Gary Danielson’s key to the game isn’t that key.

Does Florida have a chance Saturday?  According to Danielson, the Gators do, if

Danielson: They have a shot because defensively they can stop run. The last eight years the teams that have run for the most yards has won the game. Somebody asked me: What would be the weakness of Georgia. At first I thought was their secondary, because so many players turned over. But I think they’ve done a nice job of turning that around. That matches up with their outstanding pass rush. They have a lot of veteran linebacker who make a lot of plays.

I would say if Georgia has a weakness it is quarterback. You probably wouldn’t believe this, but its Georgia that is ranked 112th in passing. Florida is ranked 94th. The reason for that is that they run it pretty darn good.

So the matchup has to be: can Florida force Georgia into a passing game and take advantage of that. If not they have no chance.

The problem with that analysis is that he’s looking at passing yardage.  When you compare passer rating it’s Georgia 27th, Florida 116th.

Georgia hasn’t had to go chase yards in the passing game this season because it’s run the ball so well, true.  But that doesn’t automatically mean the passing game isn’t good enough to get those yards if they’re needed.  Besides that, it’s the same facile analysis we’ve seen about Georgia’s offense all season.  At 6-1, it’s hard to see where any opponent has been able to make that a go.

Danielson is right in that Florida possesses the best rushing defense Georgia will see this season.  But the Gators didn’t exactly slow down either of the two stout running offenses they’ve already faced.

By the way, Georgia’s rushing defense ain’t too shabby, either.  In fact, it’s ranked higher in average yards per rush than Florida’s.  So what’s the Gator offense going to do if Georgia forces it into a passing game?

I know I sound like a broken record, but Georgia’s chances are going to come down to turnover margin and field position.  That’s what the Dawgs are built around and that’s what you have to control if you want to beat them.

45 Comments

Filed under Gators, Gators..., Georgia Football

45 responses to “Gary Danielson’s key to the game isn’t that key.

  1. IAmAGurleyMan

    Great analysis of Danielson’s analysis. Quite amateur of him to look at passing yards without discussing the context, if you asked me.

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    • Carlton Thomas

      Aaah, so our passing is a strength, we just choose not to rely on it..?

      If we’re depending on Hutson Mason in the second half, this game will not end well.

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      • Maybe you’re right, although Mason held up his part of the deal against Georgia Tech when called upon.

        But here’s the bigger question: how does Florida’s offense force Georgia to depend on Mason in the second half?

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        • McTyre

          gator TDs off defense and ST – a hallmark of WMs first 2 teams – could also put our o off our spot.

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          • Georgia doesn’t turn the ball over and outside of punt returns, Florida’s special teams are mediocre this year.

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            • So. IL Dawg

              Debose is an absolute game changer that scares the heck out of me. He’s the only player that scares me. Kick and punt coverage teams need to be ready to keep him in check.

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              • Passing looked decent in the first half against Arky. In Chubb I believe but I was really hoping Gurley or Michel would be back to carry some of the load.

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                • As ever, here is that old Cocktail Party angst. There must always be some unexpected influence that puts the Dawgs on edge. Running back depth may not have been much of a concern vs. the defenses of Missouri and the Hogs, but against this defense feeding a freshman 35 times looks mucho risky. This game will fall, more than any previous, on the Senior QB.

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                • Cojones

                  And Hutson has filled his measure before. Long passes, short passes – he has come through with a high 68-69% and just keeps delivering. Somehow this hasn’t caught hold in many minds, but I believe those minds to be in the negative minority.

                  We owe Hutson Mason full loyalty as an excellent QB that many choose not to acknowledge because it makes them dumb shits for not researching his abilities to begin with and declaring he is in the bottom of the SEC in QB ranking. Well, hello! He has thumped every unsavory left- handed compliment and gone the way of his talents. First, we wanted to appreciate him for his conservative talent of managing the ball and managing the team. Bullshit. Expect that grudging admiration is better than none, but most of the criticism comes from idiot pundits who didn’t do their homework and lowered everyone’s expectations from the git-go. Other idiots followed their lead and that invited trolls from all over. Next, because there was no need to pass very much, he was criticized for not passing very much. After that was disproven, it was noted by the visage of some fans, that he couldn’t throw the long pass accurately. Ark game debunked that in the first series.

