see how it all works out. There are blitz packages to use against the option, you just need smart and fast players on defense to execute it, which OU has.

Luckily for OU I'm not their coach, heh.
Dan

[JGATOR]

I think what UF needs to do on defense is jam all the receivers at the line and disrupt the timing and give the line/blitz an extra second to get to Bradford. No matter what either team does on defense it risks something elswhere.

I can't think of another game where 2 offenses were positioned to exploit 2 good defenses.

[jkm, the stolen pifwafwi]

i keep seeing a recurring theme with florida posters - "OU has never seen a..." which is blatantly false. you guys repeatedly dismiss the fact that it is possible for other teams to have talent. this works both ways. if i made the statement that florida does not have a linebacker on their roster as freakishly athletic as sergio kindle, you guys would get all bent out of shape. it may or may not be true, but in reality the individual differences are marginal when it comes to synergy within the unit.

OU has had much much better defenses with much much less overall athletic talent. this OU unit in particular has one of the best front 4's we've had in recent memory. recent memory includes fronts with multiple 1st day draft picks including tommie harris. this front is big, fast, rangy but it has weaknesses - namely knocking each other off the tackle and mccoy losing gap control in the middle. that being said, they still almost lead the nation in sacks. ole miss had to blitz the crap out of tech to get pressure - we did it with our front 4.

our defense has been repeatedly stung by one type of player. the question is whether tebow has the foot speed to be that type of player. if he does then he'll have a field day. what the florida fans have seemingly failed to realize is why that type of player has gouged us during the bowl season. did you see dez bryant running wild through the oregon secondary? there was no one within 15 yards of him before he got hurt. did you see texas tech piling up yards on ole miss? they had 10 dropped passes (which is highly unusual), multiple dumb calls and a couple of turnovers yet still almost amassed 500 yards. did you see maclin running circles around guys even though chase daniel couldn't hit the broad side of a barn? did you see reesing just carving things up for kansas? do you think those individuals might skew some stats a bit?

you are adamant that you are going to get sacks on bradford because our tackles have slow feet. how many sacks have we allowed on the season? if your initial premise was true, do you think we might have given up more than 3?

[meoveryouxinfinity]

I wish we had DeMarcus Murray. Kid is a BALLER!!@@!@@@211

[Scott D]

i keep seeing a recurring theme with florida posters - "OU has never seen a..." which is blatantly false. you guys repeatedly dismiss the fact that it is possible for other teams to have talent. this works both ways. if i made the statement that florida does not have a linebacker on their roster as freakishly athletic as sergio kindle, you guys would get all bent out of shape. it may or may not be true, but in reality the individual differences are marginal when it comes to synergy within the unit.

OU has had much much better defenses with much much less overall athletic talent. this OU unit in particular has one of the best front 4's we've had in recent memory. recent memory includes fronts with multiple 1st day draft picks including tommie harris. this front is big, fast, rangy but it has weaknesses - namely knocking each other off the tackle and mccoy losing gap control in the middle. that being said, they still almost lead the nation in sacks. ole miss had to blitz the crap out of tech to get pressure - we did it with our front 4.

our defense has been repeatedly stung by one type of player. the question is whether tebow has the foot speed to be that type of player. if he does then he'll have a field day. what the florida fans have seemingly failed to realize is why that type of player has gouged us during the bowl season. did you see dez bryant running wild through the oregon secondary? there was no one within 15 yards of him before he got hurt. did you see texas tech piling up yards on ole miss? they had 10 dropped passes (which is highly unusual), multiple dumb calls and a couple of turnovers yet still almost amassed 500 yards. did you see maclin running circles around guys even though chase daniel couldn't hit the broad side of a barn? did you see reesing just carving things up for kansas? do you think those individuals might skew some stats a bit?

you are adamant that you are going to get sacks on bradford because our tackles have slow feet. how many sacks have we allowed on the season? if your initial premise was true, do you think we might have given up more than 3?

we're florida by god!

[Desert Sapper]

you are adamant that you are going to get sacks on bradford because our tackles have slow feet. how many sacks have we allowed on the season? if your initial premise was true, do you think we might have given up more than 3?

