Category Archives: Football

Bringing all the latest news and updates related to SEC football.

Should He Stay Or Should He Go?

It was too easy. The Florida Gators (4-7, 3-5) fell short, or should I say fell flat on their face, this Saturday against The Georgia Southern Eagles with a score of 26-20.  What is worse then getting your butt kicked by a FCS school you ask? Paying them $550,000 to do so. That’s right The University of Florida paid Georgia Southern to come to Ben Hill Griffin, these moves are historically made by schools who feel like it would be an easy win. Things didn’t go as planned for the Gators on Saturday, or this season for that matter.

Georgia Southern beat the Gators without completing one pass. None, but they didn’t need to. The Eagles rushed for 429 yards, which according to HLN is the most against a Florida team since 1996. This loss is the Gator’s sixth loss in a row and has locked in their first losing season since 1979. Another terrible fact, Florida has had the longest active bowl streak with 22 years in a row which is now, just a thing of the past. There has been a lot of disconnect between Muschamp and Florida fans, especially after this year. 19-yar-old Gator fan Savannah White says “There needs to be a change. I don’t know if that change will be a coaching change or what, but there needs to be a change.”  This all begs the question, Will Muschamp stay or will he go?

Muschamp met with media today in Gainesville and underwent a flood of questions about his job security, but seemed very secure in his answers. According to the Gainesville Sun, when he was asked if he was concerned with losing his job he simply answered “Absolutely not, “ and that he was “absolutely” sure he would coach the Gators in 2014.  He seemed so sure in his answers until it came to his assistant coaching staff. “I’m not ready to make any statement on that at this point. We’re still playing out the season and those guys are going to coach their butts off. I’ll make that decision when I think it’s right.” What we do know is that the University of Florida athletic director Jeremy Foley has professed his allegiance to Coach Muschamp saying in a statement he made online that “As athletic director, I’m a thousand-percent convinced that Will Muschamp is the guy to lead this football program. Nothing has changed in what we feel about Will Muschamp from the day we hired him. Everyone around here wants the same thing.” I’m not so sure the fans feel the same way. One thing the fans need to keep in mind is the injuries that have plagued the Gators this year. If you haven’t been paying attention, according to Sbnation there have been 10 season ending injuries on offense and defense this season alone, 7 of them being starters. That could play a huge role in the disappointments this season but that doesn’t satisfy the fans. With all of the turbulence from fans, Muschamp continues to gain support from his players. Senior defensive back Jaylen Watkins said, “Everybody is fully behind Coach Muschamp. We try our hardest not to listen to all that on ESPN and just ignore it and know that we only have each other through this whole thing.” The Gators play 2nd ranked Florida State Seminoles this Saturday at 12pm.

Information from ESPN, The Gainesville Sun, SBnation, Alligator Army, and HLN was used in this article.

Could Florida State QB Jameis Winston Being Under Investigation Alter Heisman Voting?

According to TMZ Sports, standout redshirt freshman QB Jameis Winston is involved in an investigation for felony sexual assault. Winston is being accused of a raping a woman on December 7, 2012. The victim alleges that the sexual assault happened with the use of “force”, and drinking was involved before the occurrence. The police report states that the motive for the alleged assault was for “sexual gratification”. Winston’s attorney Timothy Jansen continues to maintain that his client has not committed a crime saying that he gave affirmations from two different eyewitnesses that he said will “completely exonerate my client.”

TMZ Sports reports that the police report states that on December 7, 2012 someone had called the authorities at 4:01 AM, and once they arrived at an apartment physical evidence was taken as well as photos were taken of the alleged victim’s injuries. In addition, the cops have interviewed Winston and the police report describes him as “muscular” and having a “polite” demeanor.

According to ESPN,

“Last week, Tallahassee police released a heavily redacted

two-page incident report that does not mention Winston by

name but says an assault took place between 1:30 a.m. and

2 a.m. on Dec. 7. It describes the suspect as being between

5-foot-9 and 5-11. Winston is listed by Florida State at 6-4.”

The investigation is continuing. Could an unresolved investigation alter the minds of the Heisman voters? If so, SEC Texas A&M quarterback Johnny Manziel would be the frontrunner.

Information from ESPN and TMZ was used in this article.

Read more: https://www.tmz.com/2013/11/13/jameis-winston-florida-state-quarterback-investigated-sexual-assault/#ixzz2lEAmMxn6

Who’s Going To Get Out Alive?