                  What the hell does it take for fans to appreciate this guy, analyse his value positively and realize what an asset he is? There are other teams in the SEC who would gladly take him, place him on a pedestal for leading their team with his management handoffs while protecting the ball, passing the ball with one of the highest average completions in CFB, and leading a powerful SEC team almost to perfection.

                  I hope this team is all wrapped around itself and have the “Us-against-the-world” attitude. They are going to need it because, if Hutson is the perceived weak link, Hutson and his team are in a position to throw shit in the fan that they have succeeded in pointing away from them. I wouldn’t doubt that we might see his “dependable” forearm through someone’s facemask before it’s all said and done. He and this team have dreams and have performed patiently in the face of distractions. Life is just that more special to be able to join with them in that dream. They (and fans) know they have one shot. Let’s join’em in that shot for their dream. With us cheering like hell, Hutson and his team can run through the rest of the season’s schedule like shit through a goose.

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                • Good post.

                  Long passes, short passes – he has come through with a high 68-69% and just keeps delivering. Somehow this hasn’t caught hold in many minds

                  Well, he’s not on track for 3500-4000 yards. Stats, you know.
                  ~~~

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            • Florida’s punting game is good — which could mean more long fields and adverse field position for the Dawgs. But I checked the stats, and an intriguing matchup is UF punt returns (5th nationally) vs. UGa punt coverage (4th ). Georgia has allowed just 7 returns of a punt in as many games for under 2 yds./per.

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      • Cosmic Dawg

        Going by our ranking, yeah, I’d say it’s a strength. It just happens we have been missing some receivers and have the best tailbacks in the country..

        Our RB’s do an amazing job of protecting the ball and our D has improved dramatically, so we choose to run clock for entire halves of games instead of airing it out.

        Mason can’t catch a break this year.

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  2. Charles

    I think what’s he’s really trying to say, Senator, is that Florida “is due.”

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  3. SemperFiDawg

    That’s a big “if.” It ain’t like ‘stopping the run’ is an epiphany. Others have tried.

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  4. Spike

    Block and Tackle better than they do.

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  5. Russ

    His analysis is pretty obvious but what else can he say? He’s also promoting the game so he has to come up with a way Florida can win.

    Hope fully we just methodically grind them down with a steady dose of Chubb, with timely passes from Mason.

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  6. uglydawg

    Just another example of shallow and lazy research. It doesn’t take a deep thinker to realize that Georgia has a running game so good that it hasn’t had to throw that much. He’s just trying to sound as if he’s done a lot of analysis and is on top of it…instead he shows he’s shallow and full of it.

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    • dave

      Exactly the how I feel! He always seems to be b.s.’n his way through calling the games

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    • Cosmic Dawg

      I usually like him pretty good but you are spot on. In his defense, as Russ noted above, he’s just trying to find a story angle.

      I think the story is you have a desperate, cornered animal with a lot of frustration and emotions near the surface, and with nothing to lose vs a team that has, in previous years, shown occasional complacency .

      Add to that a bye week and a nice comfy win streak ….hop boy.

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      • Cojones

        Add to that: a “don’t give a flying shit what your problem is, but I’m gonna kick your ass for the pleasure of it” Dawg attitude and you got yourself a slobber-knocking SEC game full of exultation and inhalation.

        Add to that a nasty attitude about not only not having their favorite player in the game because of one of FU’s beard-jorts-wearing redneck “fans” who had caustic quotes after a big Jax Dawg win that used the equivalent of “stupid” in the same sentence with “puppies” sarcastically for fans to buy his memmorabilia, but also for his performing both those fan debasements with zeal and vengeance in his heart against an already inflamed Dawg Nation.

