Leading into Saturday’s rivalry game between Florida State and Florida, the quarterbacks will receive plenty of attention. As will the head coaches, FSU’s Jimbo Fisher and UF’s Will Muschamp, and their shared beach house.
But as the Seminoles (7-4) and Gators (6-5) look for a win to end the regular season, the contest will mostly likely come down to which team’s lines perform better.
Muschamp’s familiarity with the SEC told him that it’s a line-of-scrimmage league. After his first season coaching Florida through its conference slate, Muschamp learned his team didn’t measure up.
Following a loss to South Carolina earlier this month, he summed up Florida’s problems, specifically on the offensive line.
“Not very good. Real simple,” he said. “We’re not deep enough, we don’t have enough numbers. It’s real simple. Just look at the roster. It’s how we gotta practice. We practice like a pro team. We do crossover work.”
“If they can turn the game into a one-dimensional game, then you have a problem,” said offensive coordinator Charlie Weis
Winning the line of scrimmage will be just as important vs. Florida State as it was during conference play. The Gators’ offensive line is part of a unit that ranks 91st in total offense and has allowed 21 sacks this season, a total that ties them for 58th nationally.
Against stronger defensive lines, it has not been able to create a run game. In games against Alabama, LSU and Georgia – three opponents who rank in the top four nationally in total defense — UF had 109 combined rushing yards and gave up 11 sacks.
The offensive line has struggled with lack of depth and injuries this year, with fewer than 10 players in the regular rotation. For the past month, UF has been playing with two tackles – Xavier Nixon and Matt Patchan – as starter Chaz Green has been out with a sprained ankle.
Even with their struggles, the Gators will need to find a way to run the ball on a FSU defense that ranks third against the run. And that starts with the line.
“If they can turn the game into a one-dimensional game, then you have a problem,” said offensive coordinator Charlie Weis
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