OGT: FLORIDA vs. Tulane -- Gasparilla Bowl (Tampa) -- December 20, 2024 @ 3:30 PM [ESPN2]

Would have been class of 92 Spruce Creek, but moved to Houston. I went to Seabreeze Jr. which I think is a parking lot now.

 

Ft Myers.

 

Go Gators!

 

I completely agree with you on the great turnaround and the well-deserved kudos. I'm not so sure about how "awful" (as in scary) that schedule is next year when compared to '24. There will be no Cam Ward and little pre-season hype for LSU, Ole Miss or FSU for '25. Throw in a Georgia team with possible QB issues and a few apparent cracks here and there, against a more mature DJL with a solid OL. Then add a vastly improved UF D for good measure. I am always respectful of our SEC schedule, and '25 is really a tough one. But we've faced a "murderer's row" stretch of games on so many occasions since the early sixties that, like many old timers, I just view them as part of the gig. But after seeing the growth and character of this talented young team, I don't feel the dread many of us experienced going into last season. At long last we have some concrete progress to point to. I suspect that with two easy games to work out the bugs before facing UM, there may be some teams dreading the Gators before mid-season ever rolls around. JMHO.

 

Congrats to all the coaches, trainers, and players of the 2024 Gator Football team.
The 8 wins and 5 loses record is really amazing when you consider the many obstacles that they overcame.

Best wishes and good luck for those:

1. Who have played their last game for UF.
2. Who are continuing their journey at UF.
3. Who are coming to UF via the signing class or the Portal.

 

Was thinking yesterday what our O/U will be next season. 7.5?

 

This look. Reminds me that if he steps on your foot, it is maimed for life.

 

Yep, second half of the season represents progress as does the bowl win.....finally. Happy to see some optimism in the program, but I guess I am a bit more conservative in my optimism than most.

It's somewhat hard to assess the schedule until the portal closes and I agree that it seems like we always have a tough schedule. No doubt the season starts much easier and hopefully generates some confidence. However, Florida's biggest wins late were at home and the coach has yet to secure a significant road win. Next year the Gators have to win on the road at LSU and Ole Miss. Those 2 teams "may" take a step back but those are still 2 tough places to win, especially BR at night. Toss in road games to Miami and Aggie land and I could easily see the Gators being underdogs in all 4 plus the home game vs Texas and Georgia in Jax.

 

I'd frankly be surprised if Texas and Georgia aren't heavily favored no matter how well UF does. LSU and Ole Miss are as much of a mystery as they ever were, but I don't go into either game thinking we can't win - not eleven months before the fact, anyway. I still maintain that the schedule is challenging but not crushingly so. JMHO.

 

Rewatching the game. This is impressive…

 

I remember seeing that.

 

Nothing wrong with guarded optimism. There are a lot of areas for improvement. But we've turned a corner where there's fewer things wrong than not.

A lot of work to do. Roster, staff and culture is improving. Hopefully we can take it to another level and improve execution on both sides of the ball, better starts in 1st and 3rd quarters, better red zone efficiency, improved 3rd down defense... Plenty more.

A lot of it will follow Lagways arc. Winning the first 4 or more next year would facilitate all of it.

 

The Texas game in the Swamp will be one of the most momentous games in Gator history.

 

I will say although we ended the season on a huge 4 game win streak, Napier has work to do. He needs to work on his playcalling, especially his 1st half playcalling. We won't make the CFP if it takes us an entire half to get going. Secondly, Lagway has a blind spot that needs to be corrected or we won't win half our games next year. His blind spot is he can't see defenders who drop back into coverage. The vast majority of his picks are when defenders drop back into coverage resulting in a pick every 12 attempts. In all other scenarios, he averages 1 pick every 26 attempts. That has to be corrected or every DC will mix that in trying to confuse for an easy turnover.

 

Hopefully we are both undefeated and we wax them. And going forward I'd rather be playing Texas a lot rather than Tamu if sec scheduling works like that in the future.

 

The only school that really ever had an answer for Earnest Graham running the ball

 

Why would you rather play Texas?.
The only positive I see would be a road trip to Austin. Historically, Texas has a far better program.

 

UT in Texas is similar to UF in Florida, the flagship, and because of Austin.