The SEC East battle in Jacksonville, FL this Saturday is bound to be a good one. The Florida Gators (4-3, 3-2) and the Georgia Bulldogs (4-3, 3-2), both coming off a bye week, have been preparing for a game that is a necessary win for each teams seasons. Last week, the Missouri Tigers were seemingly on the road to clinch the Eastern division looking strong with an undefeated record until they hit a roadblock. South Carolina handed the Tigers their first loss with a score of 27-24. With Missouri’s loss brought about optimism for Florida, Georgia, and South Carolina about getting to Atlanta. Florida’s defensive back Cody Riggs watched the Mizzou/Gamecocks game from home and stated, “We’re back in it. We’ve still got a chance…It gave us a little hope. The minute that kick hit the upright, I opened my computer and started watching film on Georgia.” I’m sure cheers were heard from Columbia, SC to Athens, GA, all the way to Gainesville, FL.

According to GeorgiaDogs, Florida and Georgia are tied in the SEC East rankings behind first place Missouri (7-1, 3-1) and second place South Carolina (6-2, 4-2); all four are all “technically alive” to win the East. Florida quarterback Tyler Murphy said that the upcoming game with the Bulldogs is a crucial win for either team. “It’s kind of like a one-game playoff. If you lose, your season’s kind of done or down in the dumps…both teams are going to come out hungry and ready to go.” On the other side, Georgia head coach Mark Richt said that both teams are hopeful for the  seasons stating “I think both teams know if they win, we stay in the race for the East.”

There is no doubt that this will be a key game for the two. Florida head coach Will Muschamp is 0-2 against the Bulldogs in his Florida career. Muschamp said that Florida needs to execute plays in order to supersede Georgia, a problem that has plagued the Gators all season. “We’re probably not going to show him (Georgia senior quarterback Aaron Murray) anything he’s not seen over the four years at Georgia. We just need to execute and play well. We need to be able to pressure the quarterback with four guys rushing.” The Georgia Bulldogs and Florida Gators will play on neutral grounds in Jacksonville, Fla., on Nov. 2 on CBS. Kickoff is for 3:30 p.m. eastern time.

We’ll see which team makes it out “alive.”

Information from GeorgiaDogs and GatorZone has been used in this article.

BCS Rankings: Two SEC teams in top 10

Connor Shaw and the Gamecocks shook up Missouri’s run and top five BCS hopes after a 27-24 victory last weekend. Missouri earned their first loss of the season and dropped to No. 9 in the BCS rankings. If Alabama fails to remain undefeated for the rest of the season, you can kiss the SEC’s championship hopes goodbye.

Alabama still holds the No. 1 spot while Oregon moves back to No. 2 after passing Florida State. Even though Alabama and FSU look like the top two teams in college football right now.

Four other SEC teams are listed in the top 15 as seen below.

Second BCS Rankings:

1. Alabama
2. Oregon
3. Florida State
4. Ohio State
5. Stanford
6. Baylor
7. Miami
8. Clemson
9. Missouri
10. Oklahoma
11. Auburn
12. Texas A&M
13. LSU
14. South Carolina
15. Texas Tech
16. Fresno State
17. Northern Illinois
18. Oklahoma State
19. Louisville
20. UCLA
21. Michigan
22. Michigan State
23. UCF
24. Wisconsin
25. Notre Dame

Gator’s Offense Plays “Mizz-erably” as Missouri Dominates

Florida Gators head coach Will Muschamp was not shy when he expressed his disappointment with Saturday’s game against the Missouri Tigers (7-0, 3-0) in Columbia, MO.  At the post-game news conference, the fiery coach stated that the Gators are inept offensively. “This is not a very good football team, and certainly not today,” he said. “I am pretty disappointed that we have not made more positive strides offensively at this point of the season.” The Gators (4-3, 3-2) had a total offense of only 151 yards against Missouri, according to GatorZone, being the least since the 1999 SEC Championship game against Alabama where the Gators only mustered up 114 yards in a 34-7 loss. The Missouri Tiger’s defense definitely played a huge part in the Gator’s shortcomings offensively with three takeaways and six sacks on Florida QB Tyler Murphy.

Mizzou’s defense never let up on the whimpering Gator offense. Murphy only completed 15 of 29 passes for 92 yards and had an interception as he tried to elude the Missouri defense. “They did a good job covering, but we’re got to find ways to make plays. I have to find ways to get guys the ball,” Murphy said. Injuries on the Gators offense could be a part of the reason why the team is failing. Offensive lineman Chaz Green, running back Matt Jones, and starting quarterback Jeff Driskel are considerable losses leaving them scrambling to execute offensively. “We try and spread it out, we try and throw it, we can’t protect the quarterback,” Will Muschamp stated. “We try to grind it out, we’re not creating enough explosive runs. We need to find some answers and right now we’re not finding any.” Florida has a bye week and will face Georgia Nov. 2nd.

