KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — Urban Meyer thought he found Florida’s identity last week.
With an experienced offensive line and a new quarterback, the Gators were going to thrive on the ground. Dominate the line of scrimmage. Pound defenses.
No. 10 Florida stayed true to that strategy in its 31-17 win Saturday at Tennessee. But while they were pleased with the end result, the Gators did not confirm Meyer’s previous hunch, leaving fans wondering if the offense is good enough to win the Southeastern Conference.
Florida (3-0, 1-0 Southeastern Conference) carried the ball 49 times, 12 more than its previous season high. But the team only managed 150 yards, or about three per attempt.
“That’s not good enough,” Meyer said. “This offense, minus (Tim) Tebow, you’ve got to find ways to run the ball because we’re going to be a physical team. I was not overly pleased with the way we ran the ball in this game.”
Florida continued to plan the offense around running back Jeff Demps, giving the junior a career-high 26 carries. But, following a 139-yard performance last week, Tennessee held Demps to just 73 yards on the ground.
Limping on his right leg after the game, Demps said he could tell a difference between Saturday’s contest and those of the previous two weeks, when Florida faced programs from less respected conferences in Miami (Ohio) and South Florida.
For the third game in a row, the Gators fell behind early. Facing a 3rd and 1 on its second drive, Florida running backs Emmanuel Moody and Mike Gillislee were stuffed at the line on back-to-back carries, and the short field led to a Tennessee field goal.
Florida responded with a 42-yard touchdown drive, highlighted by quarterback John Brantley’s 37 passing yards. But Tennessee (1-2, 0-1 SEC) silenced Florida until halftime, holding the Gators to just 94 yards at the break.
“That’s kind of who we are right now,” Meyer said. “I was very disappointed in the first half.”
Florida’s offense was much improved after the break, scoring on its first three possessions and taking a 24-10 lead. But the team at times looked one-dimensional. Playing in his first-career road game, Brantley was held to just 167 yards passing.
Billed as a pocket passer, Brantley has yet to throw for more than 200 yards in a game this season. Part of that, he said, was because of the team’s game plan, which called for more than twice as many running plays as passing plays.
“We trust our offensive line,” Brantley said. “I love those guys. We trust Jeff Demps and all the running backs. We’re just sticking with our game plan and just doing what we’re good at.”
Unlike its first two games of the season, the Florida offense did not have any big offensive plays to boost its stats. Demps, who broke runs of 72 and 62 yards against Miami and USF, didn’t gain more than 18 yards on a single play.
The team’s longest play from scrimmage actually came on a third-quarter fake punt, when receiver Omarius Hines rushed for 36 yards.
Hines said that the offense needs more explosive plays, but he notices differences between how the unit looks in practice and in games, a factor of the team’s youth.
“I don’t see anything missing,” he said. “I really just don’t know. We just got to keep practicing, chipping at. Eventually, we’ll get it.”
For now, though, the team will keep grinding wins out. Meyer said last week he wants Brantley to be throwing for more than 200 yards each game, and he admitted the offense is still a work in progress.
But, regardless of their offensive statistics, the Gators are scoring about 34 points a game, good enough for a 3-0 start.
“Are we good enough to win at Neyland Stadium? That’s all I’m worried about,” Meyer said. “Can we beat Kentucky at home? I don’t know yet. Flip the coin, man.”