Chomping at the Bit: Florida Gators Covering Up John Brantley's Injuries?
Chomping at the Bit is Joe Morgan's weekly take on Florida Gators football. This series will consist of reactions to the current season, as well as any other Gator news.
Current Record: 4-2
Where They Rank: No. 22
Where They Should Be Ranked: No. 22
Next Game: Oct. 16, Mississippi State
Previous Game Recap: With a 33-29 defeat against the LSU Tigers, the Florida Gators have now suffered back-to-back losses for just the second time during Urban Meyer's tenure in Gainesville.
The orange-clad Gators were inefficient offensively, failing to rack up 100 yards of total offense in the first half for the fourth time this season, and the defense fell victim to a fake field goal play and a great game-winning touchdown catch by LSU wide receiver Terrence Toliver.
While Florida still controls their own destiny in the SEC East race, Urban Meyer's squad will have to play mistake-free football from here on out if they want to play in Atlanta for a third consecutive season.
How Injured Is John Brantley?
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While Urban Meyer and the quarterback himself both insisted that John Brantley was just slightly injured after taking a beating in the Gatos' 31-6 loss to Alabama, ESPN's Joe Schad begs to differ.
Schad's report stated that Brantey has four cracked ribs and a broken thumb on his throwing hand, but Meyer claims the injuries aren't that severe.
However, Brantley is sticking to his guns, denying Schad's report and saying that his ribs are "just a little banged up" and his thumb is only "sprained" and "just a minor thing."
To be frank, if Brantley missed a game or two, it wouldn't really be that much of a setback for the Gators offense.
Florida would be much better off having healthy guys like Trey Burton, Jordan Reed, and Tyler Murphy taking snaps while Brantley tries to let his ribs and thumb heal.
And who knows? Maybe Burton, Reed, or Murphy will step up and lead the Gators out of offensive mediocrity.
Andre Debose Finally Emerges As a Playmaker
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Many expected Andre Debose to be the second coming of Percy Harvin when arrived in Gainesville.
Unfortunately for the redshirt freshman, a season-ending hamstring injury prior to the 2009 campaign and some struggles in learning the offense have limited Debose's playing time.
However, a left foot injury to junior running back Jeff Demos has forced Debose into service and it paid off for the Gators Saturday night when No. 4 scored a touchdown on an 88-yard kickoff return.
I have been advocating for Debose to see an increased role in Florida's game plan and hopefully, his big run may finally give Urban Meyer the confidence to make him an integral part of the offense.
"We identified an electric playmaker tonight," Florida coach Urban Meyer told The Gainesville Sun. "Now we need him to do that more consistent and more often."
Is Steve Addazzio's Job In Jeopardy?
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While I don't have confidence in Steve Addazio as the offensive coordinator, I don't think that Urban Meyer will fire or demote him and I explained why in this article.
However, many other members of the Gator Nation hold out hope that I'm wrong and that Meyer will make a change in his offensive coaching staff and have formed the website FireSteveAddazio.com.
The offense was even booed on multiple occasions Saturday night, something that has rarely happened since Meyer took over as the head coach at Florida.
Mike McCall of The Independent Florida Alligator wrote a good column that epitomized the frustration of the Gator faithful with Addazio and the 2010 version of the Florida offense.
And, agreeing with McCall, I think you should continue to boo if Addazio sends Demps or Gillislee up the middle again and again and again next week.
Maybe it'll make a difference.
.jpg?w=256 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
What Did You Think Of The Orange Jerseys?
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In an homage to the old days of Gator football, Florida wore orange jerseys against the LSU Tigers in Saturday's 33-29 loss.
According to Kevin Brockway of The Gainesville Sun, it was the first time the Gators have donned orange since November 18, 1989.
While I actually kind of liked the orange jerseys, I definitely would prefer that Urban Meyer stick with blue in the future.
It's always fun to see Nike experiment with the Gator uniform and from 2005's weird orange-sleeved jersey to last year's sharp white helmets, they always give us something to talk about.
What do you think of last week's orange jerseys and this season's Nike Pro-Combat uniforms that will be worn against Georgia?
.jpg?w=480 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
