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| SJS College Football Extravaganza |
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| Commentary | ||
Wide Right, Wrong Game
Shades of Tennessee, 1998? There were some similarities, to be sure. The costly turnovers and the poor kicking in overtime. The way Florida won on the stat sheet but not on the scoreboard. But, in fact, this one had a lot more in common with the loss to Auburn in 1994, the last home loss for the Gators. And it had a lot in common with the back and forth SEC championship classics that the same two schools battled from 1992 to 1994. It did take a lot of good fortune for the Tide on Saturday, to be sure, but to summarize the game as a game of good bounces for Alabama and bad ones for Florida would not due justice to the Tide's performance. The fact is, the Tide did a lot right. Their offensive line was spectacular. Florida's defensive front occasionally brought pressure, but too often Andrew Zow had plenty of time to make the right throw. Also too often (like in the 1994 loss to Auburn), the Gators were in a loose zone and Zow used his extra time to find its seams. When Florida did burst through, as Thaddeus Bullard did on a handful of snaps, Zow was slippery and twisted out of Bullard's grasp on at least three occasions. Even better, his ability to find receivers and deliver the ball on the run was uncanny, and unexpected. Shaun Alexander was another key. The Gators clearly designed their defense around stopping him, and for the most part, their schemes worked. But while Alexander did not gain many yards, the yards he gained always seemed to count. There was one yard on fourth and goal, good for a touchdown. There was two or three on third and short all game long. And of course, there was 25 on one run in overtime. Coaching was another story. The play calling for Alabama was brilliant all game long. Offensively, Alabama had more than twice as many plays and twice as many possession minutes as Florida in the first half. Even when they seemed too conservative, like when three consecutive runs up the middle after a first and goal from the two resulted in three stuffs by the Gator defense, the Tide got daring and went for it on fourth down. Again conservative, with three minutes to go from midfield they punted, and it turned into one of their biggest gainers of the day thanks to a Darrel Jackson muff. Defensively, they did just enough to stop Florida, particularly on the final drive in regulation when Florida looked poised to at least get a field goal. Then a second down blitz and sack finished off regulation and forced the overtime. Alabama made few mistakes, forced some key turnovers, coached smart but occasionally bold, and executed at the skill positions. On the Florida side of the field, there is enough to criticize, but still, you wonder how the Gators lost. Because for the most part, they were coached well and they played well. The wide receivers made all the plays, and Jackson in particular deserved a game ball until the fateful fumble. Gillespie and Bo Carrol ran well. Doug Johson made very few mistakes, except pulling out too quickly under center in the first half, which resulted in a drive-killing fumble. But there were no interceptions and several beautifully thrown balls. Defensively, the Gators played well, but couldn't seem to wrap up Zow when they got to him, and couldn't seem to come up with a third down stop ever. The reliance on the zone will surely be criticized as if it were 1994 all over again with Ron Zook about to be run out of town. And of course there is the missed extra point. The snap was not great, but the hold was there. How did it go wide right anyway? That's not supposed to happen at the Swamp, it just ain't. Wide right, wrong game. That sucker's next week. |
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It took a lot for Alabama to end Florida's home win streak. It took two early fumbles, one by running back Robert Gillespie, and another by quarterback Doug Johnson, to break the Gators stride and keep them from converting solid drives into touchdowns. It took a fumbled punt by Darrel Jackson, who until that point had been perhaps Florida's best performer, at a time when possession was all the team needed to sew up the victory. It took a missed extra point in overtime from Florida's steady kicker Jeff Chandler, moments after Johnson had completed a perfect pass to put points on the board in the first overtime. And finally, it took an offsides penalty that negated Alabama's own missed point after to let the Tide finish off their collosal upset.