But we have NOT seen the superduper speed from a SEC D-Line. Not nevar.

The OU O-Line is slow but the Big XII D-Lines are slower. It's been proven in the postseason.

[5 - Wide]

WR- to FL percy harvin is for sure the best skill player on the field

[P3 Gator]

I've seen that from UF, we'll see how it all works out. There are blitz packages to use against the option, you just need smart and fast players on defense to execute it, which OU has.

Luckily for OU I'm not their coach, heh.
Dan

Teams had some success using blitzes early in the year against UF. Not so much later on.

[5 - Wide]

bottom line FL has much better athletes weather they are a better team or not is completly diff.. just look at the recruiting classes over the past 5 years.. percy harvin was the #2 player in the nation for a reason..thats all UF has going for them.. no team can stop OU with there tempo.. the only chance UF has is with there athletes.. USC would be a good match up for OU also prolly better then FL.. USC and FL has the best athletes for sure OU has stoops and his intensity and his spread toss it around he prolly learned at UF with steve sprurrier

[Scott D]

Teams had some success using blitzes early in the year against UF. Not so much later on.

most teams tend to be predictable when it comes to where and when they blitz. therefore it's easier to adjust protection to compensate for tendencies. What makes situations like bowl games dangerous is teams get a chance to work on disguising blitzes (which is primarily a personnel matter), and learning to read protections better along with mixing up the when and where.

[meoveryouxinfinity]

bottom line FL has much better athletes weather they are a better team or not is completly diff.. just look at the recruiting classes over the past 5 years.. percy harvin was the #2 player in the nation for a reason..thats all UF has going for them.. no team can stop OU with there tempo.. the only chance UF has is with there athletes.. USC would be a good match up for OU also prolly better then FL.. USC and FL has the best athletes for sure OU has stoops and his intensity and his spread toss it around he prolly learned at UF with steve sprurrier

:texan:

[jkm, the stolen pifwafwi]

bottom line FL has much better athletes weather they are a better team or not is completly diff.. just look at the recruiting classes over the past 5 years.. percy harvin was the #2 player in the nation for a reason..thats all UF has going for them.. no team can stop OU with there tempo.. the only chance UF has is with there athletes.. USC would be a good match up for OU also prolly better then FL.. USC and FL has the best athletes for sure OU has stoops and his intensity and his spread toss it around he prolly learned at UF with steve sprurrier

OMG, LET'S LOOK AT THE RECRUITING CLASSES!!!!

that takes it, iglesias and bradford shouldn't even make the trip. that not even ranked wide receiver before he committed and that low 3 star QB.

THEY SUCK!!!!

[jkm, the stolen pifwafwi]

But we have NOT seen the superduper speed from a SEC D-Line. Not nevar.

The OU O-Line is slow but the Big XII D-Lines are slower. It's been proven in the postseason.

so true, based on these guys i would presume that florida had in the neighborhood of 60 sacks on the season. is this true?

[P3 Gator]

most teams tend to be predictable when it comes to where and when they blitz. therefore it's easier to adjust protection to compensate for tendencies. What makes situations like bowl games dangerous is teams get a chance to work on disguising blitzes (which is primarily a personnel matter), and learning to read protections better along with mixing up the when and where.

So what's good for the goose is good for the gander. UF has the same time for prep. Even.

[o0Dan0o]

So what's good for the goose is good for the gander. UF has the same time for prep. Even.

You see that a lot in bowl games, the team with the best coaching staff wins. Of course, if you swap Florida's and, say, the Citadel's coaching staffs and had them play again, I would still put my money on Florida (with the Citadel's coaching staff).

Florida and Oklahoma are two of the best teams with, in my opinion, two of the best coaching staffs. It should be a really great game, and if it's not I'll be really pissed since there haven't been many good ones this bowl season.
Dan

[raquetclub]

I still say this game come down to whether Florida's front 4 can get pressure on Bradford without the blitz.

[adoniijahsooner]

I still say this game come down to whether Florida's front 4 can get pressure on Bradford without the blitz.

Bingo! All of the talk about Bradford, Tebow, Harvin, and speed; The team that dominates the los is going to win this game, and that is why i am confident of a victory thursday.

