Every college football team wants to be in the top 10, but when things go wrong, it’s all about avoiding the Flop 10.
Matthew Glenesk of USA TODAY Sports compiles the weekly list, and Florida’s 31-11 loss to Tennessee landed the Gators in the Week 13 edition.
“I know this season is toast with the main talking point in Gainesville is where do they turn if Lane Kiffin picks LSU? But getting boat-raced in The Swamp by Tennessee, unacceptable,” Glenesk wrote. “The Gators (3-8) showed some bite since firing Billy Napier in competitive losses to playoff-bound Georgia and Ole Miss. But this was just brutal, trailing 31-0 at halftime.”
Glenesk argues that an 11-0 second half for Florida means nothing when Tennessee snapped a 22-year losing streak in the Swamp — it’s also the program’s worst loss to Tennessee since 1990. Maybe an upset was unrealistic for the Gators, but getting embarrassed in a rivalry game that won’t be played annually starting next season is the definition of a flop. A competitive loss keeps Florida off this list.
Florida’s run defense has struggled over the past three weeks, and teams are beginning to exploit that fact. After not allowing a team to rush for more than 184 yards through the first eight games of the season, including Georgia, Kentucky (233), Ole Miss (237) and Tennessee (248) have all broken that threshold. Over that period, teams are averaging 5.02 yards per carry, which makes it very hard to prevent first downs.
As a result, Florida is constantly playing catch-up offense, and it’s led to some forced throws from DJ Lagway. The sophomore quarterback’s interceptions lead the conference. The fan narrative is that the offense is at least more interesting, but the average yards per attempt isn’t changing accordingly.
Firing Billy Napier was supposed to be a breath of fresh air. However, things are getting worse. Losing to Florida State on Saturday would likely land the Gators on the Flop 10 for a second straight week.
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This article originally appeared on Gators Wire: Florida football lands on Week 13 USA TODAY Sports Flop 10
Reporting by David Rosenberg, Gators Wire / Gators Wire
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
