LSU's Danny Etling was the first Southeastern Conference quarterback who transferred from Purdue to face Alabama this season, and he couldn't help the Tigers score a single point earlier this month against the vaunted Crimson Tide defense.
That was with Leonard Fournette and Derrius Guice in his backfield.
Now it's Austin Appleby's turn, as the graduate transfer from Purdue will guide Florida into Saturday afternoon's SEC title game against the top-ranked Tide. Alabama's defense has not allowed a touchdown in 17 quarters, which covered all four games in November, while Florida has scored just one offensive touchdown in its last 10 quarters, with that being the 98-yard strike from Appleby to Tyrie Cleveland that helped stun LSU 16-10 on Nov. 19.
"Alabama's defense is No. 1 in the country for a reason," Appleby said. "They have great coaching. They have a great plan. They have great players, and they execute the plan at a high level. It's definitely going to be a great challenge for our offense, but with that said, our offense is going to be up for the challenge.
"Our coaches are working to put a great plan in place. Our keys to the game are going to be staying on rhythm, winning early downs and getting ourselves to second- and third-and-manageable to where we can dial up plays for our playmakers."
Florida managed just 180 total yards in last December's 29-15 loss to Alabama in the SEC title game, and 81 of those came on a fourth-quarter drive after the Crimson Tide had built a 29-7 lead. The Gators enter the rematch ranked 114th nationally in total offense, averaging 352.7 yards per game, and 118th in explosive plays.
"I feel sorry for those couple teams that are behind us. I can only imagine how they feel," Gators coach Jim McElwain said. "Obviously it's not something we're proud of. We have to be able to do to get the ball in the hands of our guys and let them make some plays in space. That's what we've got to focus on doing."
The Gators opened last week's 31-13 loss at Florida State with a nine-play, 73-yard drive that reached the 2-yard line of the Seminoles, but McElwain went for it on fourth-and-goal, and an Appleby pass to Brandon Powell was incomplete. Appleby was sacked and fumbled on Florida's second possession, and FSU took a 7-0 lead two plays later.
Early disasters have been common this season for the Gators. Former starting quarterback Luke Del Rio's first pass against Georgia was intercepted by Dominick Sanders and resulted in a Bulldogs field goal, but Florida was able to recover and won 24-10.
Del Rio's first pass the next week at Arkansas was intercepted and returned for a touchdown, and the Gators wound up getting thumped 31-10.
Alabama leads the nation with nine defensive scores but hasn't tallied one since defensive end Jonathan Allen's 30-yard fumble return in the 33-14 win over Texas A&M on Oct. 22. Ohio State has seven defensive scores, and nobody else nationally has more than five.
"We're definitely hungry because we haven't gotten that many turnovers in the past few games," Tide inside linebacker Shaun Dion Hamilton said. "That's one thing that's very important, to have a positive turnover ratio. It's going to be important in this game that hopefully we can get more turnovers and put some points on the board."
Said Appleby: "Taking care of the ball is extremely important against anybody, but especially this defense. It's just going to be about us having the mental endurance to take what they give us all day and to keep pushing and finishing blocks, finishing runs, finishing throws and finishing routes."
Appleby, a 6-foot-4, 240-pounder from North Canton, Ohio, appeared in seven of Florida's 11 regular-season games. He has completed 87 of 145 passes (60 percent) for 964 yards with six touchdowns and two interceptions.
The Gators showed offensive punch early this season, with Del Rio throwing for 320 yards and four touchdowns against Kentucky and with Appleby throwing for 296 yards and three scores at Tennessee, but to say they're limping to Atlanta would be an understatement.
"We've had our opportunities these last couple games, yet the mindset of finishing is something we have to do," McElwain said. "With these guys that we're playing, I think the thing that really stands out is how short the explosive-play reel is when you look at it. They don't give up a lot of big plays.
"You've got to go earn it, and you know what, that's what we're going to set out and do."
SEC title notes
Alabama coach Nick Saban has won eight straight "championship" contests, defeating Florida (2009), Georgia (2012), Missouri (2014) and Florida (2015) in recent SEC title games and downing Texas (2009), LSU (2011), Notre Dame (2012) and Clemson (2015) in contests with a national title at stake.... Alabama, Iowa and Ohio State are the three finalists for the second annual Joe Moore Award, which is given to college football's top offensive line. The Crimson Tide won the award last year.... The Tide worked out in full pads Tuesday for two hours in the Hank Crisp Indoor Facility.
Contact David Paschall at dpaschall@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6524.