Florida Gators vs. Alabama Crimson Tide: If the Rays Can Do It, the Gators Can

This weekend, titans will clash. Teacher will take on student and the Swamp will be rolling with the Alabama Crimson Tide. The implications are high in this one, as predicted, but with AJ McCarron looking excellent as a first-year starter and the Gators looking better and better each week, the game has gotten bigger 

Florida’s neighbors to the south showed them that the impossible is reachable after Wednesday night's come from behind victory over the Yankees. Evan Longoria hit a walk off for the Rays and the Orioles beat the Red Sox for the icing on the cake for Tampa to sprint into the playoffs. Need any more inspiration?

Each team has played four games and a lot has been learned of the two SEC powerhouses, but this game will be decided by a select few factors and I’m here to tell you about them.

The Alabama Defense 

Alabama entered last week’s game against Arkansas allowing 55.3 yards per game on the ground and held the Razorbacks to 17 yards rushing as a team. Prior to that, Ronnie Wingo averaged 75 YPG and was coming off a 109 YD, two-touchdown performance against a resilient Troy team.

He was held to a frustrating 35 yards on 11 carries. I’m not sure if Knile Davis would’ve made much of an impact if he were available to play in this one.  Tyler Wilson was constantly hurried and ended up with only 185 yards in the air, a serious downgrade from his previous three games.

The Tide can now brag that they rank in the top three in each of the four major defensive categories. They allow only 45.8 rushing yards per game (third in FBS), 138.3 in the air (third), 184 total YPG (second) and a measly eight points per game (second).

Saban’s disguising of his coverages has been a key ingredient to his success. He had Tyler Wilson throwing off his back foot all game and if John Brantley is not quick, spontaneous and consistent, he’ll have Dre Kirkpatrick and Dont’a Hightower running through his dreams for a while.

The Florida Defense 

A 4-0 mark for the third straight year, 406 rush yards last week and Brantley looking poised is means for a defense to have even more motivation to get their offense back out on the field.

Like the Tide, the Gators boast one of the countries best defenses to compliment their powerful offense. They are a top-10 team in three major categories and should have all the kinks worked out for Saturday’s game. 

The Florida defense is currently allowing 56.5 rush yards per game, good for fifth best in the nation. It will surely rise this weekend after the likes of Trent Richardson and Eddie Lacy come to town.

They are both dual threats running and catching the ball and both have a 60+-yard TD run to their resume this season. If you want to slow these two down, you have to get to AJ McCarron first. This is by far the best defense he will face and the Gators need to make him know that. Force mistakes from him, get your offense the ball and you have a chance.

The Florida Offensive Line 

The main reason why John Brantley is completing 64 percent of his passes so far this season is because his offensive line is giving him time to throw. Through the first four games, Brantley has been sacked twice. Yes, twice. Out of the Gators' 271 total plays in 2011, Brantley has been sacked twice. If you want to do the math, 0.73 percent of their snaps this season have resulted in a sack. That is impressive for any team, college or NFL, especially in the SEC. 

The Alabama defense has five sacks on the season and 25 tackles for a loss. The line will have to step their game up and protect Brantley, open holes for the running backs and allow Rainey and Demps to pick up speed out of the backfield.

Trent Richardson 

Heisman Trophy contender Trent Richardson is the heart of this Tide offense, and he is showing us why. Last week against a “tough” Razorback team he had 126 yards on the ground and caught three passes for 85 yards and a touchdown. He is averaging a stellar 6.4 yards per carry and has run and caught a pass for over 60 yards this season.

If the Gators lose in this one, it will be because of him. Slow down Trent, slow down the Tide. Much easier said than done, but Will Muschamp is more than capable of devising the correct game plan.

Special Teams 

Bottom of the ninth, “Enter Sandman” comes on the loudspeaker and Caleb Sturgis jogs out on the field, not Mariano Rivera. He is your game breaker. This will be a close game and can come down to special teams and Sturgis. He is 11-11 this season and has made 13 straight field goals dating back to last season. Don’t be surprised to see the game come down to him and if it does, he’s lights out. 

On the other end of special teams, Chris Rainey will have his chance to shine. He’ll likely be having a frustrating day trying to find holes in the Alabama defense so this is where he can pick up speed. He already has a punt return for a touchdown this season and a blocked one as well.

If he wants to make something happen and ignite the ruckus Swamp crowd, this is how you do it. If he cannot, Solomon Patton is more than capable of breaking off a kick return, but the less kick returns for him the better in this one.