        Let’s call it Animal Control, by Dawg(s).

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  7. charlottedawg

    Hasn’t this series always come down to turnovers? In the debacle of 2008 we actually out-gained the gators. In 2011 we had one turnover to their two (and 14 points off those 2 to their 3 points off our 1) and the next year we got picked three times but it didn’t matter because the gators turned it over 6 times. Take care of the ball and we win.

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    • Hasn’t this series always come down to turnovers? Take care of the ball and we win.

      That, and other mistakes. We have to be ready for a fight and play a solid game, IMO.
      ~~~

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  8. The other Doug

    The best way to get UGA out of their game plan is to score a lot of points and force Bobo to keep up. If you let us play field advantage and the turn over margin we will where you out. The problem for the Gators is I can’t see them putting up a lot of points.

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  9. dave

    Am I the only one that that rolled their eyes every time Gary Danielson talks… He just sounds so moronic every time he gets info wrong about players etc…

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    • I like Danielson as a color guy. As a big picture analyst, not so much.

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      • Reservoir Dawg

        The CBS boobs are the biggest FU homers on the circuit. That and the fact that he and Verne still have Tiny Tears’ (the GPOOE) DNA dribbling down their chins. No credibility when it comes to calling this game. They ignored the Washaun Ealey Brandon Spikes eye gouge while screaming about the Alabama – Ole Miss facemask no call a few weeks back.

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      • Cojones

        Was it that long ago that I saw a Danielson plug here? When he calls, he not only has good historical and personal data on players and plays (I know, the network provides them), but also is predictive and insightful on plays and players. I used to think of him as much worse. I thought that’s what the plug was about as well as acknowledging his improvement.

        Didn’t we go through this with Bobo?

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  10. ChicagoDawg

    Maybe it is the scars of the 90s at play here, but I have a sense of dread about this game. Games that too obvious for Georgia rarely turn out that way.

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    • Russ

      I think this team has a completely different mentality than other recent teams. Missouri and Arkansas were perfect opportunities to fold under pressure but both games were managed perfectly.

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      • uglydawg

        What Russ said.

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      • ChicagoDawg

        Precisely, such is my dread.

        Georgia unexpectedly far surpassed expectations on the road with those two games, sans Gurley. Agent Muschamp is a dead man walking. UF defied all odds in getting curb stomped by Mizzou, at home, despite yielding only 120 yards. Gurley is supposedly going to be back. It is just too lopsidedly obvious. Ahem…. such is the psychological dysfunction of my 4 decades of conditioning.

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    • uglydawg

      I feel your pain, ChicagoDawg. But I just have this feeling that this is a completely different kind of Georgia. These guys are so focused and determined that I’m only half as worried as I normally would be…which is still a heap.
      BTW…how do you like living in The Windy City? Lewis Grizzard once lived there and wrote some good stuff from there. Here’s a great read about his time there, if you’re interested.
      http://www.chicagoreader.com/chicago/lewis-grizzards-chicago-bad-memoriessmoke-appeal/Content?oid=876849

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      • ChicagoDawg

        Love it, without equivocation. Been here for 11 years, after having spent the first 33 years of my life in Georgia and don’t have any regrets. Great city/Metropolitan area – despite the politics and fiscal dysfunction. Generally excellent schools and has been a wonderful place to raise a family.

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  11. AusDawg85

    Looks like the NCAA has just given a whole lot of motivation to the Dawgs.

    Go in Peace Todd Gurley…oh what could have been.

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  12. I’ve thought all year this game would be tough, and nothing to date has changed that. We will need our A-game, IMO. Just hope we respond to the Gurley news with that ‘circle the wagons’ mentality, and nothing else, because we have a fight on our hands.

    We need a great practice today. Eager to hear Richt’s description of it later today.
    ~~~

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