I have posted a few times that when I saw Texas play Colorado this year, and they were pushing the o-line into the backfield, I became extremely concerned. So after watching UF's D-Line against Bama, and then seeing that Utah was more dominant, it just confirms my believe. OU 54-35!

[JGATOR]

UF's D-Line against Bama, and then seeing that Utah was more dominant, it just confirms my believe. OU 54-35!

Don't confuse the Bama O-Line from the SECCG to the line at the Sugar Bowl. Two vastly different animals. 1-Smith was suspended and Bama had to move the left guard over to the tackle spot. 2-The guard that moved to the tackle got injured and did not return. 3-They then moved the right tackle over to the left and brought ina true freshman.

I twas bad enough to have Smith out but at keast you had a few weeks for the new configuration to practice together. Then the next guy goes out and now a group that has not played together at all has to play most of the game. The o-line is the one unit on the field where cohesiveness is a must and they just had no chance for cohesiveness after the injury.

[P3 Gator]

Don't confuse the Bama O-Line from the SECCG to the line at the Sugar Bowl. Two vastly different animals. 1-Smith was suspended and Bama had to move the left guard over to the tackle spot. 2-The guard that moved to the tackle got injured and did not return. 3-They then moved the right tackle over to the left and brought ina true freshman.

I twas bad enough to have Smith out but at keast you had a few weeks for the new configuration to practice together. Then the next guy goes out and now a group that has not played together at all has to play most of the game. The o-line is the one unit on the field where cohesiveness is a must and they just had no chance for cohesiveness after the injury.

Stand-by, you used actual facts.:pop:

[o0Dan0o]

Don't confuse the Bama O-Line from the SECCG to the line at the Sugar Bowl. Two vastly different animals. 1-Smith was suspended and Bama had to move the left guard over to the tackle spot. 2-The guard that moved to the tackle got injured and did not return. 3-They then moved the right tackle over to the left and brought ina true freshman.

I twas bad enough to have Smith out but at keast you had a few weeks for the new configuration to practice together. Then the next guy goes out and now a group that has not played together at all has to play most of the game. The o-line is the one unit on the field where cohesiveness is a must and they just had no chance for cohesiveness after the injury.


Cool, but still don't believe Bama's O-line is as good as OU's (as they played in your champ game). Very good, but not as good in pass blocking (probably close to a wash in run blocking).
Dan

[Scott D]

So what's good for the goose is good for the gander. UF has the same time for prep. Even.

yes, but UF is using that prep time to run 400 more wind sprints.

[Desert Sapper]

Don't confuse the Bama O-Line from the SECCG to the line at the Sugar Bowl. Two vastly different animals. 1-Smith was suspended and Bama had to move the left guard over to the tackle spot. 2-The guard that moved to the tackle got injured and did not return. 3-They then moved the right tackle over to the left and brought ina true freshman.

I twas bad enough to have Smith out but at keast you had a few weeks for the new configuration to practice together. Then the next guy goes out and now a group that has not played together at all has to play most of the game. The o-line is the one unit on the field where cohesiveness is a must and they just had no chance for cohesiveness after the injury.

This is true, but Ole Miss was the second best O-Line you faced, and Tech even got better pressure than the UF D.:texan:

[jkm, the stolen pifwafwi]

yes, but UF is using that prep time to run 400 more wind sprints.

you know, i think that is the oddest thing that i've seen this bowl season. typically this far into the season guys are down in weight anyway. yet they are going to make them get more stamina by running?

a) bodies don't respond to a change in conditioning in a month. we've started prepping for this last january and it took til september before the OL actually looked in shape.
b) when you start training for endurance you tend to drop weight and strength.

just weird.

