No. 5 LSU next for Gators at The Swamp
After posting an emotional upset win at Mississippi State, Florida could use a breather this week, right?
That’s not how it works in the Southeastern Conference. Florida’s reward after posting back-to-back road wins against Tennessee and Mississippi State is a date with No. 5 LSU on Saturday at The Swamp.
“The league always gets tougher, one week to the next,” coach Dan Mullen said.
Certainly, Mullen’s Gators were up to the task in knocking off Mississippi State 13-6 last Saturday. The buildup of the game was intense with Mullen returning to Starkville, Miss., less than 10 months after leaving Mississippi State to take the head coaching job at Florida. But behind a smothering defense effort, Florida secured the win, with the game decided on a safety-blitz sack by Donovan Stiner with under a minute remaining.
Florida held Mississippi State to just 202 total yards and just 43 yards of offense in the second half. Mullen said defensive players are buying into rotating in and out of plays, which has kept the defense fresher in the second half.
“When you see the fourth quarter, the second half, when your defense is fresh, the better of a chance you have to make plays,” Mullen said.
The Gators will need a strong effort on both sides of the ball to handle an LSU team that’s already knocked off Miami, Auburn and Ole Miss.
“They are going to pound you physically,” Mullen said. “So we have to be ready for that this week.”
Florida redshirt sophomore quarterback Feleipe Franks, who went 23-of-31 for 219 yards and one interception in the Mississippi State win, will get a chance to take more shots downfield against an LSU secondary that plays man coverage.
“We’re going to have one-one-one matchups and we’re going to have to win some of those matchups,” Mullen said
It should a charged atmosphere at The Swamp, with Florida honoring its 2008 national title team and inducting icon quarterback Tim Tebow into its Ring of Honor.
“We’re celebrating the 2008 national championship team, which is a pretty special day,” Mullen said. “Having a lot of great players and former players come back. I know it will be nice after a couple weeks to get back home, let someone else deal with the crowd noise.”