On the other hand, Mizzou back-up quarterback Maty Mauk threw for 295 yards in his first career start. Starting quarterback James Franklin injured his shoulder in last week’s 41-26 win against Georgia. Florida’s defense was no problem for the back-up, turning some skeptics wondering if he was ready into believers. Mauk started the game with only having thrown six passes in his career, three of those coming in the final quarter against Georgia after Franklin was injured. “Backup quarterback?” Missouri center Evan Boehm playfully asked. “Maty would be starting anywhere else.” Mauk proved that to be true by completing 18 of 36 passes Saturday including three of them for 37 yards or more down the sideline. Mizzou head coach Gary Pinkel said that Mauk was in the toughest situation he has ever had to put a quarterback in, especially against a Gators defense that had only allowed 235.3 yards a game but Mauk lessened the stress by completing a pass downfield on his opening play. “He looked like a seasoned veteran out there,” Pinkel said about his promising back-up. The Tigers put up 500 yards on the previously second ranked defense in the nation. After the notable wins over Georgia and Florida, the Missouri tigers are atop the SEC east and are seemingly headed to Atlanta in the SEC championship game in only their second season even being in the South Eastern Conference. Missouri’s next game is October 26th at home against South Carolina.

Information from MuTigers.com, GatorZone, and ESPN were used in this article.

James Franklin to miss at least 6 weeks

Missouri quarterback James Franklin will miss up to six weeks with a Grade 2 shoulder separation, according to CBSSports.com’s Bruce Feldman.

Franklin injured his shoulder during a four-yard run during the start of the fourth quarter. Backup quarterback Maty Mauk took over with the Tigers leading 28-20. A trick pass from Bud Sasser to L’Damian Washington turned into a 40-yard touchdown that gave Missouri a comfortable 34-20 lead.

Franklin was having a pretty good day before getting injured. He completed 18 of 27 completions for 170 yards and one touchdown.

Missouri improved to 6-0 overall and 2-0 in SEC play, but their schedule remains tougher. Missouri has back-to-back home games against Florida next Saturday and South Carolina on Oct. 26.

The Tigers face Tennessee on Nov. 2, following a road trip to Kentucky on Nov. 9. They will also travel to Ole Miss on Nov. 23 after their bye week and will host Johnny Manziel and the Aggies on Nov. 30. If Franklin’s shoulder shows positive progression, he could possibly be back for the Ole Miss game.

Missouri leads No. 7 Georgia at halftime

With two quarters already in the books, Missouri leads the struggling Bulldogs at half 28-10.

Iv read lots of comments and discussions throughout the game and everyone seems to blame the injuries for the reason why Georgia is down 18. Yes, injuries are a factor in today’s game but the Bulldogs are still killing themselves with turnovers. Aaron Murray had a pretty solid first half, completing 15 of 22 passes for 188 yards and one touchdown. Georgia isn’t having trouble finding open receivers and marching down the field but two lost fumbles are costly. Especially one scooped up and returned for a touchdown by Michael Sam.

Don’t count Missouri out. This young Missouri team has a bunch of talent. You can’t expect them to travel to Georgia’s turf without putting up a fight. James Franklin completed 12 of 18 completions for 135 yards and one touchdown. Running back Marcus Murphy is also showing out for Mizzo, rushing the ball 3 times for 51 yards and a touchdown.

If Georgia wants to save their rear end from picking up their first SEC loss, they need to tighten up. And fast. There is still a lot of ball left to play but in order for Georgia to compete this second half their defense needs to really pick it up. I think Georgia will make a little run and close up the gap but I don’t have any confidence in their defense. I have Missouri winning by 14.

Missouri at Georgia in Big SEC Game

If you didn’t have the Missouri Tigers at Georgia Bulldogs as the big SEC Game of Week 7, then don’t feel too badly. CBS didn’t either,. That is why they are showing the Florida Gators at the LSU Tigers tomorrow. When the schedule came out, the South Carolina Gamecocks at the Arkansas Razorbacks probably seemed like a bigger contest than Missouri-Georgia. Then there was also the Texas A&M Aggies at the Ole Miss Rebels game that really looked like a big one a couple of weeks ago.

With all the tough games the Bulldogs have already played this season, they likely were looking forward to the game with the Tigers as a breather. So much for that. Mizzou comes into the game ranked #25 and with a 5-0 record. This makes the third ranked team of Tigers the Dawgs have faced already this season. They lost to the Clemson Tigers in the season opener 38-35 and beat the LSU Tigers two weeks ago 44-41. This Tigers-Dawgs game has the potential to be another good one.

Georgia comes into the game wounded. Their fantastic tailback duo of Todd Gurley and Keith Marshall has been reduced to a gimpy Gurley, who may not even play.  Mizzou’s schedule has been rather light so far, but perhaps not quite as light as previously thought. One of the teams they beat, the Indiana Hoosiers, walloped the Penn State Nittany Lions last week 44-24. They also put quite a beating on the Vanderbilt Commodores a week ago in Nashville.

