The last time Miami played the Gators, a veteran Gators’ pass rush overwhelmed an inexperienced Canes’ offense. That mathchup will look different on Saturday, as a Miami offense loaded with veterans takes on a Gator defense trying to move on from a disastrous season.
We dove into the numbers to see how the two teams match up. National rankings are in parentheses:
OVERALL
Miami scoring offense- 30.1 ppg (38th)
Florida scoring defense- 29.5 ppg (85th)
Miami yards per play- 6.1 YPP (25th)
Florida yards per play against- 6.5 YPP (124th)
Miami giveaways per game- 1.8 ypg (109th)
Florida takeaways per game- 0.6 per game (128th)
Miami’s offense improved dramatically across the board under Shannon Dawson, but was hampered by Tyler Van Dyke’s mental collapse against drop coverage. Florida’s defense struggled in all phases and could not generate turnovers.
Based on what I’ve observed in practice and film, and speaking to sources, Cam Ward is a significant improvement over Van Dyke in terms of IQ. His turnover issues come from fumbles, which were exacerbated by a terrible Washington State line. Florida did not land impact personnel in the Portal, but added a veteran co-defensive coordinator (Rob Roberts) and is counting on improvement from its young players.
One of the key questions of the game: which side is going to solve its turnover issue?
THE RUN GAME
Miami yards per rush- 5.0 ypg (20th)
Florida yards per rush allowed- 5.1 ypg (117th)
Miami rushing yards per game- 167.6 ypg (47th)
Florida rushing yards per game allowed- 165.5 ypg (88th)
This is a significant advantage for Miami, on paper. The Canes had one of the most efficient running games in the nation last year without the benefit of explosive runs. They’ve now added a Top 10 college back in Damien Martinez. The Gators have size on the interior, but could not stop the run all year. They will benefit from the return of injured LB Shemar James and the addition of LB Pup Howard from South Carolina, a highly touted recruit who played a backup role at South Carolina last year.
THE PASSING GAME
Miami yards per pass- 7.5 (57th)
Florida yards per pass against- 8.5 (124th)
Miami sack percentage allowed- 3.6% (15th)
Florida’s sack percentage- 6.04% (72nd)
The Canes’ pass game is a bit of an unknown, as it revolves around a player (Cam Ward) who was not here last year. But most observers project significant improvement based on his past performance. The Gators pass defense was one of the worst in the nation last year. They couldn’t tackle, the coverage was poor and the pass rush was limited. They also lost their best pass rusher to the Portal (Princely Umanmielen).
The Gators are counting on the return of EDGE Justus Boone from injury, the addition of Washington veteran S Asa Turner, and growth from some highly ranked young players to improve their pass defense.
EXPLOSIVE PLAYS
Miami scrimmage plays (national rank):
10+ yards- 40th
20+ yards- 35th
30+ yards- 70th
40+ yards- 57th
50+ yards- 56th
Florida scrimmage plays allowed (national rank):
10+ yards- 50th
20+ yards- 71st
30+ yards- 123rd
40+ yards- 132nd
50+ yards- 118th
Florida’s defense had many weaknesses last year, but the worst was their propensity for giving up huge explosives. They were a poor tackling team at all three levels. Miami was middle-of-the-road in terms of explosiveness last year, hampered by a lack of explosive runs and a true burner at wide receiver.
Will the addition of Cam Ward, Sam Brown and Damien Martinez allow Miami to exploit the Gators’ weakness?
We dove into the numbers to see how the two teams match up. National rankings are in parentheses:
OVERALL
Miami scoring offense- 30.1 ppg (38th)
Florida scoring defense- 29.5 ppg (85th)
Miami yards per play- 6.1 YPP (25th)
Florida yards per play against- 6.5 YPP (124th)
Miami giveaways per game- 1.8 ypg (109th)
Florida takeaways per game- 0.6 per game (128th)
Miami’s offense improved dramatically across the board under Shannon Dawson, but was hampered by Tyler Van Dyke’s mental collapse against drop coverage. Florida’s defense struggled in all phases and could not generate turnovers.
Based on what I’ve observed in practice and film, and speaking to sources, Cam Ward is a significant improvement over Van Dyke in terms of IQ. His turnover issues come from fumbles, which were exacerbated by a terrible Washington State line. Florida did not land impact personnel in the Portal, but added a veteran co-defensive coordinator (Rob Roberts) and is counting on improvement from its young players.
One of the key questions of the game: which side is going to solve its turnover issue?
THE RUN GAME
Miami yards per rush- 5.0 ypg (20th)
Florida yards per rush allowed- 5.1 ypg (117th)
Miami rushing yards per game- 167.6 ypg (47th)
Florida rushing yards per game allowed- 165.5 ypg (88th)
This is a significant advantage for Miami, on paper. The Canes had one of the most efficient running games in the nation last year without the benefit of explosive runs. They’ve now added a Top 10 college back in Damien Martinez. The Gators have size on the interior, but could not stop the run all year. They will benefit from the return of injured LB Shemar James and the addition of LB Pup Howard from South Carolina, a highly touted recruit who played a backup role at South Carolina last year.
THE PASSING GAME
Miami yards per pass- 7.5 (57th)
Florida yards per pass against- 8.5 (124th)
Miami sack percentage allowed- 3.6% (15th)
Florida’s sack percentage- 6.04% (72nd)
The Canes’ pass game is a bit of an unknown, as it revolves around a player (Cam Ward) who was not here last year. But most observers project significant improvement based on his past performance. The Gators pass defense was one of the worst in the nation last year. They couldn’t tackle, the coverage was poor and the pass rush was limited. They also lost their best pass rusher to the Portal (Princely Umanmielen).
The Gators are counting on the return of EDGE Justus Boone from injury, the addition of Washington veteran S Asa Turner, and growth from some highly ranked young players to improve their pass defense.
EXPLOSIVE PLAYS
Miami scrimmage plays (national rank):
10+ yards- 40th
20+ yards- 35th
30+ yards- 70th
40+ yards- 57th
50+ yards- 56th
Florida scrimmage plays allowed (national rank):
10+ yards- 50th
20+ yards- 71st
30+ yards- 123rd
40+ yards- 132nd
50+ yards- 118th
Florida’s defense had many weaknesses last year, but the worst was their propensity for giving up huge explosives. They were a poor tackling team at all three levels. Miami was middle-of-the-road in terms of explosiveness last year, hampered by a lack of explosive runs and a true burner at wide receiver.
Will the addition of Cam Ward, Sam Brown and Damien Martinez allow Miami to exploit the Gators’ weakness?
