GAINESVILLE, Fla. — The University of Florida football program’s historically porous defense can be traced to having three coordinators in as many years, the team’s top two pass rushers transferring, and bringing together so many new faces that communication, cohesion and consistency seem more like pipe dreams than principles.
Nowadays, “D” pretty much stands for downfall in Gainesville. After all, failing to fix that side of the line of scrimmage has been embattled coach Billy Napier’s biggest blunder.
“It’s one thing to know; it’s another thing to apply,” said Napier, who is 14-16 in three seasons at Florida and inherited a subpar defense from his predecessor, Dan Mullen. “You have to go execute in the moment. You have to go apply what you learned. There is a combination of things here from a responsibility, accountability standpoint.”
The Gators (3-2, 1-1 Southeastern Conference) showed signs of growth in back-to-back wins against Mississippi State and UCF, but a much stiffer challenge awaits Saturday night in Knoxville against No. 8 Tennessee (4-1, 1-1).
The Volunteers have averaged 729 yards and 70 points per game at home this season, having walloped the University of Tennessee Chattanooga and Kent State. And they’re sure to be looking for a bounce-back effort after losing at Arkansas last week.