Georgia Football: Blueprint for defeating the Florida Gators
In just four days, Georgia football plays Florida and will try to bounce back from a loss to Vanderbilt.
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Georgia football will be the underdogs this Saturday. The spread is -7.5 for Florida and the Gators have won every game this year when the spread was in their favor.
Georgia is coming off a devastating 17-16 loss to Vanderbilt, while Florida defeated Missouri 40-14 in their last game. The Gators lead the SEC East and our playing much better football than the Bulldogs are right now.
So how can Georgia pull off the upset? Here’s the blueprint Georgia will need to follow to defeat the Gators for the fourth time in six years.
Just play defense
Georgia’s defense is more than capable of shutting down the Gators offense. The best defense they’ve played all season so far in Vanderbilt held them to 13 points and the offense only scored 26 of the teams 40 points against Missouri.
Besides the game against Ole Miss, Georgia’s defense has been exceptional. They create turnovers and keep Georgia’s offense in a position to win games. If they just play like they have all season to this point, Georgia’s offense will have a chance to score enough points to win.
Stick with what works on offense
Georgia has had games this season where the offense has fired on all cylinders, other games the offense has looked stale, and in the rest of the games the offense looked atrocious.
And the biggest reason is Georgia’s offensive identity in each game. They achieved balance against Tennessee to great success. They slung the ball around with Jacob Eason’s arm against Missouri. And against South Carolina, they rode the tanks Nick Chubb, Sony Michel and Brian Herrien to victory.
They won those games because they ran what worked. But in other games, they didn’t. The run was shut down against Nicholls State and Vanderbilt but they never elected to lean on the passing game which did have mild success those days.
What gives?
Florida’s defense is relentless and is up there with Alabama for the best defense in the SEC. If Georgia finds something that works against the Gators, they need to stick with it.
Have fun
Georgia has nothing to lose right now. They’re 4-3, practically eliminated from the SEC East race, and they’re underdogs. But this is the River City Showdown, the War for the Okefenokee Oar, the Worlds Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party, whatever you want to call it.
It’s Jacksonville in a neutral site SEC game. All eyes are on the Bulldogs and the Gators. There’s no reason to play up tight and worry too much. Which means Georgia can play as lose and free as they want.
Florida on the other hand is a one-loss SEC team leading the SEC East but knowing Tennessee has the tie breaker if they lose one more game. The Gators don’t have the luxury that the Bulldogs do.
Those were the ingredients of Florida’s upset over Georgia in 2014. The tables might have turned in 2016.