Front Porch FootballFlorida Wins, Calling It.
by Nicolas Alvarez, Guest Writer
I was tempted to say it last year, but I digressed – which ended up being a good idea given how that game ended up. With that being said, I have no problem proclaiming it now. The World’s Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party is absolutely, without a shadow of a doubt, back. It has all the trappings a good ole fashioned mid-afternoon SEC showdown. So much so that I can hear the CBS theme song and Mr. Lundquist’s voice welcoming me back to Jacksonville as I type this out in my Wills, Trusts, and Estates class (sorry, but not sorry, its f’in Georgia week).
This year’s game marks just the third time since 2000 that both Florida and Georgia meet as Top 10 foes. What’s more, this seems like the game that will truly start the Dan Mullen-Kirby Smart rivalry that looks to dominate the East for years to come (again, sorry not sorry Cocks fans). I haven’t been able to sleep all week. I shake just thinking about the game. And yet, I have answered the call of Mr. Chris Paschal and offer two thoughts on how this game will go.
More Than One Dimension
So, here’s what has to happen. Florida, if they want any chance to walk out of Jacksonville with a victory, needs to establish the run game. Quite the hot take I know, but this is absolutely crucial when it comes to Kyle Trask and his litany of playmakers. Florida has gotten by this season with the sheer amount of weapons they have at their disposal. The likes of Freddie Swain, Tyrie Cleveland, Trevon Grimes, Josh Hammond, Kadarius Toney, Van Jefferson, Jacob Copeland, and Kyle Pitts, who people aren’t talking about enough, just to name a few. For Florida to be potent, they absolutely cannot be one dimensional. Get the run game going and protect Trask enough so that he can toss the ball to one of his weapons. The offensive line needs to take a big step forward here – looking at you Coach Hevesy.
Win the Battle in the Trenches
Speaking of offensive lines, Georgia’s offensive line is absolutely massive – bigger than the average NFL offensive line. How Georgia’s unit fairs with having Greenard and Zuniga back – although we don’t know how back – will likely be a huge factor in this game. If Florida’s edge rushers can impose their will like we saw them do before the injuries, anything goes. But if Georgia’s front line handles their business, and allows Deandre Swift to run wild and Jake Fromm to do what he has shown he can do in Cocktail Parties in the past, all Hell will break loose. Kirby has had two weeks to prep for this game and Georgia will play like it. If I want to see Todd Grantham do one thing it’s allow his guys to run wild and get after Fromm. This game will be won, whoever comes out the victor, in the trenches.
Other Gator fans I’ve spoken to seem to be just happy about being back in the national spotlight. In my opinion, that’s absolutely asinine. This is Mullen’s defining game up to now. Everything rides on this. There are no moral victories in the SEC. As a wise man once told me: “It’s just gon’ come down to the Georgia game baby!” Go Gata.