Georgia barely escaped the Tennessee Volunteers in overtime a week ago. Missouri is surely as good as Tennessee. Georgia is an eight point faborite in this game. Do not be surprised if the Tigers not only beat the spread but also win the game.

Clowney’s Misstep

Jadeveon Clowney spoke to the media after the South Carolina Gamecocks’ practice Tuesday, and announced that he was questionable for Saturday’s game against Arkansas with a sprain near his ribs. Clowney told reporters that his last minute decision to sit out of the Gamecock’s game last Saturday was a “miscommunication” between the training staff, himself, and head coach Steve Spurrier. “I should’ve handled it different, but it was a miscommunication. They responded to me going back and telling them what was going on and they realized the injury was more serious than they thought,” Clowney stated. After his late decision to sit out right before kickoff, heaps of questions arose of if he was really injured or sitting our for personal reasons.

The South Carolina team’s best player insists that he will be back on the field when he is healthy and coach says it is alright. Head coach Steve Spurrier addressed the media and stated “I just want to clear the air that Jadeveon — all those No. 7 jerseys and all the money he has made for our school — he has been a tremendous, important player. Every Gamecock, including me, the coaches and everybody else, we need to be appreciative that he chose South Carolina. He could have gone anywhere in the country. He is a big reason we have had those seasons. He is trying to do all he can to get ready to play.” Spurrier stood up for his team’s best player and assured all Gamecock fans that Clowney will be back on the field as soon as he is healthy. As for the miscommunication before the Arkansas game head coach said that the staff and himself handled it poorly, “This was a situation that he had something that was really bothering him and hopefully it will be taken care of real soon…He is hurt. If he doesn’t play another down every Gamecock should be thankful he is here.”

This has not been the season for Jadeveon Clowney that anyone predicted. Clowney is coming off an impressive 2012 season recording 52 tackles, with 40 of them being solo, and 13 sacks. Last season he gained accolades for his hit on Michigan running back Vincent Smith in the Outback Bowl. The video of Clowney completely trucking the running back, forcing the fumble and keeping the game alive for the Gamecocks went viral. As a result of his notable season last year, Clowney began the season as one of the Heisman hopefuls, but has only recorded 12 tackles and 2 sacks according to Cfbstats. Clowney assures that all is well. “When I get back healthy, I’m going to play and do my job and take care of business on the field.”

Information from The Associated Press, ESPN, The Bleacher Report, USAtoday and sbnation was used in this article.

Gators Roast the Razorbacks

The Florida Gators improved to 4-1 overall for the season, and 3-0 in conference play with the 30-10 defeat of the Arkansas Razorbacks. The Gators have never lost to Arkansas in the Swamp (4-0) and sustained that record in the first night game of the season, last night, in Ben Hill Griffin Stadium. The energy inside the stadium was immense as the first night game in two years brought a great victory for the Gators. Junior cornerback Loucheiz Purifoy and senior wide receiver Soloman Patton were the key players in the Gator’s victory.

Florida’s offense struggled early in the game producing a punt and a blocked 44-yard field goal attempt. Arkansas had a 7-0 lead after freshman Jonathan Williams out ran the UF defense for a four-yard touchdown run late in the first quarter. The Gators defense had a slow start as well until it adjusted to the Arkansas offense that put up 81 yards in the first quarter. The 7-0 hole that the Gators were in was dug out of by kicker Brad Phillip’s 28-yard chip shot field goal. Arkansas led 7-3 when Ken Hatcher was out on a flair route into the right flat when Purifoy read quarterback Brandon Allen and intercepted the ball ending with the Gators on top 10-7. It was moderately smooth sailing from there when the Gator’s defense clamped down on Arkansas’s run game.

The key players to the game were Patton and Purifoy. Soloman Patton turned a pair of short receptions into touchdowns for the Gators. Patton finished with six catches and a career-high 124 yards. According to gatorzone.com, Patton was the first wide receiver to accomplish two touchdown passes in a game since Andre Debose November 19th, 2011 vs. Furman. Loucheiz Purifoy forced his first fumble of this season. He also returned a pick-six 42 yards for the lead. Purifoy recorded 4 tackles, the first sack of his career, and three pass break-ups. Loucheiz Purifoy was named Walter Camp Defensive Player of the Week. Also, Junior quarterback Tyler Murphy made his first home start since he replaced Jeff Driskel completing 16 of 22 passes for a career-high 240 yards.

The Razorback victory was Florida’s 10th straight home win and they remain tied with Georgia at the top of the SEC Eastern Division. The Razorbacks (3-3, 0-2) entered the game with an average of 237 yards per game on the ground, second-best in the SEC, but against the Gator’s second-best run defense in the nation, they only acquired 111 yards rushing on 29 attempts. The Gators move on to play LSU in Baton Rouge this Saturday.

Information from ESPN, GatorZone, and The Associated Press was used in this article.