[L-Boy]

dude, football is about matchups. its about having the player that can exploit personnel weaknesses on the opposing team. as much as you want to say "X is the greatest player of all time" - EVERYONE has weaknesses that can be exploited.

i'll give you some questions to ponder - think of situations where you've seen them and think about how your D responded.

how do you handle a QB that consistently hits his targets in stride? this is by far bradford's greatest strength. do you remember your secondary allowing big runs in this area or were they always on the guy?

how do you handle a QB who consistently gets 5 seconds to throw? there has only been one combination of DEs all season that could get to bradford in less time than that - orakpo and sergio kindle.

how do you handle running backs that rarely get thrown for a loss? a good guy to compare to brown is michael smith for arkansas. i didn't see him play against you (only tulsa) but how did he fare?

how do you handle jitterbugs that don't go down easy? madu isn't a breakaway threat, but he is a guy that can make people miss and get into the secondary. murray was a one cut and go back which i actually think was an advantage for you guys.

how do you handle the jitterbug in space? i sincerely doubt juaquin iglesias would start for florida. he'd probably be lapped in a 40 yard dash by harvin. as long as the turf isn't sloppy (which i think overwhelmingly favors florida) he is just insane in the open field - both at getting open and after the catch.

how do you handle the guy with deceptive speed? did you ever find yourself saying how did that slow guy get behind our D and why can't they catch him? manuel johnson looks SLOOOWWWW, but no one can catch him.

how do you handle the guy that bounces off of guys who don't wrap up? broyles, much like clayton, is one of those pinball guys. you have to wrap him up, because if you go for the hit, he'll just bounce around.


how do you handle power I? how do you handle the TE in play action out of that power?

how do you handle the WR bubble screen?

Barring turnovers, I am quite sure OU will get their share of yards and pts, but I have no reason to think that UF will handle any of these things any worse than TX or TCU.

Also, I am wondering why Bradford ever has to "hit his target in stride" when he "consistently gets 5 seconds to throw"

[jkm, the stolen pifwafwi]

because we don't throw deep dude. its all short to medium crossing routes...

[Vaevictis]

Also, I am wondering why Bradford ever has to "hit his target in stride" when he "consistently gets 5 seconds to throw"

I believe what he means by that statement is that when Bradford throws the ball, usually the receiver doesn't have to break stride to catch it.

[OU_Sooners75]

bottom line FL has much better athletes weather they are a better team or not is completly diff.. just look at the recruiting classes over the past 5 years.. percy harvin was the #2 player in the nation for a reason..thats all UF has going for them.. no team can stop OU with there tempo.. the only chance UF has is with there athletes.. USC would be a good match up for OU also prolly better then FL.. USC and FL has the best athletes for sure OU has stoops and his intensity and his spread toss it around he prolly learned at UF with steve sprurrier

You have been decent so far while here, so I will try to stay decent with you....

The recruiting rankings have very little to do with how a team does.

OU has some very good athletes, just about the same as Florida when it comes to athletes. OU has speed, just like Florida.

The thing that makes Oklahoma more dangerous than Florida, and that makes Stoops a better coach is the fact that he can create players and athletes that are considered lesser than 4 stars.

Bradford for example was a 3 star out of high school. He is proving to be a very good commodity to have on a team.
Jaquain Iglesias was not even rated out of high school. He is a very good WR and will most likely be drafted in the 3rd or 4th round of next years Draft.

Florida is not stacked with 5 star recruits. They have just as many as Oklahoma when it comes to five stars on each roster. So please do not talk about recruiting meaning much when it comes to actual play of the game.

[OU_Sooners75]

Don't confuse the Bama O-Line from the SECCG to the line at the Sugar Bowl. Two vastly different animals. 1-Smith was suspended and Bama had to move the left guard over to the tackle spot. 2-The guard that moved to the tackle got injured and did not return. 3-They then moved the right tackle over to the left and brought ina true freshman.

I twas bad enough to have Smith out but at keast you had a few weeks for the new configuration to practice together. Then the next guy goes out and now a group that has not played together at all has to play most of the game. The o-line is the one unit on the field where cohesiveness is a must and they just had no chance for cohesiveness after the injury.

Look bro, I played Oline from Junior High through College. I played all the positions, mainly tackle. In fact 95% of the Olinemen that make it to the college ranks have played all the OLine positions.

That being said, missing Andre Smith can and does hurt. He is a very special player. But he is not irreplaceable. The fact that Bama was out played and out prepared resulted in the outcome. That and the fact that the OLine has ZERO effect on the defense!